Westminster avenged its heartbreaking playoff loss to Lovett last season with an impressive 41-15 victory. Lovett raced out to an 8-0 lead after the first possession of this rivalry game, but host Westminster reeled off the next 41 points in a row on the way to a dominant win. The Wildcats answered Lovett’s score with an opening-possession touchdown of their own, after which an interception by Houston Gragnani set up a 28-yard touchdown run by Wade Penn. That gave the ‘Cats a 14-8 first-quarter lead and they never trailed the rest of the way. Westminster also got two touchdowns from Jake Persons and one each by Fain Barton and Michael Buhay. Carson Wilkie added two field goals for the Wildcats, whose 41 points were a record in “the Battle of Buckhead.”
Defending state champion Benedictine enjoyed a 42-0 lead over host Jenkins through three quarters, at which point the game was declared over due to unruliness in the crowd. Savannah-Chatham County Public Schools stated, “SCCPSS seeks to ensure a safe, orderly environment at all events that involve students, staff and families and does not condone disruptive behavior that compromises safety.” The Cadets expanded their 7-0 first-quarter advantage to 35-0 by halftime.
Howard intercepted Southwest four times, twice by freshman TaShawn Poole, on the way to a commanding 42-6 road victory over Southwest. Ethan Ellington scored two touchdowns and Cam Taylor rushed for one in addition to throwing a scoring strike to Nate Campbell. Jacolbie Allen also added a touchdown for the Huskies, who led just 7-6 after one quarter but broke the game open with a 28-6 lead at halftime.
Class 2A defending state champion Thomson struck first on a 9-yard run from Anthony Jeffrey with 42 seconds left in the first quarter, but a blocked point-after try proved costly for the visiting Bulldogs and Burke County earned a 14-13 win in head coach Franklin Stephens’ debut. Burke County got on the board with a 71-yard touchdown pass by Sean Vandiver with two minutes left in the first half to lead 7-6. The Bears blocked a punt with less than a minute left in the first half and on the ensuing possession, A’merre Williams gave the Bears a 14-6 lead on a 1-yard run. Thomson scored on a 6-yard run with less than a minute left in the game but the failed 2-point conversion secured the victory for Burke.
Matt Fuller rushed 13 times for 282 yards and four touchdowns as Wayne County overwhelmed visiting Bradwell Institute 49-20. Quez Shaw also had a big night for the Yellow Jackets, rushing for 138 yards and two scores. For Bradwell Institute, Christopher Garrett threw for 256 yards with a pair of touchdown passes to Bryant Thomas. Wade Cobb tacked on a 17-yard touchdown run for the Tigers. The game was tied 7-7 after one quarter before Wayne County surged to a 35-13 lead by halftime.
Baldwin 34, Peach County 13
Baldwin traveled to Peach County and the Braves’ Colorado-commit running back Micah Welch led the way to a 34-13 victory. Welch opened the game capping an 8-minute drive with a touchdown run to give the Braves a 6-0 lead after the missed point-after try. Welch scored on a run with 5:42 left in the second quarter to extend the margin to 13-0. The Baldwin defense forced an interception with 27 seconds left in the first half and returned it for a touchdown to lead 20-0. Peach County got on the board on a 1-yard run from Dwayne Coleman but any chance for a comeback was thwarted when Welch returned the ensuing kickoff 89 yards or a touchdown to give Baldwin a 27-7 lead.
Southeast Bulloch went on the road and shut out Liberty County 21-0. The Yellow Jackets steadily pulled away with one touchdown in each of the first three quarters. All three were scored on the ground by Will Nelson–from four yards, one yard and 12 yards out. … Troup County raced to 24-0 lead by halftime and scored the first 31 points of the game on the way to a 31-7 defeat of visiting Harris County. Taeo Todd threw a touchdown pass to Noah Dixon and wrapped up his team’s scoring on the first possession of the second half with a keeper from 15 yards out. … Drew Ledbetter broke a tie with a five-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter to lead Cedartown past Rockmart 13-12. Rockmart had a chance to win it on the final play of the game but a field-goal attempt fell short. … Tanner Marsh accounted for five total touchdowns–three rushing and two passing–as North Hall overwhelmed White County 49-27. For White County, Tripp Nix had two touchdown runs and tossed a scoring strike to John Phillips.
