CLEVELAND, Ga. — Nolan Matthews picked just the right moment to knock the rust off. And it couldn’t have come at a better time for Lumpkin County.
The junior running back, who had missed the last 2 1/2 games, exploded for a 47-yard run, his biggest of the night, to give the Indians what would eventually be a thrilling 29-23 win over White County in a crucial Region 6-3A matchup Monday night at White County Stadium for both teams.
“He's still a little rusty,” Indians’ coach Heath Webb said. “It's good to have him back. We're definitely more explosive with him on the field. If he gets that tiny little seam, he can take it to the house like he did there. Just a huge play for us.”
Matthews would finish with 158 yards as the Indians piled up 306 yards rushing.
The win kept Lumpkin’s (4-2, 2-1 Region 6-3A) region title hopes possible but they will still need some help. It was another tough loss for the Warriors (2-4, 1-2 Region 6-3A) who have dropped two straight in the region with back-to-back road trips to Dawson County and GAC up next.
But the final word would come down to a battle between the Lumpkin County defense and White County quarterback Tripp Nix. The senior drove the Warriors to the Indians 10 on a pair of completions to John Phillips and three more to Zach Godfrey.
But Lumpkin’s Wolf Harbin tipped a sure touchdown pass from Nix just out of reach of Godfrey on third down, and they survived Nix’s beautiful floater into the end zone just beyond Phillip’s outstretched hands in the corner of the end zone with 12 seconds left on fourth down.
Nix finished 18-of-35 for 229 yards and added another 78 yards and 2 TDs rushing on the night.
”I have a tremendous amount of respect for Tripp Nix,” Webb said. “You're not going to keep a guy like that off the scoreboard much. You have to make a critical stop when you need to. And we made one more critical stop than they did. That's the difference in the game.”
The Indians’ eventual game winning drive came after the Warriors had forced a pair of punts on their first two drives of the second half. Nix and Noel Lammers took advantage despite trailing 21-14 at the half.
Nix used a 19-yard scramble to overcome a penalty, and then Lammers had runs of 10, 22, and a 1-yard scoring run to cap a quick 5-play drive. But the extra point was blocked to still trail 21-20.
After the second punt, Hayden Vandegriff capped a 12-play drive with a 35-yard field goal with 11:36 left in the game for a 23-21 lead.
That was when Matthews and Lumpkin County answered right back for the lead and from there the Indians defense saved the day twice. Nix had driven the Warriors down to the Lumpkin 28 but a sack by Mike Nichols on third down and then an open-field tackle by Cal Faulkner on Godfrey forced a turnover on downs.
Webb just shook his head when asked if every 6-3A would go down to the wire the rest of the way.
“The parity in this region is awesome,” he said. “You're gonna get a bunch of games like that where it's going to be back and forth. Anybody can beat anybody. It's a little stressful as the coach, you know, but it's fun to be a part of.”
The beginning of the game saw both defenses take control. The two teams combined for 3 punts in the first six drives and Lumpkin picked off one Nix pass.
But the final 18 minutes was all about the offenses. Essentially it boiled down to the quick-strike capability of the Indians against the Warriors' more methodical approach.
Twice, Lumpkin County needed just one play as Faulkner raced 89 yards and then 75 yards on a pair of electrifying touchdown runs. The first gave the Indians a 7-0 lead midway through the first quarter. The second gave them a 14-7 lead early in the second quarter.
Faulkner would finish with 181 yards on the ground and was 11-of-15 passing for 82 yards.
But twice, the Warriors would answer right back with long drives. Nix capped a pair of 8-play drives, the first with a 9-yard scoring run to cap a 99-yard drive. His second TD run, from 7 yards out midway through the second quarter, tied the game at 14.
But Lumpkin would reclaim the lead with its longest drive of the game. Faulkner and Matthews did the heavy lifting, combining for 40 yards on a 10-play march, with Faulkner getting his third score of the half for an eventual 21-14 halftime lead.
It was the second consecutive game the Warriors allowed more than 300 yards on the ground, both losses.
Both teams are off next week before hitting the road on Oct. 11 in a pair of critical 6-3A matchups. The Indians head to Johnson while the Warriors travel to Dawson County.
