Behind the connection of John Urzua and Josh Imatorbhebhe, North Gwinnett overcame a big deficit early and blew past rival Collins Hill late on Friday night, winning 42-24 in the Region 7-AAAAAA opener for both teams.
The ninth-ranked Bulldogs (3-1) took their first lead of the game, 28-24, early in the fourth quarter when Urzua hit Imatorbhebhe for a 46-yard touchdown pass. North Gwinnett then turned a muffed punt into a short touchdown and returned an interception for a score to leave no doubt as to the outcome.
The Eagles (2-2) were going for their first back-to-back wins in the series since 2000-01, the first meetings between the schools. In the first half, they seemed a good bet to get it.
Collins Hill sophomore quarterback Monty Horn staked the Eagles to a 21-0 cushion with a trio of scoring tosses to three different receivers. The first came midway through the opening quarter when he dumped a screen pass over the oncoming rush and let Jordan Bertrand weave his way through the North Gwinnett defense for a 51-yard touchdown.
Horn then hooked up with Canyon Slade for a 5-yard score on fourth down early in the second quarter and hit Des Howard for a 24-yard touchdown with 6:43 left in the second quarter.
After a quarter and a half of stagnation, North Gwinnett finally got its prolific offense revved up, driving 84 yards and scoring on a 7-yard pass from Urzua to Almonzo Brown with 5:20 left in the half. Soon after, Connor Kleid recovered a blocked punt in the end zone to cut the lead to 21-14 late in the first half.
The Bulldogs entered the game averaging 455 yards of offense, including 344 through the air, but at halftime, they'd managed just 79 passing yards and 16 rushing yards on 11 carries.
They came to life in the third quarter, sparked by Urzua, who finished 19 of 33 for 323 yards and two touchdowns. Imatorbhebhe led all receivers with eight catches for 150 yards and one touchdown.
North Gwinnett is at Mill Creek next week, while Collins Hill hosts Meadowcreek.
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