So far, the Pierce County Bears’ title defense has been a success. With their win on Friday at Brooks County, ranked No. 3 in Class A-DII, the Bears remain No. 1 and move to 5-0.
The Bears won with a 47-yard field goal by junior Garrett Stevenson as time expired, giving them a 17-14 win. For Stevenson it was a career-long.
The Bears had breezed through their first four games of the season, outscoring the competition 176-21, but were ready when Brooks County pushed back.
“This was the most physical game we’ve had this year,” Bears coach Ryan Herring said. “I have a lot of respect for Brooks County, they played hard. They have three, four really good football players, some defensive ends that gave us trouble. It could have gone either way, but we won. It was the kind of win we needed right now. We needed a four-quarter game to see how they respond because until then, you don’t know. This is definitely going to help us down the road.”
Senior quarterback Caden McGatha, last year’s 2A player of the year, led the offense with 145 yards and a touchdown on 33 carries, and 126 yards and a touchdown on 11-for-19 passing. Senior Jones Herrin caught a 48-yard touchdown pass just before halftime to make it 14-7.
The defense gave up just 168 yards rushing and 33 yards passing, led by Johnny Stone’s 11 tackles and fumble recovery. Brandon Williams had a sack and a forced fumble.
Up next for the Bears is their final non-region game, at A-DI’s Vidalia (3-2), which they beat last year 35-7 when the two played in 3-2A.
“They do a real good job there with Wing-T concepts and different formations,” Herring said. “So, you have to be ready to line up in what they’re in. They play fast, and hard, and we’ve played them the last couple of years. It’s always a tough game and it’s going to be at their place.”
Westside beats Lamar County
The Westside Seminoles snapped a three-game skid with a 20-10 win over A-DI’s No. 4 Lamar County on the road, moving to 2-3.
The Seminoles’ first possession lasted 11 minutes and resulted in one of Kadiphius Iverson’s three rushing touchdowns. But they weren’t done dominated possession, opting to onside kick the ensuing kickoff. They recovered, and Iverson quickly scored again to give them a 14-0 lead they’d never relinquish.
The onside kick was the first attempted by the Seminoles this year.
“We saw some stuff on film we felt we could take advantage of on the kicking team,” Seminoles coach Sheddrick Risper said. “We went according to the film study and it happened to work. It got the kids pumped up, and let them know we could compete and score some points. It was a big start to the game.”
Iverson finished with 167 yards on 30 carries.
The win was key for the Seminoles, as they head into Region 2 play on a winning note after three straight losses to Florida’s First Baptist Christian, Westover and Bowdon.
“It means a lot to us to get this win,” Risper said. “Those losses were to some good teams, some who were undefeated, others who had 4- and 5-stars, so it was a rough few weeks. Coming off a win like this will be big for our confidence, but this is a different week, against another undefeated team.”
It won’t get easier for the Seminoles in 2-2A. On Thursday, they open with No. 2 Morgan County (5-0), a team they’ve never played.
“They’re well-coached,” Risper said. “They are very good on defense, and offensively they’ve got some weapons. They have a great running back and quarterback, and they are big and physical on the O-line. They’ve got a receiver who looks about 6-foot-5 and catches well, who can kill in pass patterns and is a good run blocker. Their running back is very versatile, well put together, with power and speed.”
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