Wolfpack, ACS win; Dogs bitten
Two out of three ain't bad, unless you were rooting for the Harlem High School football team.
With Evans and Lakeside taking a break last week, it was a light Friday night for Columbia County's prep squads, and Harlem performed like a lightweight at Elbert County, where the Dogs suffered a 51-6 rout.
Augusta Christian returned from Macon after securing a 21-3 victory over Stratford Academy, while Greenbrier defended its home turf with a 45-32 win against Westside.
Westside at Greenbrier
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If you love offense, the Brierpatch was the place to be last week.
Greenbrier raced to a 27-0 halftime lead, and Westside responded with 32 points after the break.
"I knew Westside wasn't going to stop," Greenbrier coach Mickey Derrick said. "Fortunately we were able to get some good passes off and stay ahead of them."
The Pack won the war thanks in part to Brooks Robinson, J.C. Jennings and Eugene Robinson. Robinson, Greenbrier's senior quarterback, completed 12 of 18 passes for 228 yards. He hit Jennings with two touchdown passes, and Rogers hauled in two more scoring receptions.
"He's working out good for us," Derrick said of Robinson. "Hopefully, he'll stay healthy."
Jennings is looking pretty stout at this point. The junior running back rushed for 60 yards and a pair of scores against the Patriots.
"He had some good runs for us, but he's got to start covering up the ball," Derrick said. "He's still learning, but we'll teach him."
Derrick also will be teaching someone how to kick, because the Pack lost place kicker Keith Maxwell, who broke his leg during the Westside game.
Greenbrier (2-0) has an open date this week, but Derrick already has formulated a strategy for his team's Sept. 19 home game with Lakeside - "Just score one more point than they do."
Augusta Christian at Stratford
The Lions experienced something new last Friday night.
"It was the first time Augusta Christian has ever won in Macon, so it was a very eventful night for us," AC coach Bruce Lane said. "The kids played very well, especially going on the road on the heels of a disappointing loss to Tattnall."
AC's defense held Stratford to under 100 yards of offense. Dwight Banks and Andrew Fisher each picked off a pass, defensive linemen Chad Cooper and Sam Pitts were tough in the trenches, while linebackers Toby Brown and Marcus Paschal shut down Stratford's misdirection plays and screen passes.
Defense stole the show, but AC's committed four turnovers. Still, quarterback Adam McKinney threw two touchdown passes to Dan Wiley, and connected with Robert Banks for another.
"Our offense showed some diversity," Lane said. "Everyone we face will try to line up and take Cole (Rabun) away from us, but he had some key runs to pick up first downs and caught some passes."
Through three games, nine different AC players have caught passes, while a half-dozen Lions have gained yardage on the ground.
Augusta Christian travels to John Milledge Academy for a 7:30 p.m. game this Friday, and the Lions then have three straight at Pride Valley.
"John Milledge will definitely be a challenge for our defense," Lane said. "It's an important game for us. If we can get on a roll, a lot of good things can happen. But this is just one link of the chain. We have to take care of business Friday night."
Harlem at Elbert County
Both teams compete in Class AAA, but the comparisons between Harlem and Elbert County end there.
The Blue Devils established their dominance over the Bulldogs with a 23-point explosion in the first quarter. From there, Elbert County cruised to a convincing win last week.
Elbert County rushed for more than 400 yards, while the Dogs managed just 167 yards of total offense.
The Dogs avoided a shutout when quarterback Tim Camp completed a touchdown pass to Travis Perry in the second quarter.
Harlem (1-1) is back at home this week. The Dogs take on Greene County at 7:30 p.m. Friday.