RABBITTOWN, Ga. — All you need to know about East Hall quarterback Jamarcus Harrison is this … left, right RS button, up RS, triangle, R2, circle.
Yes, the senior quarter is a human PlayStation 5 controller, and if you’re left scratching your head, here’s what all those controls do on the EA Sports College Football 2025 video game… juke, truck, sprint and spin.
Yes, he did all that Friday night while amassing 219 yards rushing,176 yards passing and five total touchdowns — four rushing and one passing -- to lead East Hall (4-5, 1-3 Region 8-3A) past West Hall (3-6, 0-4 Region 8-3A) in a thrilling 42-35 finish at East Hall Stadium.
“He is man. You know, so many times I tell people, just when we call a pass play, an RPO because he can take off at any moment,” East Hall coach Matt Turner said. “People think they got the angle on him. They don't. They underestimate his speed, he'll make you miss, and then he also runs physical. He's one of the best players in North Georgia and maybe one of the best in Georgia. He is a heck of a player, and I am proud of him tonight and all he did.”
Of Harrison’s four rushing touchdowns, his 52-yard scamper, which gave the Vikings their first lead of the game, 20-14, in the third quarter, and the game-winner, a 29-yard scramble, were his two most impressive touchdown runs.
He also had several feature photo runs, including back-to-back sprints that ended with him crashing hard on the sidelines before finishing the scoring drive with a six-yard touchdown run late in the third quarter to take back the lead. Then he converted the two-point try to go up 28-21.
Lukas Pruitt, Harrison’s wing-man, also had a stellar night, rushing for 100 yards on 17 carries and a touchdown — the first East Hall score of the game.
“Lucas, you know, he's the in-between-the-tackles guy,” Turner said. “We run him outside, but he's more of a hammer. And, you know, Jamarcus is more the joystick lightning guy, and they're such a good one-two punch back there together. They've been playing together since they were in seventh grade. So, we're blessed to have those two. And proud of Lucas man, he had huge catch there in the fourth quarter to give us a chance to win tonight.”
The pass Turner is talking about came on a second play of the Vikings’ game-winning 80-yard drive. Harrison opened it with an 11-yard run and found Pruitt down the middle on a 31-yard dart to the Spartans’ 42-yard line on the next play. Pruitt added nine more yards to set up Harrison’s TD run for the win.
Still, the Spartans had 30 seconds left to make some progress, but on the drive's second play, the Vikings' defense sacked West Hall quarterback Brett Sturm to seal the win.
Yep, it was a typical West Hall-East Hall game. The Vikings have won the last three games by seven points or less.
The game started slow for both, leaving West Hall with a slim 14-12 lead at the half. The second half was totally different, and in the fourth quarter, it looked as if the Vikings were going to run away with a two-touchdown lead, 35-21 with 4:57 to go.
But the Spartans dug in behind Sturm and receiver Shaka Rorie. The two connected twice, a 62-yard pass and a 32-yard pass, to tie the game 35-35 with 1:12 to go in the fourth quarter.
The Spartans were three-for-three on fourth-down conversions, including a fake punt for a first down on the game's opening drive. That drive ended in an interception by Kani Williams in the end zone.
Sturm was 10-of-18 passing for 211 yards and three touchdowns. He rushed for another 69 yards and two TDs. Elijah Hayes finished with 91 yards on 23 carries.
“I think, 3-for-3 on fourth down plays, and they hit us on a big play to number 23 (Rorie). Hats off to 23 man; he kind of surprised me. I didn't know he had that kind of ability. So, he caught us off guard a little bit. But I'm proud of our defense overall. It was just a couple of key moments we could have played a little bit better, but we didn’t.”
The Vikings travel to Cherokee Bluff on Friday. If they win, they have an outside chance of making the playoffs.
“That's what I told our kids all year long: We want to get to the end of the season, and those games mean something, and this one means something,” he said. “You know, we get to go down Cherokee Bluff and see if we can win that one and see what happens. So, we're excited about that.”
