MURRAYVILLE - T.J. Pitts ran for 296 yards and four touchdowns as the North Hall Trojans rolled over Pickens County Friday night 56-27 at The Brickyard in a battle of unbeaten Region 7-AAA teams.
The win for the Trojans (6-0, 5-0 in region) gives them sole possession of first place in the region standings. The loss drops Pickens (5-2, 5-1 in region) into second place just one-half game ahead of Gainesville with the the two teams meeting next week in Jasper.
North Hall coach Bob Christmas said it was the kind of game they had been looking for the past couple of weeks.
"It's the first game since the Gainesville game where we played 48 minutes," he said. "The kids came ready to play and really responded well."
Pickens, however, got the early break it needed recovering a North Hall fumble of the opening kickoff at the North Hall 30. The Dragons then scored on a 4-yard run by Sam Propes to take a quick 7-0 lead.
Pitts then went to work capping a long North Hall drive on its next possession with a 7-yard scoring run. On their next possession, he would give the Trojans a lead they would never relinquish with a 54-yard scamper and a 14-7 North Hall lead.
Pitts would had another short run and then a 57-yard TD run in the second half.
"T.J. is just an explosive runner and can score from anywhere on the field and he showed that tonight," Christmas said.
Brandon Garcia also had a solid at quarterback for North Hall hitting 6-of-12 passes for 92 yards.
The North hall defense was equally impressive holding the Dragons, who came in averaging roughly 300 yards rushing a game, to just 131 total yards.
"I thought the defense was outstanding. That may have been the best game we've played overall, or at least as good as the Gainesville game," Christmas said.
North Hall will travel to rival Chestatee next week in a battle of contrasting styles.
Thursday
June 12th, 2025
5:12AM
