It has been 11 seasons since Brooks County upended Bowdon 42-26 in the quarterfinals of the Class A state championship game in the program’s only meeting, and now the teams will face off again for in the state title game.
Brooks County is coming off a 17-14 semifinals victory against top-ranked Manchester; Bowdon had few issues with Irwin County during a 42-28 semifinals victory. Bowdon, coached by Richard Fendley Jr., is the two-time defending champion. Brooks County, in its first year under head coach Josh Mcfather, is trying for the program’s third championship.
Maurice Freeman coached Brook’s Trojans to their first state championship in 1994 before leaving in 1997. He took over the head coaching duties at Brooks again in 2008 and coached the team to the Class A Public championship in 2021. McFather took over as the Brooks County head coach after Freeman’s departure last season.
Fendley Jr. took over at Bowdon in 2020 and coached the Red Devils to championships in the past two seasons.
Bowdon senior Charles Maxell III, a running and passing quarterback, is 139-of-215 passing for 2,475 yards and 35 touchdowns, and he has run for 861 yards and 13 touchdowns. Junior Joshawia Davis has 142 carries for 1,020 yards and a team-leading 15 touchdowns. Senior Nathan Bhony has 139 carries for 1,245 yards and eight touchdowns, and Connor Daniel has 20 carries for 175 yards and four touchdowns.
Junior Kaiden Prothro leads receivers with 53 catches for 1,111 yards and 21 of the team’s 35 touchdown catches. Wilson, who has a team-leading seven sacks on defense, has 30 receptions for 510 yards and seven touchdowns. Senior Mason Daniel has 23 receptions for 434 yards and five touchdowns. Senior Dylan McGrinn has 65 solo and 70 assisted tackles with 13 tackles for loss.
Brooks County sophomore quarterback Junior Burrus has been paramount in the Trojans’ offensive success this season. He is 156-of-257 passing for 2,283 yards and 27 touchdowns. Sophomore George Lamons Jr. leads receivers with 59 receptions for 1,257 yards and 19 of the team’s 29 receiving touchdowns. Senior Camauri Brinson (6 TD catches), senior Denzell Brown (3 TD catches) and junior Trae Stevenson (1 TD catch) are other targets.
Senior Chris Cole has 266 carries for 1,839 yards and 17 of the team’s 23 rushing touchdowns. Lamons adds three rushing touchdowns, and Stevenson, Damari Baynard and Brown each have one touchdown run. Senior Marquis Williams has 62 solo tackles and 27 assists and 18 sacks to anchor the Brooks County defense. Brinson and Stevenson each have four interceptions and a fumble recovery. Williams, Tony Herring and Demarrion Washington have each returned a fumble for a touchdown.
