Top performances from Week 3: Flowery Branch QB impresses opponent

Norcross WR/DB Zion Alexander had four tackles and an interception and scored two touchdowns in a 28-14 victory over East Coweta last week. (Rebecca Wright/For the AJC)

Norcross WR/DB Zion Alexander had four tackles and an interception and scored two touchdowns in a 28-14 victory over East Coweta last week. (Rebecca Wright/For the AJC)

By most accounts, Flowery Branch and Gainesville are Hall County’s best teams. They played what seemed like a championship game last week, and Gainesville, having just scored a touchdown and two-point conversion, was leading 22-21 with less than three minutes left.

David Renard and the Falcons had one last drive in them. The junior quarterback led his team 74 yards and threw a 27-yard touchdown pass to tight end Sal Sengson for the winning score. Flowery Branch won 29-22. Even Gainesville was impressed.

“He’s dang good, man,” Gainesville coach Heath Webb said of Renard. “He throws the ball to windows before his receivers get there. He has a great ability to see those windows before they’re open. Best one I’ve played against in recent memory.”

Renard passed for 373 yards. Receivers Connor Lawson (eight receptions, 124 yards), Baxley O’Brien (6-119) and Sengson (4-118) each had more than 100 yards receiving and a touchdown.

Top five

*Brookwood QB Dylan Lonergan was 21-of-30 passing for 274 yards and three touchdowns and rushed for 128 yards and a score on five carries in a 43-32 victory over Walton.

*Charlton County RB Tony Cobb rushed for 357 yards on 31 carries and scored on runs of 24, 28 and 56 yards in a 54-23 victory over Long County.

*Flowery Branch QB David Renard was 19-of-29 passing for 373 yards and three touchdowns in a 29-22 victory over Gainesville.

*Norcross WR/DB Zion Alexander had four tackles, one hit behind the line, one pass breakup, one interception and a touchdown-saving tackle inside the 5-yard line in a 28-14 victory over East Coweta. Alexander also scored on a 30-yard reverse and 98-yard kickoff return.

*Savannah Christian QB Spencer Robicheaux was 18-of-23 passing for 384 yards and five touchdowns and rushed for 73 yards and a score in a 54-14 victory over Valwood.

Best of the rest

*Allatoona RB Jayden Ponder rushed for 151 yards and a touchdown on 25 carries in a 21-6 victory over Kennesaw Mountain.

*Athens Christian MLB Asa Callow had four tackles and recovered two fumbles in a 20-6 victory over Oglethorpe County.

*Atkinson County WR Tra’Vonte Williams had six receptions for 160 yards in a 20-18 victory over Terrell County.

*Bacon County RB Bruce Brown rushed for 186 yards and two touchdowns on 19 carries in a 42-21 victory over Berrien.

*Brunswick RB Khamori Simmons rushed for 186 yards on 28 carries in a 21-16 loss to Benedictine.

*Calvary Day RB Greg Daniel rushed for 165 yards and two touchdowns on 24 carries in a 27-7 victory over Frederica Academy.

*Cambridge RB Christian Isibor rushed for 121 yards and one touchdown on 10 carries in a 34-10 victory over North Oconee.

*Chattahoochee Jaylen Smith was 19-of-31 passing for 373 yards and five touchdowns in 56-39 victory over Northview. His TD throws were 48, 52, 33, 61 and 36 yards. He also ran for 54 yards and two touchdowns.

*Creekside LB Javeon Miller had 11 tackles, four solo, two tackles for losses and a sack in a 27-7 loss to Westlake.

*Darlington QB/DB Patrick Shelley was 11-of-15 passing for 126 yards in a 41-9 victory over St. Francis. Shelley also rushed for 52 yards and a touchdown on three carries, had three tackles and intercepted a pass.

*Duluth RB Nyle Ervin rushed for 173 yards and two touchdowns on 15 carries in a 42-27 victory over Alcovy.

*Fayette County RB Andre Wright rushed for 177 yards and three touchdowns on 21 carries in a 27-14 victory over McIntosh.

*Gilmer RB/DB Kobe Stonecipher had 189 all-purpose yards, two touchdowns and a two-point conversion in a 28-24 victory over Murray County.

*Grayson DE/LB Fernando Sanchez had five solo tackles, three assists, two sacks and a forced fumble in a 28-7 victory over Collins Hill.

*Greenbrier QB Brooks Pangle was 19-of-28 passing for 251 yards and three touchdowns in a 26-0 victory over Lakeside of Evans.

*Haralson County RB/FS Marc Harris rushed for 166 yards and a touchdown on 24 carries, made 14 tackles and caused a fumble in a 21-10 victory over Bowdon.

*Harris County rover Wilbur Ramos had 14 tackles, two for losses, and a sack in a 14-13 victory over Upson-Lee.

*Hawkinsville RB Casson Clark rushed for 222 yards and four touchdowns on 15 carries in a 33-6 victory over Baconton Charter.

*Heard County LB Chief Borders, a Florida-committed linebacker, had 10 tackles, two for losses, and a sack in a 35-20 victory over Manchester.

*Heritage (Ringgold) LB Zach Brown had 11 tackles, blocked a punt that set up a touchdown and returned a fumble 21 yards for a score in a 14-6 victory over Temple.

*Jefferson DE Paxton Corkery had three tackles for losses and two sacks in a 28-14 victory over Rabun County.

*Locust Grove DB/RB Rodney Wimbush had five solo tackles, three sacks and an interception that he returned 51 yards for a touchdown in a 16-13 victory over Whitewater. Wimbush also had a rushing touchdown.

*Lowndes DB Tylar Belcher had five solo tackles and two interceptions and returned a punt 61 yards in a 37-17 victory over Oakleaf, Fla.

*McEachern QB Bryce Archie was 12-for-12 passing for 224 yards and three touchdowns in a 49-28 victory over Marietta.

*Miller County QB Champ Kyles passed for three touchdowns, scored one and had 175 total yards in a 53-6 victory over Pataula Charter.

*Milton RB Jordan McDonald rushed for 152 yards and a touchdown on 19 carries in a 29-0 victory over Johns Creek.

*Monroe Area DB Mason Byron had 12 solo tackles and forced a fumble that was returned for a touchdown in a 13-9 victory over Morgan County.

*Montgomery County RB Brandon Denmark rushed for 129 yards, scored on a 70-yard pass play and made five tackles in a 31-7 victory over Treutlen. Denmark also punted three times for a 37.0-yard net average.

*Murray County QB Kaleb Jones rushed for 104 yards and a touchdown on 14 carries and was 10-of-16 passing for 135 yards and a touchdown in a 28-24 loss to Gilmer.

*North Cobb LB Joshua Josephs had 10 tackles, one for a loss, and five QB hurries, broke up a pass and intercepted two passes in the second half of a 21-13 victory over Alpharetta.

*North Forsyth LB Patrick Corrigan had seven tackles, two assists, two sacks, two tackles for losses and one QB hurry in a 28-14 victory over Hapeville Charter. Corrigan also rushed for 82 yards on 11 carries.

*North Gwinnett sophomore LB Grant Godfrey had a team-leading nine solo tackles and three tackles for losses in a 21-0 victory over Parkview, which hadn’t been shut out since 2014.

*Oconee County sophomore RB C.J. Jones rushed for 140 yards on 29 carries in a 24-7 victory over Clarke Central.

*Putnam County WR Malik Thornton had six receptions for 109 yards and three touchdowns and intercepted a pass in a 49-0 victory over Monticello.

*Richmond Hill RB Ashaud Roberson rushed for 151 yards and a touchdown on 27 carries and threw a 33-yard pass in a 24-21 victory over Wayne County. Roberson has rushed for 100 or more yards in all three games.

*Ringgold RB Kori Dumas rushed for 137 yards and scored all five of his team’s touchdowns on 23 carries in a 38-12 victory over Ridgeland. Ringgold broke a 12-game losing streak.

*Roswell LB Evan Plunkett had 11 tackles, one for a loss, two sacks and an interception in a 42-13 season-opening victory over Centennial.

*Schley County MLB Jacob Long intercepted a pass, forced a fumble and was credited with a team-leading nine tackles in a 20-19 victory over then-No. 2 Wilcox County in a Class A Public game.

*South Atlanta RB Keywon Brown rushed for 166 yards and a touchdown on 16 carries in a 44-6 loss to Bleckley County.

*Southeast Whitfield TE Bryson Lofton had eight receptions for 129 yards and two touchdowns in a 31-20 loss to Gordon Central.

*Stephens County DE Jahari Burns had nine tackles, two tackles for losses, two QB hurries and a caused fumble in a 24-10 victory over Jackson County.

*Strong Rock Christian LB/WR Hunner Lawrence had seven tackles, three tackles for losses, one sack and four receptions for 52 yards and a touchdown in a 38-14 victory over Loganville Christian. Strong Rock is 3-0 for the first time in the program’s 14-year history.

*Towns County WR Hayden McClure had three receptions for 162 yards and three touchdowns in a 43-14 victory over Lumpkin County.

*Trinity Christian DB Aaron Gates intercepted four passes, returning one for a touchdown, in a 48-6 victory over Hampton.

*Washington-Wilkes ATH Corey Danner had six tackles, 3.5 tackles for losses, 2.5 sacks, two QB hurries and one forced fumble and returned a punt for a touchdown in a 50-0 victory over Cross Creek. Danner rushed for 45 yards on four carries.

*West Hall LB Tilil Blackwell had a team-leading 13 tackles in a 50-0 victory over Johnson of Gainesville.

*White County QB J. Ben Haynes rushed for 113 yards on 12 carries and was 15-of-21 passing for 190 yards in a 42-7 victory over Pickens.

*Whitefield Academy WR Myles Redding had seven receptions for 214 yards and two touchdowns in a 30-19 loss to North Cobb Christian.

*Whitewater LB Richard Byrd had nine tackles and six assists and blocked a field goal in a 16-13 loss to Locust Grove.

*Winder-Barrow DL Jacob Merrifield had six solo tackles, four assists and two tackles for losses and forced a fumble that he returned 51 yards for a touchdown in a 21-14 loss to Glynn Academy.

Lines of distinction

*Blessed Trinity’s offensive line of left tackle Skye Richardson, left guard Landen Byars, center Jack Pirinelli, right guard John Ryan and right tackle Ty Furnish allowed the Titans to average 9.1 yards per play in a 38-14 victory over Eagle’s Landing Christian, an opponent that had allowed no points in its first two games. Blessed Trinity did not allow a sack and did not punt until the fourth quarter.

*Christian Heritage’s offensive line of Caden Mathis, Ben Williamson, Bubba Salaices, Levi Lewis and Lane Massengale aided Solomon Locke in his school-record 204-yard rushing game in a 38-6 victory over Villa Rica. Gage Leonard also rushed for more than 100 yards in the game.

*The Mount Zion (Carroll) offensive line of Garrett Gordon, Cohen Hancock, Avery Lepard, Austin Warren, Dylan Buchanan, Kyle Leonard and Dylan Roulaine paved the way for a pair of 100-yard rushers and 368 total yards in a 28-21 victory over Landmark Christian. Jayden Perkins rushed for 131 yards. Antron Thompson rushed for 109.

*Sonoraville’s offensive line of Joseph Bryan, Brenden Miller, Jaxx Knight, Draven Peppers, McCoy Deal and Colton Whitehead helped produce in 404 rushing yards and seven touchdowns in a 49-17 victory over Chattooga. RB Zach Lyles rushed for 212 yards and four touchdowns.

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