Come-from-behind wins and heartbreaking losses were the stories for area teams this past Friday night.
Here are five things we learned from Week Three of high school football:
1. Gainesville, North Forsyth show resiliance as 8-6A play looms
Months before the season began, the AccessWDUN media poll projected Gainesville and North Forsyth as the top two teams in the new Region 8-6A. Three weeks into the season, that projection is looking pretty accurate. The Red Elephants, in their first season under Josh Niblett, have sprinted out of the gates to a 3-0 start and after a heartbreaking loss to open the season in the Corky Kell Classic, the Raiders have won two straight and are starting to look promising as well. Friday night, both teams looked to be in trouble, with both falling down by double digits on the road in the first half. Gainesville trailed at Monroe Area 13-3 late in the second quarter while North Forsyth trailed West Forsyth by 10 two different times, even trailing as late as with 7:15 to play in the game. Both teams rallied for wins, with Gainesville scoring the last 20 points of the game and North Forsyth getting a pick-6 from Mason Lawson to top the Wolverines 28-24. Region play begins in just two weeks, and these two have shown resiliance that could serve them in their quest for the region championship.
2. Jefferson's defense has joined the party
Most of the preseason questions surrounding Jefferson were about their offense as they changed styles from a triple-option to pro-style under new head coach Travis Noland. However, the offense clicked early and it was instead the defense that saw struggles in the first two games, giving up 47 points in a season-opening loss at Alpharetta and surrendering 28 more in a home win over Wren in Week Two. In Week Three, the defense finally settled in and delivered a statement performance. The Dragons pitched a clean shutout of St. Pius X at Memorial Stadium, allowing the offense to grind out a 23-0 win that put Jefferson over .500 for the first time this season. Junior linebacker Sammy Brown led a unit that held the Golden Lions to just 34 total yards, shutting down their option attack. The performance gives the unit some hope of more to come, and just in time for one of their most anticipated showdowns of the season, a trip to Watkinsville to take on Noland's former team Oconee County, who is now headed by a former Dragons' coach in his own right, Ben Hall. There will be plenty of subplots around this matchup, but Jefferson's defense will be one to watch after Friday's showing.
3. Justice Haynes makes his first major mark at Buford
While Buford was busy making minced meat out of their first two opponents this season, new running back transfer Justice Haynes was relatively quiet, at least by his standards. The senior Alabama-commit was certainly effective, rushing for 93 yards and a touchdown against Thompson and tallying three touchdowns against Mallard Creek, but he had yet to have the coming out party everyone was waiting for. That came Friday night against North Cobb, and it proved to be right on time. Haynes scored three more touchdowns, with the first two coming on bursts of longer than 40 yards each in the opening quarter as the Wolves raced out to a 14-0 lead. However, the game turned sloppy in the second and third quarters as soggy conditions at Tom Riden Stadium contributed to a turnover-laden game that saw the Warriors come back to tie things up at 14 midway through the 4th quarter. Then, Haynes delivered with a touchdown run that proved to be the game-winner as Buford beat North Cobb 21-14. In one night, Haynes showed his big-play potential that made him such a coveted college prospect and delivered the most important score of Buford's season to date. If he can keep things up the rest of the season, in addition to what the rest of his team has been doing, Buford will have a lot to look forward to.
4. East Forsyth is showing major second-year growth
Starting a new program is never easy. Cherokee Bluff opened in Hall County in 2018 and it took year three before the Bears found real success. Seckinger just opened this year in Gwinnett County and has seen major struggles in its first few games. East Forsyth certainly took some lumps in its first season of existence last year, but year two is showing real promise early on. The Broncos are 2-0 and got easily the biggest win in program history to date Friday night as they held off Cedar Shoals in Athens 22-14 in what was their first region game. Head coach Brian Allison chose to play a non-region schedule in the program's inaugural season, but jumped right into the fray in the new Region 8-4A this year. It's a crowded region with nine teams competing, but East Forsyth and Cedar Shoals had the region's first contest of the year this past week, with the rest of the region getting started this coming Friday. The Broncos trailed for most of the game and were down 14-9 in the third quarter before scoring the game's final 13 points to jump to the top of the early region standings. The defense led the effort, with Will Moffit getting a strip sack and Cole Ferguson snagging and interception to key the comeback. In a nine-team field, the playoffs are still a long way off, but there is plenty to be excited about for this young program moving forward.
5. Never take the extra point for granted
How many times have you used the extra point as a chance to look down at your phone or turn the channel when watching a football game? You may want to start taking them a little more seriously, because they aren't always as automatic as you might think. Three area teams had botched extra point tries Friday night with the plays contributing to losses for two teams and arguably directly causing a loss for one. That one was Johnson, who was looking to snap a 24-game losing streak and get their first win under head coach William Harrell in a game at East Hall Friday night. After a late touchdown brough them back to within 14-13, the Vikings blocked the ensuring point after, ending the game with that score. For Jackson County, it was a mishandled snap that led to a failed extra point try that also would have tied their road matchup with Central Gwinnett Friday night in the third quarter. The Black Knights went on to win 17-13. Jefferson was not as unfortunate as the other two, but they also had a mishandled snap on an extra point in the second half of their game with St. Pius X Friday. While the Dragons still won, it served as a reminder that extra points are not always the formalities football fans assume them to be, and sometimes they can become some of the most important plays in a game.
SCHEDULE FOR SEPTEMBER 9
Banks County at Franklin County
Central Gwinnett at Habersham Central
Cherokee Bluff at Madison County*
Clarke Central at Gainesville
East Hall at Chestatee*
Jefferson at Oconee County
Mountain View at Jackson County
North Forsyth at Creekview
Providence Christian at Riverside Military
Rock Springs Christian at Lanier Christian
Stephens County at Dawson County
Temple at Lumpkin County
Union County at Armuchee
Walnut Grove at North Hall*
(* -- denotes region contest)
