Offenses win championships, too.
Brookwood (14-1) survived the highest-scoring state championship game in Georgia high school football history Saturday, defeating Colquitt County 52-38 in the Class AAAAA final at the Georgia Dome.
Colquitt County finished with 609 yards in total offense and 38 first downs. Brookwood had 380 total yards and 18 first downs of its own.
The 90 points are 15 more than were scored in the previous highest-scoring final, Thomasville’s 40-35 victory in 1973. Only two teams have scored more than Brookwood's 52 in a state final -- Valdosta in 1971 (62) and Tift County in 1983 (59).
Brookwood came away with its second state championship in football, its first since 1996. It was the first for coach Mark Crews, who led Brookwood to finals in 2002 and 2005.
Brookwood’s lead in this one didn’t appear safe until 8:47 left, when Jamaal Cole scored his third touchdown, a 10-yard run. Reeves Blankenship had returned an interception 22 yards to the Colquitt County 26 to set it up.
The game was patently offensive from the start.
Both teams scored on their first possessions, Colquitt County driving 80 yards on nine plays and Brookwood going 73 on six.
Trailing 21-7 with 57 seconds left in the half, Colquitt risked trying a fourth-and-6 from its 24 and made it , then scored with no time remaining when Tyler Brown (33-of-46 passing, 354 yards) hit Tommy Hudson (11 catches, 127 yards) from 6 yards, cutting Brookwood’s lead to 21-14.
Brookwood’s Andre Sims then ran the second-half kickoff 87 yards for a touchdown for a 28-14 lead.
But Colquitt came back with a touchdown and was driving for another, trailing 38-21, when a bad snap in the shotgun turned a third-and-3 from the Brookwood 20 to a third-and-16. Colquitt later punted.
A bad snap hurt Colquitt in the first half, too. One that went over the punter’s head in the first quarter gave Brookwood possession at the Colquitt 4. Cole scored from there for a 14-7 lead.
One bright spot for the defense was Brookwood’s Cameron Lynch. He made 11 tackles, forced a fumble and intercepted a pass.
Brookwood’s Nick Tompkins rushed for 144 yards and two touchdowns. Cole ran for 96 yards.
Colquitt’s Tevin King rushed for 205 yards on 20 carries.
For Colquitt County (9-6), it was the end to an underdog run. The team finished only third in its region, 1-AAAAA. Colquitt County coach Rush Propst was seeking his sixth state title. He had won five at Hoover of Alabama.
Colquitt County 7-14-7-10 – 38
Brookwood 14-14-10-14 -- 52
C – Damien Bentley 1 run (Rich Tyndall kick)
B – Nick Tompkins 8 run (Eric Yang kick)
B – Jamaal Cole 4 run (Yang kick)
C – D’Amonte Ridley 8 run (Tyndall kick)
B – Nathaniel Minor 21 pass from Ben McLane (Yang kick)
B – Cole 9 run (Yang kick)
C – Tommy Hudson 6 pass from Tyler Brown (Tyndall kick)
B – Andre Sims 87 kickoff return (Yang kick)
B – Yang 41 field goal
C – Tevin King 6 run (Tyndall kick)
B – Cole 10 run (Yang kick)
C – Tyndall 20 field goal
C – Tevin Brown 15 pass from Tyler Brown