MOODY, Ala. — Julius Columbus said they wanted to make history.
He and the rest of what is already turning into a nasty Gainesville defense made sure nothing got in their way.
The Red Elephants held Moody (Ala.) to 0-for-11 on third downs, just four total first downs, and set the tone in what finished as a stunning 31-7 win Thursday on a beautiful Alabama evening.
Both teams came in ranked in the top five in their respective state classifications.
In two games, the Gainesville defense has allowed less than 400 total yards, only one touchdown, and just 10 points.
“We take a lot of pride in defense,” the senior defensive lineman said following their dominating performance. “The D-line, we take a lot of pride in rushing the passer and stopping the run. The secondary takes a lot of pride in stopping the pass. I mean, everyone wants to make a hit.”
The out-of-state road win was the first-ever for the Gainesville program in its over 110-year history. It was the program's first game outside the state of Georgia since 1950.
“Being able to travel, broaden our experience with the guys, and come down here (Moody) to play a great team, that was fun. And, to be able to make history like that is a great thing,” Columbus added.
Both defenses dominated most of the opening half as they forced as many punts (7) and fourth down stops (2) as the offenses got first downs combined (9).
Moody’s best chance came midway through the second quarter, getting a 54-yard run by Bravis Cave down the Red Elephants’ 20. But the Gainesville defense stuffed the Blue Devils’ Kaleb Goff for an 11-yard loss on a 4th-and-1 at the Red Elephants 22.
It looked like the two teams would be content to go to the half in a scoreless tie. But the Gainesville offense finally found some traction with under two minutes left.
Sophomore quarterback Karim Hughley connected on passes of Shane King (24 yards), Landon Williamson (10 yards), and Carmelo Byrd for 9 more to get to the Moody 41 with 19 seconds left. After an incompletion, Hughley found King on an inside slant and he raced to the Blue Devils 11 with 6 seconds remaining in the half.
That set up a 27-yard Francisco Johnson field goal to give Gainesville a 3-0 lead at the break.
“We knew coming in here this was their first game and we knew there would be a lot of excitement, a lot of energy,” Gainesville coach Josh Niblett said. “You don't really know what you're going to get in situations like that. I thought we eventually settled in offensively at the end of the first half to get points and that was big.
“Then we came out in the second half and were able to get the ball out to our playmakers, get them in some space, do some things. We were able to run the football. Defensively, we continued to put pressure on them and earn the right to rush the passer on third down, and that's what we do best.”
Gainesville stormed out of the break and marched 74-yards with Hughley capping the drive with a 10-yard touchdown run for a 10-0 lead. After a quick three-and-out for Moody, the Red Elephants put together their best drive of the game.
They went 93-yards, with Hughley connecting on passes of 27 yards to Taz Smith, 28 to Jeremiah Ware on a slant on 3rd-and-17, and then 18 to Shane King to get to the Moody 25. Byrd finished it off with a 25-yard scamper for a score and a 17-0 advantage.
The defense then gave them a short field when Xavier Griffin had a strip-sack of Moody quarterback Charles Johnston with Demari Cheeks recovering at the Moody 13.
Four plays later Byrd pounded in from 2-yards to push the lead to 24-0 with just 12 seconds left in the third quarter.
Moody never recovered.
“We just told them at the half to just play fast, play with tempo and get the ball to our playmakers,” Niblett said. “I thought (Carmelo) ran the ball well, our receivers made some plays on the perimeter, And Kharim continues to distribute the ball to the guys.”
Phillip Williams left no doubt midway through the fourth when he returned a Moody punt 55-yards for a touchdown with just over five minutes left. Kadin Fossung nearly gave the Red Elephants a score in all three phases with a scoop-and score late in the game but the play was called back.
Hughley finished with 218 yards passing with King hauling in 5 catches for 101 yards. Byrd had his second straight 100-yard game (114) and had two more rushing TDs.
Johnston was harassed all game and was just 9-of-17 for 99 yards and 1 TD for Moody. Nearly half came on his final throw of the game when he connected with Braden Wright on a 47-yard TD pass with 2:54 left in the game after Gainesville had built a 31-0 lead.
Of the Blue Devils 212 total yards, 101 came on two plays -- Johnston TD pass and Cave's 54-yard run. Gainesville yielded just 111 yards on the other 44 plays, a 2.52 yards/play average for the game.
It won't get any easier for the Red Elephants, who travel to perennial power Westlake next week in Atlanta.
