Metro Spirit 9-29

Somebody had to pull out of the parking lot of Grovetown High School with a loss, and to give you a hint, it sure wasn’t that raucous bus full of Bulldogs heading back across town. Butler took their talents on the road in a great contest not only between two good teams, but a couple of the area’s more outstanding coaches as well. In setting the table for the game, both teams knew they each wanted to run the ball effectively, manage the clock, and leave it up to their unyielding defenses to slam the door shut and leave with a W. As both teams did an impressive job in executing their defensive game plans, quality runs came about as often as they do in a fiber-less diet. Painfully not often enough. I know, I know, real cute, jackass. But after Grovetown took a 7-6 lead into halftime, Butler made the appropriate adjustments and took to the air to get their yards and open up running lanes for their running backs. More importantly in the second half, the Bulldogs found an extra defensive gear and held the Warriors to an astounding 11 yards of total offense and only one first down in the 20-7 victory.

Lincoln County (LC) knew they were in for a handful when South Carolina’s reigning Class A State Champion, Abbeville, hosted the Red Devils in a rivalry game on August 26th. The battle ended with LC prevailing 24-13. Abbeville had blemished LC’s record the previous three years. The date had been circled, enough was enough. It was thought, upon first glance at the schedule, the next opponent to have a punchers chance against the Red Devils would be Aquinas on Oct 21st. Insert an undefeated Warren County bunch led by fiery first-year head coach David Daniel. Daniel took over the program just days before the Screaming Devils’ first game against Glascock County- a game they won 51-7. How tall an order is it for Warren County to get a win against LC? The current Screaming Devils players could have lived two lifetimes until that point and still not have a memory of a victory against a Larry Campbell coached team. This year was destined to be different, right? Well, almost. It took a defensive stand from LC on the final possession to make it 37 in a row for Coach Campbell. The gritty 10-7 victory was obviously highlighted by solid defensive play, but none more so than LC’s containment of Warren County’s stud running back Jabari Wilson, who was held to 63 rushing yards total. Silver lining? Lincoln County gets a midseason wake up call, and Warren County continues their inspired, confidence building play into the second half of the season. A win for both sides, even though it wasn’t.

Give Statesboro respect, they always seem to find a way. We’ve sent two local teams (Washington County and Lakeside) against the Blue Devils, put them on the ropes, and watched them dance out of two defeats and win by an average of 6 points. For Lakeside, it was another game they were in, and just like that, they let it get away from them. It also marked their 4th loss in a row—albeit in a death row slate of games already chronicled many times over in this space- and a sluggish lead-in to region play. The question facing Lakeside is can they finish a game? Can they find a way?


High School Games to Watch

ARC @ Thomson- Thursday- 7:05- TV: Comcast 380, Atlantic Broadband/Knology 246

The area’s best gameday experience just got better as the Bulldog community honors the late Luther Welsh with a heartfelt ceremony.

Lakeside @ Greenbrier-Friday-7:30

The Panthers desperately need a win to restore the confidence they brought with them into the season.

Josey @ Westside-Friday-7:30

Can the Eagles make it two in a row?!?!


College/NFL Games to Watch

No.13 Clemson @ No.11 Virginia Tech-Saturday-6pm-ESPN2

Last test in the Schedule of Champions that Dabo keeps yapping about.


No.3 Alabama @ No.12 Florida-Saturday-8pm-CBS

Sorry, No Rules of Engagement reruns tonight. Instead, you get the pleasure of watching 71 yr old CBS play-by-play announcer, Verne Lundquist stay up way past his bedtime!

Detroit Lions @ Dallas Cowboys-Sunday-1pm-FOX

Let’s see if former Georgia Bulldog QB Matthew Stafford can keep the unbeaten streak alive for the Lions against DeMarcus Ware and the Cowboys.

Local Football Team Capsules

Richmond Academy

Head Coach Chris Hughes has done a great job in restoring order to the football program at Georgia’s oldest public high school. His team’s offensive production the past few years has commanded attention throughout the area. Gifted athletes at the quarterback position, such as the 2009 3-AAAA Region Player of the Year Mar-Quan Medlock, and dual-threat, all-everything Drek Reid, have flourished under Hughes’ system. New starter, junior Thomas Ellison, has been sharpening his skills over the past few years and looks to keep this group on the path of success. But, whereas in previous years where the skill positions were the strongest point of the Musketeers team, line play, both offensive and defensive, will be the strong suit for this year’s team. Starting with junior Will Jones (6’7 310), will provide size and looks to have a strong impact at offensive tackle (and should be the first guy off the bus during away games), senior Diquan Washington (6’3 220), bolsters an already talented defensive line, and senior Marvin Davis (5’11 260), who plays on both sides of the ball and will be essential to this teams success.


Butler

No coach in the area deserves more credit for completely turning a program around than Butler’s Ashley Harden. Coming in to the job as the new head man in 2009, Butler had lost 31 straight games. Harden preached his message to his guys, and then proceeded to lose another 10 games. A serious punch in the stomach for any first year head coach looking to change a program spiraling out of control. He kept fighting, coaching, leading. And instead of losing his team, they continued to buy what he was selling and that seed he planted blossomed into a 7-3 record last year. Harden himself will admit that they still have a long way to go, but Butler returns a nice senior class of players that contributed for the Bulldogs last season. Running backs Jeffery Menefee returns as well as Christan Garnett to lead their potent Wing-T offense. Defensive lineman Delonzo Harris returns after accumulating 7 sacks last year to help lead a defense who have always had the athletes to succeed, but lacked the one thing that fuels any defense worth of note. Confidence.


Lakeside

This time last year Jarrett Troxler was already under the gun when it came to getting everything perfect for his first year as a head football coach. He was taking over a program from his mentor who led the school to their best finish ever (10-2), establishing himself as the head coach instead of being an coordinator, and getting a light speed tutorial on offensive and defensive game planning instead of just one side of the ball. Everything seemed to go as planned, until his most athletic player on offense, quarterback Mark Weidenaar, went down with a season-ending knee injury. Troxler had planned on splitting time between Weidenaar and Ben Wilson—who went on to be the Region 2-AAAA North Player of the Year—but those plans were halted immediately. Troxler then went on to lose starting linebacker Kendal Parker to an injury and soon all Troxler could do is just sit and wonder what would happen next. The Panthers finished with a 4-6 record, with notable losses to Northside in Warner Robbins, North Augusta and perennial power Statesboro. Coach Troxler returns talented players on both sides of the ball for a season that hopefully will be remembered for who was on the field and not reminded of who was off of it. Knock on wood.