The revitalization of the Peachtree Ridge football program continued on Friday night, as the Lions beat Lambert 20-17 in the opening round of the Class 7A playoffs. It was the program’s first playoff win since 2016 and further proof that things have advanced nicely at the Lions Den under the direction of second-year coach Mark Helmerich.
Peachtree Ridge did it with a fast-paced spread attack that was able to survive a second-half slowdown thanks to an opportunistic defense that intercepted three passes – dropped two others – and sniffed out a fake punt.
“I’m just happy for this community and these kids,” Helmerich said. “They wanted to turn this program around and I think think they got tired of hearing about the 2006 (state championship) team and wanted to prove that they can create their own legacy.”
Peachtree Ridge (10-1) advances to play defending state champion and No. 1-ranked Mill Creek in the second round. Lambert finished the season 8-3 and is 18-5 in two seasons under coach Marc Beach.
Peachtree Ridge quarterback Darnell Kelly, a sophomore, completed 17 of 27 passes for 205 yards, one interception and one touchdown, and ran seven times for 31 yards and one touchdown. Lamar White caught eight passes for 62 yards and Tyeion Cofield caught four passes for 88 yards and one touchdown. With leading rusher Miles Abernathy limited by an injury, Sedric Addison carried 19 times for 65 yards.
Lambert was led by junior Cameron Bland, who carried 20 times for 149 yards, but only 28 of that came in the second half after the junior was dinged up just before halftime. The Longhorns used two quarterback – sophomore Ethan Daugherty started and completed 11 of 21 passes for 89 yards, one touchdown and two interceptions, and junior Marshall Coleman was 1-for-4 for 17 yards and one interception.
Lambert cut into Peachtree Ridge’s 17-7 halftime lead early in the fourth quarter on Baker Kimbrel’s 26-yard field goal, then forced the Lions to punt it away. With only four minutes left, Lambert opted for a fake punt, but Kimbrel’s pass went incomplete, giving Peachtree Ridge the ball at the Lambert 33.
That allowed the Lions to drive to the 5, where Alex Hanson drilled a 22-yard field goal with 1:59 remaining for a 20-10 lead.
Unfazed, Lambert scored on a 36-yard pass from Daughtery to Christian Smith with 1:09 remaining. The ensuing onside kick bounced out of bounds and Peachtree Ridge was able to run out the clock.
“The difference was turnovers and I should have punted the ball instead of faking it. That’s on me personally,” Beach said. “It’s tough because I think we’re a better team than we showed. … I’ll suffer with this for a while.”
Peachtree Ridge led 17-7 at halftime thanks to three interceptions.
Lambert ended the first Peachtree Ridge possession when Jaden Carter intercepted Kelly’s pass. But the Longhorns couldn’t take advantage and after an exchange of punts, Peachtree Ridge came up with its first interception, this one from Tabian Fuller.
Peachtree Ridge turned that into points, driving 66 yards and scoring on Kelly’s 22-yard run for a 7-0 lead.
Lambert drove to the Lions’ 37 on its next possession when Tristen Hill intercepted Daughtery and returned the ball to the 16. The Ridge was unable to move the ball and punted to Lambert, which scored thanks to a 34-yard run by Bland, who lost his shoe and was dragged down at the 1. Tommy Lafayette finished the drive on third down.
Peachtree Ridge scored again with Kelly connecting with Cofield for a 38-yard touchdown. The Lions added a 34-yard Hanson field goal, a score that was set up when Coleman had his pass tipped under pressure, with Taysean Wilson making the interception.
“They ran more screens than any team I’ve coached against in 21 years,” Helmerich said. “You name it, they ran it. We worked really hard in the first quarter to take that away and I think that was the difference. It kind of forced them to do some stuff they didn’t want to do.”
