Brock Vandagriff lived up to his billing, but Prince Avenue Christian’s first state championship was hardly the result of a one-man team.
Vandagriff threw for 262 yards and two touchdowns and ran for 76 yards and another score Monday to lead the No. 1-ranked Wolverines to a 41-21 victory over No. 7 Trinity Christian in the Class A Private title game at Georgia State’s Center Parc Stadium.
Prince Avenue (13-1) brought a well-rounded attack and came up with significant defensive plays when needed.
Prince Avenue also got 108 yards rushing and two touchdowns from Landon Owens and finished with 466 total yards. The defense limited Trinity Christian to 82 yards on the ground and came up with a crucial interception.
The victory was especially poignant for Vandagriff, who shared the title with his father, head coach Greg Vandagriff. The younger Vandagriff is taking a few days off to enjoy a father-son fishing trip and then he’ll become an early enrollee at the University of Georgia.
“This is without a doubt one of the best days of my life,” Vandagriff said. “I’ve been dreaming it for a long, long time. The defense played their heads off, the offense played well, struggled at times, but can’t complain.”
Coach Vandagriff, now 56-9 in five seasons, had to choke back the emotions when talking about winning a title with his son.
“I can’t put words to it,” he said. “To experience it with my son, to experience it with our community ... I can’t put words to it.”
Credit: Jason Getz
Credit: Jason Getz
Trinity Christian coach Kenny Dallas came close to getting a state championship from his sons. Quarterback David Dallas completed 19 of 28 passes for 277 yards and one touchdown and ran for two scores. Joshua Dallas caught 11 passes for 162 yards and one touchdown.
Prince Avenue scored on its first two possessions to take a quick 13-0 lead. Logan Johnson completed a 64-yard drive with a 3-yard touchdown run and Vandagriff connected with Jake Pittman for a 45-yard touchdown pass.
“It’s good to get some early momentum and our defense plays better when we’ve got a lead,” Vandagriff said.
But Trinity Christian answered with a 77-yard drive that culminated with a 9-yard touchdown pass from David Dallas to Joshua Dallas, one play after a touchdown pass involving the same two brothers was negated by a penalty.
Trinity was in position to tie the game, but a third-and-goal pass by David Dallas was intercepted by Chas Scoggins. Prince Avenue was able to hurry down the field to tack on a touchdown with 40 seconds left on Vandagriff’s 19-yard pass to Johnson that gave the Wolverines a 20-7 halftime lead.
Trinity scored after the opening kickoff of the second half on an 80-yard drive completed by a 2-yard David Dallas run. But Prince Avenue answered with a 12-play drive culminated by Landon Owens’ 1-yard run, giving the Wolverines a 27-14 lead.
Trinity Christian scored again on a 6-yard run by David Dallas with 10:41 left in the game, which cut the lead to 27-21. But Prince Avenue added two more touchdowns to put it away, scoring on Vandagriff’s 1-yard run and Owens’ 10-yard run.
About the Author
