Darlington mounts 2nd-half comeback to defeat Bowdon
Darlington experienced all it could handle through two halves on Friday night, but the Tigers ultimately pulled away for a 43- 21 win against Bowdon in a Region 6-A matchup at Bowdon.
Senior running back Tijai Whatley led the way for the Tigers ( 3- 2, 2-0 6-A), racking up four rushing touchdowns, including three in the second half.
Bowdon jumped out to an early lead after capitalizing on a pair of Darlington turnovers, to score a field goal and a touchdown and go up 9-0. The Red Devils (1-4, 0-2) scored again on a 69-yard touchdown pass to take an early 15-0 lead in the second quarter.
Darlington answered with Whatley, who scored a 30-yard touchdown to cut the deficit to 15-7 at halftime. The Tigers then scored three touchdowns and a two-point conversion in the third quarter, with Whatley scoring two more touchdowns.
Bowdon scored early in the fourth to cut the deficit to 29-22, but Whatley and Karl Swiger each scored a touchdown to put the game away.
Darlington continues Region 6- A play next Friday when it hosts Mt. Zion.
Trion 31, North Cobb
Christian 6
Trion’s football team jumped out to a big lead Friday night on their way to a 31-6 win against North Cobb Christian.
The Bulldogs (4-1, 2-0) led 28-0 at halftime and held t heir opponent scoreless until the fourth quarter.
Logan Blevins led the Bulldogs with 83 yards and a touchdown on nine carries; Tanner Railey had six carries for 72 yards and a touchdown, and three catches for 53 yards and a touchdown; Jarret Gill was 8 for 13 for 90 yards; Cameron Carter scored on a 1-yard run; Cole Phillips scored on a 12-yard run; and Elder Morales kicked a 33-yard field goal.
North Cobb Christian’s only score came on an 11-yard pass from Anson Mathis to Ryan Pruitt.
Trion (4-1, 2-0) will face Christian Heritage in Dalton next Friday.
Rome 62, Paulding County 0
The Rome High football team continued its dominance this season Friday with a 62-0 road win against Region 7-5A rival Paulding County.
Rome cruised Friday night, piling up a 49- 0 lead at halftime and 430 yards of offense to Paulding County’s 100.
Jaylynn Sikes finished with 75 yards and touchdowns on four rushes for an average of 18.8 per carry.
Jordan Watkins had 73 yards and a touchdown on three receptions, and quarterback Knox Kadum was a perfect 7 for 7 for 149 yards and two touchdowns with no interceptions.
Montrell Millsap led Rome’s defense with six solo tackles.
The Wolves will put their perfect record on the line next Friday when they face undefeated Region 7-5A foe Carrollton at 7:30 p.m. at Barron Stadium.
Pepperell 24,
Coosa 20
As defense captured the spotlight early on in Coosa’s physical matchup with Pepperell, it was clear both offenses were going to have to capitalize on every opportunity they could.
The Dragons were the ones who managed to grab one more than their hosts.
Pepperell recovered from a catastrophic first quarter and steered itself back on course over the final 48 minutes to get a 24-20 win over the Eagles, who had a tough fight for the second week in a row.
But while Coosa pushed the Dragons into a corner early and took a 7-0 lead in the final minutes of the first quarter, injuries and fatigue wore down the Eagles’ charge in the second half.
Dragon quarterback Trevor Thomas was 9-of-19 passing for 218 yards, the majority of which came in a two-touchdown second quarter in which the senior threw for 147 yards. T.J. Watkins finished with 122 yards receiving on four catches. Tae Hammond ran for 88 yards and a score on 14 carries.
Coosa’s Jalen Hodge finished with 107 yards and two touchdowns on 25 carries, the last of which came with 7:21 to play. Pepperell’s Joss Ross flew in on the extra point to block Juan Cornejo’s kick and the score remained 24-20 for the rest of the game.
Model 21, Armuchee 7
During the week, Model coach Gordon Powers and Armuchee coach Muhammad Abdellatif recounted memories of the teams’ rivalry, a game consistently filled with physicality and hard work.
Consider Friday night another chapter in those memorable battles.
After both defenses dominated for three quarters, Model’s running game broke through with two scores as the Blue Devils beat the Indians 21-7 in a Region 7-AA battle in Shannon Friday night. It is Model’s first win of the season, and one Powers felt was well earned.
Model’s Kwalic Dublin finished with 105 total yards and a rushing touchdown for the final score of the game. Tailback A.J. Woods finished with 46 rushing yards and a touchdown and quarterback Jackson Couch had 48 passing yards and a rushing touchdown.