Gainesville scored four touchdowns in the third quarter after a lengthy weather delay and pulled away from Marietta for a 41-3 victory in the teams’ season opener Friday night at Northcutt Stadium in Marietta.
Gainesville, ranked No. 2 in Class 5A, improved to 21-0 in regular-season games under third-year coach Josh Niblett. Marietta, known for playing challenging non-region schedules, lost its opener for the fourth consecutive season; the previous three came against powerhouses Norcross, Grayson and Colquitt County.
Gainesville led 14-3 late in the second quarter when rain and lightning moved into the area. The teams were able to complete the first half, but a lightning strike shortly thereafter, at about 8:40 p.m., put the game into a delay. The second half didn’t begin until 10:20, and Gainesville then went to work.
Gainesville’s Judah Knight intercepted a pass at the Marietta 11-yard line on the second play from scrimmage in the third quarter, and quarterback Kharim Hughley scored on a 3-yard run four plays later for a 20-3 lead.
The Red Elephants got the ball back near midfield after forcing a three-and-out, and they scored six plays later on a 4-yard run by Carmelo Byrd, who had four carries for 33 yards. Byrd led all rushers in the game, finishing with 16 carries for 128 yards, 64 in each half.
“The defense set the tone,” Niblett said. “The first thing was just trying to make sure early on that we could get the ball back to the offense as quick as possible, let’s get a stop on third down and get off the field, because we struggled with that a little bit in the first half.”
Byrd was the workhorse again on Gainesville’s next possession, grinding out 21 yards on four carries and scoring on a 3-yard run for a 34-3 lead with 3:14 to play in the quarter.
Gainesville completed the scoring with a 67-yard pass from Hughley to Jeremiah Ware with 52 seconds remaining in the quarter. The fourth quarter was played with a running clock.
“We got opportunities,” Niblett said. “We got a couple of short fields, but being able to run the football and then throw it when we want to, that’s what we want to be able to do. And we want to be able to play at a tempo where we slow it down, speed it up. We were able to do that tonight, and our kids executed when we were playing like we’re supposed to.”
Hughley was 16-of-20 passing for 170 yards. His top target was Shane King, who had nine receptions for 100 yards. Gainesville finished with 318 total yards.
Marietta was in the game throughout the first half, perhaps even more so than the 11-point halftime deficit would indicate. The Blue Devils drove from their 20 to the Gainesville 12 on their first possession before settling for a 29-yard field goal by Cole Baumgartner. They had the ball well inside Gainesville territory on two of their three second-quarter possessions but failed to take advantage. They turned the ball over on downs at the 36-yard line after an incomplete fourth-down pass, and they had a 35-yard field-goal attempt blocked just before halftime.
Marietta was held to 175 total yards - 78 rushing and 97 passing.
Gainesville - 8-3-27-0 - 41
Marietta - 3-0-0-0 - 3
First quarter
G - Taz Smith 21 run (Kharim Hughley run), 9:18
M - Cole Baumgartner 29 field goal, 4:05
Second quarter
G - Dacien Cohen 2 run (run failed), 11:49
Third quarter
G - Hughley 3 run (kick failed), 9:44
G - Carmelo Byrd 4 run (Francisco Johnson kick), 6:36
G - Byrd 3 run (Johnson kick), 3:14
G - Jeremiah Ware 67 pass from Hughley (Johnson kick), 0:52
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