Valdosta’s freshman kicker clinches region title, Winnersville Classic glory
VALDOSTA — Veteran leadership put Valdosta in position to win Friday night, but the game-winning play came from the opposite.
Freshman kicker Alans Garcia — who stands at 5-foot-5 and weighs 150 pounds, according to the team’s MaxPreps roster — snuck a 41-yard field goal over the crossbar to win the Winnersville Classic against Lowndes. Garcia scored the final three points of a 23-14 Valdosta win, clinching the Wildcats’ first region title since 2016.
The magnitude of the moment would have overwhelmed many high school freshmen. But Garcia said the high-stakes atmosphere — kicking in front of 12,000 people to snap a nine-year region title drought — just got him excited.
“The crowd got me hyped up, especially the band,” Garcia said. “The band was amazing.”
The kick also avenged Valdosta’s 37-27 loss to Lowndes last season.
The Vikings were 9-0 and stood alone in first place in the Region 1-6A standings entering Friday night.
It was also Valdosta coach Shelton Felton’s first region title since 2016, his last year coaching at Crisp County. Felton, now in his fifth year coaching the Wildcats, knew it was time to hang a banner.
“I’ve been hunting for that since I’ve been here,” Felton said. “At Valdosta, you better win championships, and I finally hung one, but we’re not done.
“I feel awesome for everybody in the stadium, the fans. It’s awesome.”
Felton treated the 9,000 Valdosta fans who blacked out the home bleachers at Bazemore-Hyder Stadium to a thrilling win. Felton made several gutsy calls in crucial moments on Friday night.
Valdosta faced a fourth-and-3 from the Lowndes 38-yard line with less than three minutes remaining in the half. The Wildcats had already failed to convert one fourth down in the first half, but that didn’t stop Felton from taking another risk.
This time, the gamble paid off as quarterback Tyrieke Wade connected with Deron Foster on a 38-yard touchdown pass for a 13-7 lead.
Then, Felton decided to bet on his freshman kicker late in the fourth quarter. Garcia, who missed the extra point after Foster’s touchdown and missed a potential go-ahead field goal in Valdosta’s only loss this season, felt nothing but confidence from his coach.
Felton didn’t have much to say to Garcia before he took the field.
“He was like, ‘Do you, baby,’” Garcia said. “That’s all he wanted me to do, and I made it happen.”
Valdosta’s defense proved as clutch as Garcia in vital moments. The Wildcats turned Lowndes over on downs twice, including a goal-line stand to hold a 20-14 lead halfway through the fourth quarter.
Sophomore cornerback Laddarius McIntyre smothered Lowndes’ Kaevone Thomas in the back corner of the end zone, and Thomas couldn’t catch the potential game-tying touchdown on fourth down.
“(Fourth down) was so important, they were going for it, but we had to go for it,” Felton said. “The biggest thing was trusting my backs and my offensive line. We trust each other, the kids trust us.
“I like to gamble sometimes, so we went for it.”
About the Author
Jack Leo is a sports writer and reporter for the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Jack worked for the AJC throughout his four years studying journalism and sports media at Georgia State University and the University of Georgia. He's now focused on telling stories in the grassroots: bringing comprehensive coverage of high school sports for AJC Varsity.
