While star quarterback Sam Horn and receiver Travis Hunter had low-key games, the rushing tandem of Spenser Anderson and Ryan Stephens helped No. 1-ranked Collins Hill rush past Greenville Christian of Mississippi 37-22 on Friday night in the Freedom Bowl at Milton High School.
Collins Hill amassed 246 rushing yards and four rushing touchdowns, two from Anderson, who finished with 116 yards. Stephens added 82 yards rushing.
“The run game was there, and it was there in the first half; we just didn’t take advantage of it,’' Collins Hill coach Lenny Gregory said. “We made a halftime adjustment and went back to it.”
Collins Hill led only 9-6 at halftime on three Issac Bonacci field goals. The turning point came in the second half when Collins Hill scored 28 points, and 21 were unanswered thanks to the ground game.
“The message to the team at halftime was to calm down,’' Gregory said. “There was adversity. It might not be as pretty as we want to, and we are going to have to play better, stay calm, play for each other and take what they are giving us.”
The Eagles’ defense clamped down for stretches in the second half, forcing sacks and multiple turnovers on downs. Dion Crawford finished with multiple sacks and put pressure on Greenville Christian’s offensive line
Horn and Travis Hunter, both AJC Super 11 selections, had quiet games. Horn was 9-of-21 passing for 54 yards. He was intercepted twice. He scored a touchdown. Hunter finished with four catches for 28 yards.
“They were putting a bracket on Travis, and they did a real good job,” Gregory said. “They are very athletic, a really good secondary and outside backers. They were dropping everybody.”
Greenville Christian quarterback De’Andre Baker, who has a handful of Division I offers, threw for 185 yards and two touchdowns while rushing for 54 yards and a touchdown. Wide receiver Christopher Bell, who is committed to Southern Miss, scored two touchdowns. He had five catches for 109 yards.
Greenville Christian entered as the No. 4-ranked team overall in Mississippi, according to MaxPreps. A school of only about 250 students, Greenville Christian won a championship last year in the Midsouth Independent School Association and has four seniors who are Division I-committed players or prospects.
Collins Hill 3-6-7-21 - 37
Greenville Christian 0-6-8-8 - 22
CH- Issac Bonacci 37 FG
CH- Bonacci 25 FG
CH- Bonacci 23 FG
GC- De’Andre Baker 1 run (conversion failed)
CH- Spenser Anderson 28 run (Bonacci kick)
GC - Christopher Bell 35 pass from Baker (conversion good)
CH- Anderson 17 run (Bonacci kick)
CH- Sam Horn 4 run (Bonacci kick)
CH- 5 run (Bonacci kick)
GC- Bell 11 pass from Baker (two point conversion good)
About the Author
