At top, QB has chance for more

Lawrence has another year to bolster stellar record at Cartersville.

Mary Persons football coach Brian Nelson said Cartersville quarterback Trevor Lawrence’s most impressive skill is his ability to throw accurately on the run.

Nelson’s team led Cartersville 17-14 in the first half of its Class AAAA semifinal playoff game three weeks ago. Cartersville faced a third and long, and observers were beginning to wonder if the junior quarterback and his No. 1-ranked Purple Hurricanes were as good as advertised. They were heavily favored.

“We flush him to his right. He got all the way to their sideline, reversed field, made a couple of really good football players miss, came all the way back to his left, and threw a 30-yard strike in the back of the end zone for a TD,” Nelson said. “I just kind of shook my head and told our coaches upstairs, ‘Not much we can do about that.’ ”

Cartersville won the game 38-17 and then the state championship the next week, the second consecutive for Lawrence and his team.

“Yes, he is as good as advertised,’’ Nelson said.

Lawrence, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution’s all-classification player of the year, isn’t there yet, but he is passing and winning at rates that could make him the most highly decorated Georgia high school football player in history in another year.

Only a junior, Lawrence was 250-of-406 passing for 3,904 yards and 51 touchdowns with nine interceptions this season. He needs 2,477 yards and 40 touchdown passes as a senior to break the Georgia career records of 13,077 and 159 held by former Gainesville quarterback Deshaun High school all-state and all-metro football teams,