Model falls short to Sonoraville, 21-14
Sonoraville looked like they were headed for an easy victory after racking up a three-touchdown lead at the half on Friday in their season opener against Model. But the Devils refused to go away quietly, forcing the Phoenix defense to make some crucial plays at the end to secure a 21-14 victory in Gordon County.
Model’s offense got on track in the second half and scored touchdowns in the third and fourth quarters to cut the deficit to 21-14, and they had one more chance with the ball with less than five minutes to play. But it was the Phoenix defense that rose to the occasion to shut the door.
Model (0-2) seemed to come to life after the halftime break as they started to move the ball with their rush-heavy offense and do some damage against the Phoenix defense. The Devils dented the scoreboard first midway through the third quarter with Kwalic Dublin breaking free for a 30-yard touchdown run to make it 21-7.
After the Devils’ defense stood strong to force a punt, the Model offense once again punctuated a drive with a 14-yard touchdown run by Luke Holtzendorf to make it 21-14 with 9:05 to play in the game.
The Phoenix (1-0) will be on the road next Friday as they look to keep the early-season momentum going when they travel to Darlington for another non-region test. Model hosts North Murray in a non-region affair.
Cedartown 33, Alexander 9
The Cedartown Bulldogs are back in business with running back Tony Mathis as a centerpiece in the offense after they finished off Alexander at home 33-9 Friday night.
Cedartown hosted the Cougars in their non-conference home opener with Mathis rushing for 156 yards and three touchdowns after he announced his commitment to West Virginia on Thursday.
“We challenged these kids this week. We know we’re a good football team,” Cedartown head coach Doyle Kelley said. “We knew if (Mathis) played well tonight we’d have a good game… We were just hitting on all cylinders.”
The Bulldogs put up 261 yards on offense. Alexander put up just 172 yards in total offense on the night in their season opener.
The Bulldogs sit at 1-1 as they head into a bye week before hosting Bremen on Sept. 7. The Blue Devils are coming off a 41-7 win over Bowdon before a break as well.
Chr. Heritage 35, Gordon Central 0
Gordon Central struggled to find answers to the dynamic aerial attack from Christian Heritage on Friday during a 35-0 loss in its home opener.
Christian Heritage quarterback Matthew Neff finished the contest with 171 yards and four scores through the air. Wide receiver Zach Gentry was the biggest beneficiary with 96 receiving yards and three touchdowns. On the ground, Leonard rumbled for 47 yards and a rushing touchdown, while running back Ethan Smith pitched in 36 rushing yards.
On offense, the Warriors (0-2) had issues handling the pressure and penetration of the Christian Heritage defensive front, which stalled out the running game and prevented quarterback Brady Lackey from getting comfortable in the pocket early.
Nelson Gravitt and Cam Pierce operated as Gordon Central’s most explosive offensive personnel. Gravitt accumulated 12 yards on the ground and completed a six yard pass to wide receiver Josh Wilson after taking over signal-calling duties in the second half. Pierce pieced together a couple nice runs in the first half to compile 10 rushing yards on limited touches.
The Warriors will look to get the season on track next Friday, August 31 when the team travels to Gilmer County (0-2) to challenge the Bobcats at 7:30.