Carrollton bottles up North Gwinnett, rolls into third state final in 4 years

The Carrollton defense, which made the difference against Grayson last week with a dominant second half in a 34-14 victory, was hot from the start Friday night.

The Trojans (14-0) limited North Gwinnett to 57 first-half yards on 23 plays while jumping out to a 27-0 lead and cruised to a 48-21 victory in the Class 6A semifinals at Charlie Grisham Stadium in Carrollton.

The victory put the Trojans in the championship game of the state’s highest classification for the third time in four seasons, but they’ll be seeking their first state title since 1998 when they face Buford in the final on Dec. 16 at Mercedes-Benz.

Buford (14-0) advanced to its 19th state final since 2000 with a victory over Valdosta. The Wolves have won 13 state championships this century, most recently in 2021.

Both state finalists earned No. 1 rankings this week in national polls — Carrollton in MaxPreps and Buford in USA Today — so a national championship could be on the line, as well. Georgia has not had a team named national champion since Colquitt County in 2015.

Carrollton set the tone early with two touchdowns and a drive into North Gwinnett territory in the first quarter while holding the Bulldogs to 27 yards and one first down. The Trojans added 14 second-quarter points for a 27-0 halftime lead.

“We’re aggressive up front on the defensive side of the ball,” Carrollton coach Joey King said. “Our guys, they fly around and play extremely hard. Our word of the week this week was effort, which means for every phase to play with great effort. I definitely thought our defense did that.”

Cam Ward, who rushed for 108 yards on 17 carries, had touchdown runs of 9 and 35 yards in the half, and both quarterbacks ran for touchdowns — senior Mason Holtzclaw for 13 yards and freshman CJ Cypher for 7 yards.

“I think we’ve got one of the best offensive lines in the state,” Holtzclaw said. “They do a great job with anything we run. Our coaching staff was able to dial up some run plays for both of us as quarterbacks, dial up the pass plays and be able to beat them on the perimeter. So we had a great plan going into this game, and I’m really proud of the team.”

Cypher finished the game 12-of-20 passing for 226 yards and a touchdown and rushed for 12 yards on two carries. Holtzclaw was 4-of-6 passing for 65 yards and rushed for 31 yards on six carries.

“They do a good job,” King said. “Whatever we ask them to do, they’re willing to do, whether that’s take a deep shot, throw a quick screen, hand the ball off or run the ball at times. They’re both just tough kids, gritty kids and unselfish kids that are willing to do whatever it takes for the team.”

Peyton Zachary was their top target. He finished with 172 yards on five receptions, including a 41-yard touchdown pass from Cypher in the fourth quarter that gave the Trojans a 41-13 lead.

North Gwinnett (12-2) had its best drive of the night to open the second half, moving 80 yards in 15 plays to cut the lead to 27-6 on a 1-yard run by Kalil Mazone but also taking 7:23 off the clock. The Bulldogs also scored on their next possession, on a 22-yard pass from Elam Rahman to Braylon Jackson on the first play of the fourth quarter to make it a 34-13 game.

However, Carrollton answered each time with quick touchdown drives of its own, and North Gwinnett never got closer than 21 points in the second half.

North Gwinnett finished with 335 total yards, 145 of which came in the fourth quarter after the outcome had been decided. Mazone ran for 51 yards and two touchdowns on seven carries, all in the second half. Rahman was 17-of-28 passing for 149 yards.

North Gwinnett — 0-0-6-15 — 21

Carrollton — 13-14-7-14 — 48

First quarter

• C — Cam Wood 9 run (run failed), 9:22
• C — Mason Holtzclaw 13 run (Julian Vargas kick), 4:33

Second quarter

• C — CJ Cypher 7 run (Vargas kick), 10:34
• C — Wood 35 run (Vargas kick), 3:35

Third quarter

• N — Kalil Mazone 1 run (kick blocked), 4:37
• C — Nick Archer 4 run (Vargas kick), 2:17

Fourth quarter