In a game between two programs on the rise, both Columbia and Woodland-Stockbridge learned something.
Fortunately for Columbia, the lesson came with a win.
The Eagles (2-0) led 26-0 with less than six minutes to play, but had to recover an onside kick with :45 seconds left in regulation to hang on to a 26-21 win over the Wolfpack (1-1), Friday night at Avondale Stadium.
Both teams were coming off of victories last week in their season openers.
Class 2A Columbia went down south to perennial power Class 7A Camden County and came back to south DeKalb County with a 13-10 victory. It was a program defining win for the Eagles who had been 11-21 in the three seasons prior to Greg Barnett, a Columbia alum, coming home to take the reigns as head coach. After going 3-3 in COVID-shortened 2020, Barnett led Columbia to an 8-3 record last season and the program’s first playoff win since 1997.
He didn’t blame the near meltdown in the fourth quarter on a letdown after last week’s big win. Instead, it was the result of playing several inexperienced players, in an attempt to get them ready for larger roles later in the season.
“We had some mental breakdowns by some younger guys that we wanted to get in the game,” said Barnett, who had some choice words for his team after the game. “We have to learn how to close out a game like that. I think some inexperience got to us.”
The Eagles’ offense looked unstoppable at times, as their offensive line – seniors Johnathan Wright and James Macon, juniors Edwin Moore and Ja’Monta Tukes, and freshman Mikel Edwin – opened creases and sealed the edge for senior QB Elijah Morgan and Columbia’s stable of backs, and protected Morgan in the pocket. Defensively, LB/S Chris High (two forced fumbles) led a unit that stifled Woodland’s offense for more than three-and-a half quarters.
A 15-yard touchdown jaunt by senior Roland Edwin in the first quarter, and touchdown runs of 3 and 5 yards by junior Lamaze Williams in the second, gave Columbia a 20-0 halftime lead. Senior Royce Tolbert’s 8-yard run capped a 9-play, 65-yard drive to push the lead to 26-0 with a little over a minute left in the third quarter.
But Woodland wouldn’t go away. Head coach Julian Hicks is the Woolpack’s fourth since 2016. Woodland was 13-27 in the four seasons before Hicks took over last year. The Woolpack finished 4-6 last season but started this campaign with a 25-6 win over Class 6A New Manchester.
“Columbia is a great team and they brought it to us,” Hicks said. “But I’m proud of the resiliency we showed.”
Woodland’s comeback started with a 34-yard touchdown run by junior Lorenzo Monix, who weaved his way through several Columbia defenders on his way into the endzone.
After forcing a turnover on downs, Woodland took over at the Eagles’ 44-yard line. On the third play from scrimmage, junior QB Dominiq Northington escaped a sack, danced to his right, then found daylight up the middle for a 30-yard touchdown run to cut Columbia’s lead to 26-14.
The Woodland defense held strong on the Columbia’s ensuing possession and on fourth down deep in Eagle territory, they fumbled the snap on a punt and the Wolfpack recovered in the endzone for a touchdown, narrowing the margin to 26-21 with less than a minute left.
But Woodland couldn’t recover the onside kick, and with no timeouts left Columbia took two knees to run out the clock.
“I’m glad we loss this way,” Hicks said. “After getting a win last week, this loss will keep us from being complacent. We know what winning tastes like. We know what losing tastes like. Hopefully our guys like the taste of a win more than that taste of a loss.”
Though Barnett was far from pleased with his team’s performance, getting another victory was the ultimate goal for the night.
“At the end of the day,” he said, “a win is a win, and we’ll take it.”
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