EATONTON — Banks County is peaking at just the right time,
The Leopards won their third straight game Friday night, holding off Putnam County 14-0, which also clinched their first playoff berth since 2011 and just the second since 1997.
“This is just huge for the program. A huge weight lifted off our shoulders,” said first-year head coach Josh Shoemaker. “To this on the road in a tough place to play just says a lot about the kids we have.”
The win for Banks County (5-4, 4-1 Region 8-AA) sets up a showdown with Elbert County next week at The Granite Bowl for second place and a first round home playoff game.
The Leopards piled up over 400 yards of offense and held the War Eagles (1-8, 1-4) to just 198 total yards, but they struggled to find the end zone in the first half. Four times they got inside the Putnam 10 but fumbled once, got stopped on downs twice, and then was thwarted when they could not get a play off inside the War Eagles 3 as time ran out on the first half.
Bryce Bennett, who finished with 70 yards rushing and 103 yards receiving, seemingly took matters into his own hands. He capped a long 14-play drive with a touchdown catch from Griffin Goodwon to break the scoreless tie and then in the fourth quarter, after the Leopards forced a turnover, he executed a perfect fake field goal scampering in from 26 yards to push the lead to 14-0 .
The Banks County defense forced another turnover on Putnam’s next drive and the Leopards ran out the final minutes to secure the playoff berth.
Clayton Dykehouse finished with150 yards rushing to go over the 1,000-yard mark for the season for the Leopards. Goodwin passed for 200 yards with for Banks County.
http://accesswdun.com/article/2016/10/463026/banks-co-clinches-first-playoff-berth-since-11