It was another action-packed week of high school football across Northeast Georgia Friday night, with a number of big performances and upset wins that continued to paint the picture for what's shaping up to be a very interesting 2022 season.
Here are five things we learned in Week Two:
1. Buford is clicking on all cylinders
Perhaps no team in Georgia has looked more complete in the first two weeks of the season than the Buford Wolves. Coming off of three straight state championships and entering their first season in Class 7A, the team has opened the season with back-to-back blowout wins over out of state competition. The most recent victim was Mallard Creek of North Carolina. Buford (2-0) made quick work of the Mavericks in their home opener Friday with a 56-7 win, jumping out to a 21-0 lead in the game's first seven and a half minutes. Newcomer running back Justice Haynes has certainly made his presence felt, the Alabama-commit and Blessed Trinity transfer scored three touchdowns against Mallard Creek, but the Wolves are getting contributions from everybody so far, with five different players finding the end zone Friday night. Things will not get any easier as Buford will now prepare for a third straight early-season showdown with North Cobb this week and will also have stiff contests later in the season against Mill Creek and Collins Hill, but Bryant Appling's team has shown no sign of weakness in the season's early going.
2. Rabun County, Flowery Branch prove they can win with defense
Rabun County has been well known over the past decade as a program defined by their offensive prowess. Entering the first season under new head coach and former offensive coordinator Michael Davis, things didn't appear to be changing there with newcomer quarterback Keegan Stover leading the team to a blowout win over Haralson County in the season opener. In Week Two, however, the team flexed its muscle on the defensive side of the ball, shutting down a talented Stephens County offense in what was billed as potential shootout. Instead, Rabun County (2-0) grinded out a 14-7 win, their lowest scoring output in a win since 1998. Meanwhile, about 50 miles south of Tiger, Flowery Branch was proving its defensive mettle as well. The Falcons gave up 38 points to Decatur in the opening week, but responded with a performance that had to make new head coach and former defensive coordinator Jason Tester proud, shutting out St. Pius X at Falcon Field 9-0. The Flowery Branch (2-0) defense forced five turnovers and shut down an option attack that has been one of the most notorious in the state over the years. Both the Wildcats and the Falcons showed that their defenses are good enough to win games for them, even when the offense isn't putting up big numbers.
3. Lumpkin County has made major strides in first year under Webb
Lumpkin County's last 2-0 start was in 2011. That was before Friday night. The Indians are 2-0 now after a 28-6 win over Union County in Blairsville and are thinking of bigger things to come. It's been a refreshing change for a program that has only made the playoffs once in the last 19 years, and while these first two wins in non-region play will do nothing to directly impact their postseason hopes, it has provided a spark that hasn't been seen in Dahlonega in a long time. There were hopes that Heath Webb could do at Lumpkin County what he did previously at Winder-Barrow: turn a historically struggling program into a consistent winner. While the sample size has been small, early returns look great. The Indians put up big rushing numbers in the preseason scrimmage against Banks County and again in the season opener against Riverside Military, with Mason Sullens and Cal Faulkner putting up big numbers en route to blowout wins. However, it was the passing attack and defense that stole the show against Union County Friday night, with quarterback Cooper Scott throwing for 180 yards and two touchdowns and the defense holding the Panthers to their lowest scoring output in their last 16 games. Now Webb will hope his team can turn the early promise into success down the road.
4. Gainesville has big-play ability in all phases
Speaking of teams off to a great start under a new head coach, Gainesville certainly has been that through two games under new head coach Josh Niblett. After a season-opening upset win against Marist in Atlanta, the Red Elephants moved to 2-0 with a 30-7 rout of Mountain View at City Park Stadium Friday night. The large margin of victory was even more impressive when considering that Gainesville only tallied 198 yards of total offense and had over 100 yards in penalties. Then again, that's what big plays can do to a football game, and Gainesville had them in all three phases. The first and biggest play of the night was made on special teams. Trailing 7-3 late in the second quarter, sophomore Julius Columbus blocked a Mountain View field goal attempt and Zyrion Harrison grabbed it and raced 76 yards to the end zone to give the Red Elephants the lead for good. Later, running back Naim Cheeks would provide the big play from the offense with a 53-yard touchdown burst at the end of the 3rd quarter. Then the defense wrapped up the night with a 28-yard pick-six by Cash O'Callahan early in the 4th quarter. While Coach Niblett is hoping his team can clean up the penalties and be a little more consistent on offense, he has to be happy with the explosiveness Gainesville has shown so far this year.
5. Offensive transition not proving troublesome for Jefferson
For some teams, moving from a triple-option offensive system to a pro-style one would be a dramatic shift that would take a while to adjust to. Not for Jefferson. In the first year under former Oconee County head coach Travis Noland, the Dragons' offense has looked like one that's run the pro-style for a decade, piling up points in both of their first two games of the season. While the season opener ended in a disappointing 47-46 loss at Alpharetta, the second game rewarded them for their offensive efforts with a 56-28 win over Wren of South Carolina at Memorial Stadium Friday night. For those keeping score at home, that's an average of 51 points per game. Not bad early results for a new system. There was never any doubt about the talent Jefferson (1-1) possessed, highlighted by linebacker and running back Sammy Brown, it was unclear how things would mesh for a team that had run the option for four years under previous head coach Gene Cathcart. Oddly, it's been the defense that has been the Dragons' point of struggle early in the coaching change, as they have allowed an average of 37 points in the first two weeks. They will need to clean that up as they get ready for matchups with St. Pius X and Oconee County over the next two games, but the offense appears ready out of the box with no assembly required.
http://accesswdun.com/article/2022/8/1127094/5-things-what-we-learned-from-week-2-of-high-school-football