North Hall’s biggest test of the season is slowing down LaGrange running back Malachi Fannin-Render.
“He does a lot of dangerous things,” North Hall coach Sean Pender said. “He runs extremely hard. He's fast. He's unlike any running back we've seen this year. So our defense has a challenge with him.”
The Trojans will welcome LaGrange to the Brickyard on Friday night in the quarterfinals of the Class 3A playoffs. The game can be heard live on 94.5 FM The Lake.
Fannin-Render has rushed for 416 yards and six touchdowns in the Grangers' two playoff wins, including the win over Sandy Creek in the second round. In comparison, Sandy Creek beat LaGrange in the regular season, but Fannin-Render only carried the ball four times in that meeting.
He also rushed for 192 yards against Lumpkin County in the first round, a team North Hall only beat by a touchdown.
"The biggest key is to contain him," Pender said. "We have to make sure we keep it in front of us and can't miss tackles. You can't just hit him, and he goes down; he'll bounce right off of you, or he'll run right through you. He keeps his legs turning. So we have to be fundamentally sound."
But as good as Fannin-Render is, the Grangers aren't unstoppable. Upson-Lee proved that during the final regular-season game, beating the Grangers 18-14 even though Fannin-Render had 179 yards on the ground.
North Hall has survived the first two rounds, a true testament to the program's resiliency. The Trojans beat Gilmer in overtime and needed an 84-yard touchdown from Smith McGarvey to Cole Cable to beat Upson-Lee.
"We have a thing like play hard, have fun, expect to win," Pender said. "And you know the resiliency of the team, going out there and playing hard all the time and playing one play at a time, doing it with some relentless enthusiasm, and expect to win the play," Pender said. "If you play the next play, and you're always looking forward, no matter what happens to play before, whether you won or lost it, you're going to expect to win the next one. And we just keep on with that. That little strategy, you know, has led us into being in the game in the fourth quarter. It also has allowed us to overcome adversity and win in the end, and hopefully, we can continue this trend."
Caleb Hutchins contributed to this article.
LAGRANGE at NORTH HALL
Records: Grangers (9-3, No. 20); Trojans (10-2, No. 5)
Last week: LaGrange beat Sandy Creek, 38-22; North Hall beat Upson-Lee, 27-20
Where: The Brickyard, Gainesville
Radio: 94.5 FM The Lake
Time: 7:30 p.m.
The Statisticals: First-ever meeting. It’s the second straight Region 2-3A opponent for the Trojans, as they knocked off the region’s No. 2 last week. The Grangers have been red hot since the playoffs, beating region foe Sandy Creek, ranked as high as No. 1 most of the season, last week. They also hammered Lumpkin County in the first round, 48-6, a team North Hall struggled to beat during the regular season … Grangers' RB Malachi Fannin-Render has been key in the playoffs, rushing for 224 yards on 29 carries and three touchdowns last week. He had 192 yards rushing on 17 touches and three TDs vs. Lumpkin County in the first round ... But the Trojans have found a way to continue winning in the playoffs dramatically, in OT in the first round and a late rally past Upson-Lee last week, which would make them hot as well … Smith McGarvey was 15-of-25 passing for 210 yards passing and two TDs ... Cole Cable led the receiving effort with three catches for 96 yards, including the game-winning 84-yard TD pass ... For the first time since 2012, they have won 10 games and made it out of the second round ... The Trojans are 16-2 in playoff games at home ... The Grangers also made it out of the second round for the first time since 2008 …
What to watch for: North Hall’s defense vs. LaGrange’s offense. The Grangers are averaging 43 ppg in the playoffs against higher-ranked opponents … the Trojans have given up 17. It’ll be the largest test for the Trojans’ defense this season against the brutal rushing attack of the Grangers … the Trojans’ front seven is physical and can get in the backfield, pressuring the QB 82 times, 49 tackles for a loss and 19 sacks … Parker Carlton has led the pressure with 84 tackles, three for a loss … Dawson Reed, Dalton Hulsey, Charlie House and Matthew Arceo have combined for 193 tackles and 41 QB hurries.
