It took South Gwinnett less than one quarter to assert its dominance over Meadowcreek on Friday. But Comets coach Bryan Lamar knows that plenty of work remains if his team is going to be a player in Region 4-7A.
South Gwinnett improved to 2-0 with a overwhelming 58-25 win at mistake-prone Meadowcreek.
“We’re going in the right direction,” Lamar said. “We’re still short on a few details. For us to beat the teams we have to beat in our region, we’ve got to be a little bit sharper in the details. The kids are playing hard, they’re improving each week. We’ve just got to continue to hit on the little things that we’ve got to do to get better.”
It was the 10th straight time South Gwinnett has beaten Meadowcreek, a streak that began in 1997. South leads the series 14-2. The big boys in Region 4 -- Grayson, Brookwood, Archer and Parkview -- still await.
South Gwinnett jumped on Meadowcreek in the first quarter and quickly led 28-0.
It started when Meadowcreek’s high snap on a punt was bobbled and knocked away by South, with Jayquann Billingsley picking it up and covering the final 5 yards for the touchdown.
After forcing Meadowcreek to punt, the Comets finally got their offense on the field at the 7:22 mark. In less than a minute they had scored again, with Billingsley running it in from the 36 to give South a 14-0 lead.
It got worse for Meadowcreek. Cameron Ellis was intercepted by Tymere Burton and the Comets scored on the next play, a 36-yard option pass from Anthony Carter to Elijah McDowell.
Ellis was picked off again on the next series and Devin Thomas took it 25 yards for a pick-six and a 28-0 lead.
“It’s always good to get something positive to happen early in the game,” Lamar said. “Happy to get on top.”
Meadowcreek stopped the bleeding with a touchdown to cut the margin to 28-6 when Ellis found Alex Dalmeida for an 8-yard touchdown. The Mustangs even stopped South Gwinnett’s next drive, with Zabien Wilson coming up with an interception at the 3.
But the Mustangs continued to struggle on special teams and snapped the punt out of the end zone for a safety, then allowed South Gwinnett to drive for a touchdown after the free kick. Jayshawn Appling, who led the Comets with 78 yards rushing, scored from the 2 and a 37-6 lead.
South Gwinnett quickly put any notion of a letdown to rest by striking for a touchdown on the first play of the third quarter. Nate Lewis threw a 61-yard strike to Pierre Ford for a 44-6 lead. Appling scored again, this time a 4-yard run, with 35.3 seconds left in the third for a 51-6 lead.
Meadowcreek scored three times in the fourth quarter – a 33-yard pass to Anteaus Stokes, a pick six from Gio West and a 98-yard touchdown return by Andre Craig. Backup South quarterback Jaden Holder also scored a touchdown.
“We’ve got a team that works hard and coaches that work hard,” Lamar said. “I feel like when we put it all together we’re able to create turnovers on defense, we’ll be able to run the ball, we’ll be able to get negative yardage plays on defense, and will be able to do a little bit of everything. … Trying to keep the kids locked in. We’ve still got a long way to go. We still have a mountain to climb.”
About the Author
