North Gwinnett got the defense of its first ever football state championship rolling in style with a 37-2 blowout of Gwinnett rival Brookwood, in the penultimate game of the Corky Kell Classic at Mercedes Benz Stadium.
The Bulldogs now have an 8-4 lead in the series, and have seven of the last eight against Brookwood. Saturday night, North Gwinnett was carried to victory on the legs of senior running back Tyler Goodson and senior kicker Cameron Clark. Goodson, an Iowa commit, led all rushers with 142 yards on 20 carries and three touchdowns, while Clark drilled field goals of 46, 42, and 41 yards, drilled five touchbacks and averaged 35 yards per punt, including one inside the Brookwood 20-yard line.
On its second possession of the game, the Bulldog offense took advantage of the short field it had been given by the defense. After pinning the Bronco offense inside their 15-yard line and forcing a three-and-out, North Gwinnett took possession on the Brookwood 36. It took just three plays for the Bulldogs to hit pay dirt, as Goodson bowled over a defender on his way into the end zone from 6 yards out. Clark’s point after attempt made it 7-0 with a little more than seven minutes left in the first quarter.
The Broncos failed to move it much on their next possession, but linebacker Ethan Quarshie gave the ball right back to his offense when he picked off J.R. Martin’s pass at the Brookwood 44-yard line on the first play of the Bulldog’s possession. Then it looked like the Broncos had hit a big play when Conner Chavis hit Mekal Fuller down the sideline for a 30-yard gain. But the play was nullified for offsetting penalties.
A poor punt set North Gwinnett up at midfield, and the Bulldogs needed just five plays to cover the 50 yards to the end zone, as Devin Crosby scored from 12-yards out to push the lead to 14-0 at the end of the first quarter.
Another quick three-and-out gave the ball right back the North Gwinnett. The Bulldogs padded their lead with a 46-yard field goal by Clark, and it was 17-0 early in the second quarter.
Clark’s third touchback of the half forced Brookwood to start once again on its 20, but this time the Broncos got their running game going, starting with a reverse by Lorenzo Britt and nice runs by Eli Kohl and Chris Carter. A diving catch by Fuller helped move Brookwood into field goal range, but the Broncos missed a 47 yarder and North Gwinnett took possession on its 20-yard line with six minutes left before halftime.
The Bulldog offensive line took control on of the line of scrimmage on the ensuing drive. North Gwinnett marched 80 yards in 11 plays, 10 of them runs, and Goodson scored his second rushing touchdown of the half, this time from 4 yards out, and the lead swelled to 24-0. A 42-yard field goal by Clark made it 27-0 at halftime.
Brookwood showed signs of life as the third quarter got underway as the defense forced a North Gwinnett to punt from its end zone on the first possession after halftime. Quarshie stormed up the middle and blocked the punt out of the back of the end zone for a safety to get Brookwood on the board, 27-2.
Jayden Williams returned the ensuing kickoff to midfield but the Bronco offense couldn’t take advantage, turning the ball over on downs just inside North Gwinnett territory.
Brookwood forced another Bulldog punt, but Williams muffed it and Javonni Cunningham recovered it to set up the Bulldogs inside the Bronco 20-yard line. Three plays later Goodson scored his third touchdown of the game from 2-yards out to increase the lead to 34-2.
North Gwinnett 14 13 10 0 37
Brookwood 0 0 2 0 2
N – Tyler Goodson 6 run (Cameron Clark kick)
N – Devin Crosby 12 run (Clark kick)
N – Clark 46 fg
N – Goodson 4 run (Clark kick)
N – Clark 42 fg
B – Ethan Quarshie blocks punt out of end zone
N – Goodson 2 run (Clark kick)
N – Clark 41 fg
