WATKINSVILLE, Ga. — Rabun County came in needing a win over Athens Academy by eight or more points to capture the Region 8-A Division title.
Instead, the Wildcats dropped into third place after a frustrating 34-28 loss to the Spartans at Slaughter Field on Friday night.
A big-play Spartans offense undid a solid rushing performance by Rabun County as Athens Academy quarterback Hampton Johnson threw for 290 yards and 5 touchdowns, with the last four answering Rabun County scores to never let the Wildcats grab the momentum for long.
“The big play beat us tonight on defense,” Rabun County coach Michael Davis said. “I thought we played really good up front. We stopped the run but we just gave up too many big plays.”
Johnson had touchdown throws of 62, 60, and a back-breaking 68-yard bomb for the eventual game-winner one play after Rabun County (6-3, 3-2 Region 8-A D1) had tied the score for a fourth time in the contest.
And with a season finale against Elbert County next week looming, they won’t have much time to rebound as they are now left just fighting for their playoff lives.
“We've got to find ways to win these kinds of games,” Davis said. “We gotta have a little bit more discipline; we gotta make a few more plays.”
The Spartans (10-0, 6-0 Region 8-A D1) needed just three plays, with some luck, to get on the board to open the game. They got the 62-yd strike on a tipped ball when Rabun’s Clayton Blalock had an interception go through his hands, bounce off his pads and into the hands of KJ Whitehead, who sprinted the final 25 yards for the score.
The Spartans then forced what was to be a punt on the Wildcats first possession but a pass on a fake punt on fourth down fell incomplete, giving Athens Academy a short field at the Rabun 24.
But Reed Burrell provided the spark the Wildcats needed. The sophomore safety picked off a Johnson pass in the end zone to thwart Athens Academy’s quick start.
From there, Rabun County ran the ball eight consecutive plays. Ty Truelove started with a 13-yard keeper and Lake Evans finished it. Evans bolted to the Spartans 10 on a 23-yard run and then capped it with a 10-yard touchdown run to pull within 7-6 after a missed PAT.
Athens Academy would come right back, however. Johnson found Bryan McClendon for a 16-yard pass on 3rd-and-16 and then connected with Keyon Standifer on a 60-yard bomb on the next play to push the lead 14-6 with just 9 seconds left in the first quarter.
Standifer finished with 5 catches for 165 yards and 3 TDs on the night.
The Wildcats answered that when Reid Giles scored on a 1-yd TD run, setup by his 41-yard run to the Spartans 1. Truelove converted a 2-point run to tie the game at 14.
The Spartans again reclaimed the lead, ripping off a 12-play drive, with Johnson finding Whitehead for a 9-yard TD pass for a 21-14 lead.
Then the Spartans picked off Truelove at the Wildcats 49. But the Wildcats forced the only punt of the half and they went to the half trailing 21-14.
Rabun stormed out of the gates to open the third quarter, driving to the Athens Academy 16. But the Wildcats missed a 43-yd FG after Truelove was sacked for 6-yard loss on 3rd-and-14 at the Spartans 26.
But the Wildcats got another break when Johnson was stripped and Dane Tyler picked up the loose ball and returned it to the Spartans’ 38 on their next possession. Giles would cap the short drive with a 9-yard touchdown run to tie the game at 21.
Athens Academy scored on the opening play of the fourth quarter to take a 28-21 lead but Rabun County used a field position swap on an exchange of punts, with the Wildcats ending up with the ball at the Spartans 16 after a 17-yard punt return by Giles.
Truelove capped the short drive with a 2-yard scoring run to tie the game for a fourth time.
But Athens Academy struck quickly again, with Johnson and Standifer connecting for their 3rd touchdown on a 68-yard bomb on the next play. But the PAT was botched leaving the door open for the Wildcats, trailing 34-28.
But the ensuing Rabun County possession stalled quickly and a Truelove pass to Evans on fourth down went through his hands and the Spartans ran out the final two minutes to preserve the win.
“(Athens Academy) has a great football team,” Davis said. “They've got four of the best athletes in the state of Georgia on one team. But we have a great football team as well, I think. They big-played us tonight. You take the big plays away, we win this football game.”
The Wildcats finished with 281 yards on the ground, with Giles pounding out 145. Evans had 88 and Truelove 48 for the game.
Because of the Spartans’ win, Commerce can finish no higher than second and the rest of Region 8-A D1 will be subject to the new Power Rankings System seedings at the end of the season.
