JEFFERSON — North Oconee used special teams and a stingy defensive effort to upset No. 1 Jefferson, 11-6, at Memorial Stadium on Friday to win the Region 8-4A championship.
In the fight for the top seed in the Class 4A playoffs, it was all defense. It rained for most of the game, and any offense for either team was difficult to come by. So what do you do when the offense can't score any points? Let the special teams take over. And that they did, as it turned out to be the deciding factor in the game.
The Titans (7-3, 6-0 Region 8-4A) special teams unit was able to force two safeties to supplement a struggling offense. The first came off of a blocked punt that bounced out the back of the endzone, which ended up being the first points of the game late in the first quarter.
Then, midway in the second, after a long drive took them to the Dragons' two-yard line, senior running back Dominic Elder Jr. dove over the defensive line for a touchdown that would be the only offensive points scored for the Titans and an 11-0 over the Dragons (8-1, 4-1 Region 8-4A). Elder ended up carrying the ball 21 times for 67 yards and the aforementioned score.
On Jefferson's possession following the score, the long snapper sent the ball over the punter's head, who then proceeded to kick it out of the back of the endzone to prevent any further damage. It gave the Titans their second safety of the game. North Oconee would be unable to score for the rest of the game.
For the Dragons, senior quarterback and Georgia-commit, Malaki Starks, was held in check by the stout Titans defense. He was only able to complete one pass for 21 yards and what ended up being the game-sealing interception. He also carried the ball 9 times for 13 yards.
North Oconee coach Tyler Aurandt credited his team for stopping the 5-star Dragon.
"They just played together, that was the message all week, relentless effort, relentless physicality, relentless love of teammate, and they just did it together," Aurandt said. "There is no other way to do it. One guy can't go out there and stop that kid [Starks], it takes all 11."
The star of the Jefferson offense was junior running back Tre Reece, who carried the ball 11 times for 123 yards, and the only touchdown for the Dragons. He had a slow first half but woke up quickly with a 56-yard rushing touchdown to start the third quarter.
This wasn't the end-all-be-all for Jefferson as their defense was suffocating, allowing only seven offensive points and forcing two turnovers in the game. Starks intercepted Titans quarterback Louden Schnake, and the defense forced a fumble that was recovered by Kadin Bailey.
"I am so excited for these kids, and the way they've battled all season, cause it wasn't easy," Aurandt said. "We had a lot of things we had to overcome, we just battled and battled and battled all year. We've been through a lot of adversity, tough stretch at the beginning [of the season], but you can see it paying off now. I am just super excited for those kids, our school, our community, it's just an unbelievable feeling to beat a program of that caliber."
