Saturday night’s Class 7A championship at Georgia State, between the Carrollton Trojans and Mill Creek Hawks, had produced one of the highest-scoring title games in GHSA history before halftime. The teams shattered the record by game’s end and also broke championship records for most points by one team and individual passing yards.
When the dust settled, the Hawks emerged a 70-35 winner for their first championship since the program’s 2004 founding.
The points total eclipsed the previous mark of 91, which came in 2013 when Griffin beat Carrollton 56-35. The Hawks’ point total broke Valdosta’s championship record of 62, set in 1971. They led 49-28 at halftime.
Cam Robinson and Caleb Downs each paced the Hawks with three rushing touchdowns, but they were far from the team’s only playmakers. All of them were needed too, because Carrollton freshman quarterback Julian Lewis became the first player in GHSA history to surpass 500 passing yards in a championship, completing 25 of his 46 passes for 531 yards and five touchdowns to two interceptions.
Lewis’ touchdown total was one shy of the championship game record, set two days prior by Prince Avenue Christian’s Aaron Philo in the 1A Division I championship.
However, it was the Hawks (14-1), entering the playoffs ranked No. 3 and as champions of Region 8, who prevailed. And, as a result, Downs — an AJC Super 11 selection headed to Alabama to play safety — closes his storied prep career a champion.
On his birthday, no less.
“It feels like my birthright,” said Downs, who rushed eight times for 45 yards and second-quarter touchdown runs of 2, 3 and 6 yards, adding six tackles on defense. ”God put my birthday on this day for a reason. So, I thank him for it, and I appreciate the Lord.”
The bulk of the scoring came in a wild first half. Aside from Downs’ scores and Lewis touchdown passes of 27 and 22 yards, the half’s other six touchdowns came on plays of more than 60 yards.
Robinson opened the game’s scoring with a 66-yard run with 10:34 left in the first. Then, five touchdowns were scored in the final 1:36 of the first quarter:
- Mill Creek’s Jamal Anderson returned a blocked field goal 88 yards to give the Hawks a 14-0 lead with 1:36 left.
- Lewis competed a 27-yard pass to Kiyun Cofer to make it 14-7 with 1:18 left.
- Mill Creek’s Makhail Wood returned the ensuing kickoff 96 yards for a touchdown, pushing the Hawks’ lead to 21-7 with 1:06 left.
- Carrollton’s next drive lasted two plays and ended on Bryce Hicks’ 80-yard reception from Lewis, pulling the Trojans to within 21-14 with 0:52 left.
- On the first play of Mill Creek’s next drive, Hawks quarterback Hayden Clark delivered an 80-yard touchdown pass to Justin Content, making it 28-14 with 0:41 left.
The five touchdowns in the second quarter were three Downs runs and two Lewis passes, one of which was his second 80-yarder, this one to Caleb Odom.
The Hawks outscored Carrollton 21-7 in the second half with Robinson runs of 1 and 3 yards, and Kevin Mitchell’s 48-yard run with 1:36 remaining, which brought the score to its final margin.
“It was a team effort,” said Hawks coach Josh Lovelady, who took over for the program’s only coach, Shannon Jarvis, in 2019. “You had blocked kicks, interceptions, kickoff returns, the offense was doing some great things. It was all three phases of the game. We came out here with our hair on fire, and I’m just so proud of them.”
The No. 4 Trojans (14-1), champions of Region 2, finish one win short of their first title since 1998 and first 15-0 season in a program that dates to 1909. After five consecutive quarterfinals appearances from 2016-2020 between 5A and 6A, coach Joey King arrived last season and guided the Trojans to the 6A semifinals last year, setting up this year’s run.
In Lewis, who already holds major offers including Alabama, Georgia, Michigan and Texas, King appears to have another quarterback prodigy after coaching Trevor Lawrence at Cartersville from 2015-2018, where they won 4A titles in 2015 and 2016.
“He did a great job,” King said of Lewis’ effort Saturday. “We got into a situation where we had to throw the ball to try to get some yards and some points back. I thought he did a good job of keeping his composure in a state championship game for a freshman, but there are no moral victories. We still lost the football game.”
Despite the loss, King said he was proud of his team.
“Nobody gave us a shot when we started this thing,” he said. “Mill Creek has (2,097 more students than Carrollton based on actual enrollment numbers) than we got. So, for us to be here playing these jokers, with what we’ve got, I couldn’t be more proud of this group, and I don’t want another bunch.”
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