Score Atlanta Vol. 11 Issue 43

Time to look great!

VOLUME 11 ISSUE 43 | DECEMBER 17-23, 2015

Unforgettable | Pg. 4 Tyler Andrews recaps Westminster’s overtime thriller for the 3A state crown.

Monumental Move | Pg. 9 The Metro PCS Corky Kell Classic announces its new three-day lineup for 2016 edition.

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YOUR SOURCE FOR SPORTS IN GEORGIA

SECOND TO NONE Roswell has no answers for Packers’ dominance in 6A title game | Pg. 7

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Earn a salary and money for your education while you gain the strength to stand out. Visit your local Army Career Counselor today or visit us online at goarmy.com/bs02

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Vol. 11 Iss. 43 | December 17-23, 2015

STARTING LINEUP PUBLISHER/EDITOR I.J. Rosenberg

ART/CREATIVE DIRECTOR DJ Galbiati Blalock

MANAGING EDITOR Craig Sager II

04

COLUMNISTS

07

ON THE COVER

09

PREP COVER

ASST. MANAGING EDITOR Kyle Sandy

MARKETING/ Lauren Goldstein

PARTNERSHIP DIRECTOR

JUNIOR GRAPHIC DESIGNER Rhonda Rawls

BUSINESS MANAGER Marvin Botnick

BEAT WRITERS: Ricky Dimon (Braves) Colin Hubbard (GA Tech)

Dan Mathews (UGA) Craig Sager II (Falcons, Kennesaw)

Kyle Sandy (Transfer

Corner, GSU, Hawks)

STAFF WRITERS Tyler Andrews

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404.256.1572

Copyright 2015 Score Atlanta Publishing, LLC. All rights reserved. Score Atlanta is published in print every other week on Fridays and a digital version is posted to ScoreAtl.com in-between print issues. Views expressed in Score Atlanta are not necessarily the opinion of Score Atlanta, its staff or advertisers. Score Atlanta does not knowingly accept false or misleading editorial content or advertising nor is Score Atlanta responsible for the content or claims of any advertising or editorial in this publication. No content (articles, photographs, graphics) in Score Atlanta may be used for reproduction without written permission from the publisher.

TEAM SCOOP AND VOICES

06 10 11

SCORE LIST | NUMBERS GEORGIA STATE | KENNESAW STATE GEORGIA | GEORGIA TECH BRAVES | FALCONS HAWKS | GHSA BASKETBALL

COVER PHOTOS COURTESY OF CECIL COPELAND AND SALLY SEEDS.

ON THE INSIDE AT SCORE

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SAGER SAYS

CARTERSVILLE DELIVERS BUFORD A SHUTOUT IN 4A TITLE GAME

BY CRAIG SAGER II | CSAGER@SCOREATL.COM

he Class AAAA championship was a reT match of last year’s semifinals that saw Carterville’s season end at the hands of the Wolves 27-3. The Purple Hurricanes came to the Georgia Dome with vengeance on their minds as they shocked Buford and walked away as state champions after playing like the better team on both sides of the football.

Cartersville secured its first undefeated season since 1999 with the 10-0 victory and ended the 16-year state title drought. 11-time state champion Buford’s streak of four straight state titles was snapped and they failed to put points on the board for the first time since 2010.

The Cartersville offense was led by sophomore quarterback Trevor Lawrence, whose first two varsity seasons has designated him as

one of the top quarterback prospects in the nation for the Class of 2018.

Lawrence threw the game’s only touchdown with 1:35 left in the first half on a 5-yard pass to tight end Miller Forristall. The touchdown followed a Jonathan Cruz 47-yard field goal that sailed through less than four minutes earlier that allowed Cartersville to take a 10-0 lead into the half. The touchdown was set up by a Buford fumble that gave the Canes a 1st and goal at the 10-yard line.

“We just had to finish the drill,” said Forristall. “We know if can play with them [Buford], we can beat anyone. Finish the drill, come in and do what we do and become State Champs.”

A powerhouse like Buford is not a team accustomed to playing from behind too often

TYLER TELLS ALL

WESTMINSTER SHOCKS BLESSED TRINITY FOR 3A CHAMPIONSHIP

BY TYLER ANDREWS | INFO@SCOREATL.COM

W

estminster snapped its 37-year state championship drought, with a thrilling 38-31 overtime win against region-rival Blessed Trinity. The Wildcats had a remarkable comeback that saw the team overcome two double-digit deficits in the final frame. After a Week 7 loss (24-10) to the Titans at home, the Wildcats came back for redemption and got just that.

“It’s been a long time… since 1978. We were hoping someday we would get to this point. And just to win it now is absolutely incredible and the way we won, the way we fought back is just the microcosm of how our season went,” said Westminster head coach Gerry Romberg. “Just incredible effort by everybody…coaches and players…I just can’t say

enough of our team.”

After back-to-back field goals of 32 and 53 yards from Westminster kicker Blake Gillikin, Blessed Trinity got on the board early in the second quarter when Brooks Hosea notched a 29yard field goal. Milton Shelton gave the Titans their first lead of the game when he scored from two yards out late in the second quarter. They took a 10-6 lead into halftime.

Westminster opened up the third quarter driving down the field, but they had to settle for another Gillian field, this time from 21 yards to close the gap at 10-9. The next drive saw Blessed Trinity scamper down the field. They continued to pound the ball, and Garrett Dupuis ran it in from 10 yards away to stretch the lead to 17-9.

but Cartersville head coach Joey King made an emphasis on the second half after Buford’s second half explosion in the semis.

“We saw them comeback last week against a good Woodward Academy team and that’s what we preached in the locker room at halftime,” explained King. “It’s a 0-0 ballgame.”

Buford’s offense was held in check primarily by an outstanding tackling effort by the Cartersville defense. By taking away Buford’s effectiveness out in space, Cartersville had the perfect gameplan to take down the Wolves and force Buford quarterback Mic Roof to take shots against a polished Cartersville secondary and aggressive defense.

“We’ve done a pretty good job all year at tackling in space,” said King. “We work on it every day and we tackle every day. If you can’t block and tackle you can’t win ball games and our defense rose to the occasion.”

DEFENSIVE DOMINANCE

Roof threw three interceptions that the killed any chance at the Wolves’ gaining momentum. The final interception came in the red zone on the 1-yard line and was brought in by Cartersville senior linebacker, Tyler Reed.

“You believe in your guys. The coaches work hard developing a good game plan,” ex After stopping Westminster cold, the Titans offense found the end zone again when Davis sneaked it in from two yards out. The lead grew to 24-9 heading into the fourth quarter.

Rankin Woley gave Westminster life when he raced 33 yards on a quarterback keeper with less than 10 minutes remaining in the game. He then found a wide-open receiver for the two-point conversion and the Cats pulled to within a touchdown at 24-17. The Titans then took over and converted on a clutch third and inches. Then, on fourth and goal from the one, coach McFarlin elected to go for the touchdown instead of kick the field goal to make it a 10-point game. Davis barely reached the ball over the line for a Titans touchdown to give them a 31-17 lead.

TOO LEGIT TO QUIT

Like they had before, Westminster got the ball back and went on a methodical drive. With 3:52 left in the game, Woley threw a strike to Joe Egan who made a circus catch for an 11yard touchdown. Egan was moving right and reached back over his left shoulder to make the grab. The extra point made the score 3124 in favor of Blessed Trinity. Then, Westminster lined up for an onside kick in what was the most bizarre play of the entire game. The

plained King. “The kids just have to show up to play. We were all counting on them and they did a heck of a job.”

Tiamon Pennymon led Cartersville’s rushing attack with just 23 yards off of 11 carries, while Lawrence finished 11-of-23 passing for 141 yards and the score to Forristall. Cartersville punter Gabriel Gridley was injured on his first punt attempt after a roughing the punter flag but Jonathan Cruz came in and punted six times with a 38.2 average. Kobie Whitfield led the defense with 13 tackles.

Lawrence wrapped up another prolific season that saw him pass for more than 3,500 yards with 43 touchdowns and only four interceptions.

“I thought our kids fought their guts out,” Buford coach Jess Simpson said. “They never folded. The toughness and the class they showed, I told them I was as proud of them as any football team I’ve ever brought into this dome. If we can’t take a little bit of bad with all the good we’ve had, I think something’s wrong with us.”

With Buford’s loss, this is the first season since 2005 a team from Gwinnett County has not won a state championship.

Photo courtesy of Cecil Copeland. kick rocketed off the ground and off of a Titans player, and then proceeded to roll twenty-five yards towards the Cats end zone. Two Titans had a beat on it but Westminster somehow came up with the ball and started at the Titans 21 yard line. On the next play Isaiah Malcome ran it in for a 21-yard touchdown and the game was tied. The scored remained 31-31 at the end of regulation.

In overtime, Westminster received the ball first and in three plays found the end zone thanks to a three-yard run by Malcome.

“It’s the first overtime we ever played and it came in the state championship. We had to explain to kids how to play in overtime they hadn’t done it in so long. They played with poise like we always tell them,” said Romberg.

After a false-start penalty started the Blessed Trinity drive, they faced a first down and 15. Then, Shelton ran through a few defenders and was being tackled at the one-yard line, when we he reached for the end zone but fumbled. Westminster defender Egan fell on the ball in the end zone to seal the 38-31 victory for the Wildcats. The Westminster sidelines rushed the field after the refs waived the final in what was a combination of utter joy and disbelief from Wildcat nation.

Photo courtesy of Clyde Click.

©2015 Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta, Inc. All rights reserved. For official contest rules, visit choa.org/comeback.

Vol. 11 Iss. 43 | December 17-23, 2015

This comeback athlete had a long road back. Today it’s 8.5 miles.

Know a young athlete who overcame a serious injury or illness? Nominate them for Comeback Athlete of the Month at choa.org/comeback.

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6

Charles Mitchell

Colquitt County

Blake Bortles

The senior forward for Georgia Tech has lead the Yellow Jackets to a 7-2 start and recorded a double double in all nine contests this year. The former Wheeler Wildcat is averaging 14.2 points per game and 12.8 rebounds per game. Mitchell went for 18 and 18 earlier this season against Arkansas.

The Packers completed their second straight undefeated season Saturday night the Dome in a 30-13 win over Roswell. Rush Propst has now won seven state titles as a head coach after his five championships in Alabama.

There is no doubting that Colquitt County has raised the bar for the state of Georgia these past two years.

The second-year pro has been on fire his last three games and has helped lead the Jaguars to within one game of the AFC South division lead. Over his last three games Bortles has thrown 10 touchdowns to just 1 interception while averaging 300 yards per game. He has also been hitting on a 61% clip passing.

SCORE LIST

By Ned Kaish

FALCONS PLAYOFF CHANCES SLIM

After the 5-0 start to the season the playoffs seemed to be in the Falcons future, but since losing seven of their last eight games including six in a row the playoffs now seem out of reach. The Falcons will need to win out and get help from others to have a chance at the Wild Card.

Their chances took a big hit on Sunday after being run out of the stadium by the Panthers 38-0.

BO RYAN RETIRES Wisconsin head basketball coach Bo Ryan announced his retirement on Tuesday effective immediately. Ryan leaves Wisconsin as their all-time wins leader with 364. While at Wisconsin Ryan also captured four regular season Big 10 titles, three conference tournament titles, and brought home Big 10 Coach of the Year four times. Ryan had led the Badgers to back-to-back Final Fours the last two seasons, falling to Duke in the National Championship game last season.

NKEMDICHE CHARGED Ole Miss defensive tackle and former Grayson High School standout Robert Nkemdiche was arrested on Saturday night after marijuana was found in a hotel room. Nkemdiche was at a hotel in Buckhead when he fell through the window down 15 feet. Police were at the scene and found synthetic marijuana after a search.

Nkemdiche was ESPN’s No. 1 recruit in the class of 2013 and is projected to be a top 5 NFL draft pick this year.

COLQUITT CAPTURES 2ND STRAIGHT TITLE The Colquitt County Packers brought home their second consecutive Class AAAAAA state championship beating Roswell 30-13. With the win the Packers also completed their second consecutive undefeated season and have now won 30 straight games. Quarterback Chase Parish finished the game 28-39 for 306 yards and a touchdown and leaves Colquitt 30-0 as a starter in two seasons.

Roswell also came into the game undefeated at 14-0.

HENRY WINS HEISMAN

University of Alabama running back Derrick Henry took home college football’s most coveted award on Saturday night edging out Stanford running back Christian McCaffrey. Henry has rushed for 1,986 yards and 23 touchdowns for the second ranked team in the country. Alabama and Henry will take on Michigan State on New Years Eve in the second College Football Playoff semifinal that kicks off at 8pm.

WHO’S NOT

By Ned Kaish

WHO’S HOT

SCORE ATLANTA | www.ScoreAtl.com

Hawks

Matt Ryan

76ers

The Hawks have now dropped three straight and have fallen out of the top eight teams in the East. Sitting at 14-12 the Hawks have yet to string together more than two wins since early November. Part of the reason for Atlanta’s inability to play consistently comes from their struggles rebounding the ball where they rank 27th in the NBA.

The Falcons have gone as far as their quarterback this season which is why Matt Ryan’s numbers the last six games reflect the Falcons last six games, all losses. In those six games Ryan has thrown for as many interceptions as touchdowns, eight. The worst of these games came against the Colts when he threw three picks, one of which was returned for a touchdown.

It seems as thought Philadelphia continues to get worse night in and night out.

The 76ers are now 1-25 on the season and on a current seven game losing streak.

The team ranks in the bottom third of just about every major team category including points per game, points allowed, rebounds and assists.

NUMBERS

OUR TWO CENTS

By Ned Kaish

Our email newsletter is something we take a lot of pride in at Score. If you aren’t familiar with it, it is a high school sportsheavy publication that we produce each day to fill in our readers on the latest happenings in Georgia prep sports. We send it out Monday through Friday throughout the year and Monday through Saturday during the fall.

Not only do we cover popular sports like football, basketball and baseball, we also cover every other varsity sport the GHSA fields. If you like Georgia high school sports at all, sign up for our email newsletter by visiting www.tinyurl.com/scorenewsletter and enter your email address(es) that you’d like added to the distribution list.

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TRIVIA QUESTION

WHEN WAS THE LAST TIME BUFORD GOT SHUTOUT PRIOR TO CARTERSVILLE’S 10-0 VICTORY? ANSWER ON PAGE 14

“

SANITY AT LAST

“The kids just have to show up to play. We were all counting on them and they did a heck of a job.”

- Cartersville head coach Joey King

5

Sacks for Khalil Mack against Denver on Sunday

0

Rushing touchdowns for the Falcons the last five games after scoring 11 in the first eight games.

2005

The last time a Gwinnett team did not win a football state championship.

30-0

Colquitt County quarterback Chase Parrish’s record as a starter

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Double double’s for the Hawks Paul Milsap who is averaging 18 points and nine rebounds per game.

127

3-pointers made by Steph Curry through 25 games, the NBA single season record is 286.

7

Total state championships won by Colquitt County head coach Rush Prospt (five with Hoover)

21

Rushing touchdowns by Allatoona quarterback Brandon Rainey this season.

Vol. 11 Iss. 43 | December 17-23, 2015

The clinching kick that made it a threescore game (30-13) came from 42 yards out with 1:15 left after Neely’s pass attempt to A.J. Smith fell incomplete on a 4th and 3.

Colquitt County senior quarterback Chase Parrish finished 28-of-39 passing for 306 yards and a touchdown and completes a career that leaves him with a a perfect 30-0 record as a starter.

Lee led Colquitt County with 90 yards rushing and a game-high 123 receiving yards.

Sheldon Evans paced Roswell with 104 rushing yards off of 21 carries. Neely finished 15-of-30 passing for 232 yards, including his 81-yard touchdown pass to Smith.

Defensively, Ty Phillips had a monster game for the Packers as he finished with 3.5 tackles for loss and a sack. Roswell junior Koby Cumberlander posted two sacks and seven total tackles.

ON THE COVER

COVER STORY

BUCS MAKE HISTORY

PACKERS, BUCS IMPRESS IN PRIME TIME TITLE BOUTS

BY CRAIG SAGER II | CSAGER@SCOREATL.COM

C

olquitt County ran away with a 30-13 win over Roswell to capture its second straight state championship and 30th consecutive victory Saturday night in the Class AAAAAA state championship. Roswell came out and found an explosive scoring play on the second snap of the game but was kept from the end zone the rest of the way. Senior quarterback Quintarius Neely found A.J. Smith down the sideline for an 81-yard touchdown that gave the Hornets their brief 7-0 lead. The Packers had the immediate answer and drove down the field 80 yards in eight plays to tie it at 7-7. Arkansas-commit Kiel Pollard finished the drive with a violent stiff arm as he bulldozed in for the 1-yard touchdown. The Packers forced a Roswell punt on the Hornets’ next possession and Colquitt County marched 56 yards in just four plays as Pollard made it a 14-7 game with his second 1-yard touchdown run.

Roswell added a 22-yard Turner Barckhoff field goal to cut it to 14-10 heading into the second quarter. The first quarter took 50 minutes

to play as both teams looked for big plays to spark the offense but the next three quarters saw a more ground and pound style that favored the Packers.

Colquitt’s Ty Lee caught a 17-yard touchdown pass on a red zone post pattern midway through the second quarter to make it 21-10.

Roswell had a chance to answer with a touchdown but had to settle for another short (20yard) Barkckhoff field goal that allowed the Packers to take a 21-13 lead into the half.

“This year I felt like we were the better team but not by much,” admitted Colquitt County head coach Rush Propst following the game. “I knew that if we executed we would be able to get the victory.”

The second half did not see any touchdowns but Colquitt County’s Luis Martinez was able to ice the game with his leg. Martinez finished off a 16-play drive with a 30-yard field goal before adding a 26-yarder off an 18-play drive that pushed the lead to 27-13 with 4:45 to play.

Allatoona held Glynn Academy scoreless in the Class AAAAA state championship until the final play of the game and clinched the first state title in school history with a 10-6 victory Friday night at the Georgia Dome. Glynn Academy attempted a free kick that bounced off the right goal post to close the first half and the teams went into the locker room scoreless.

Allatoona gained just 42 yards in the first half and never reached the redzone. Glynn Academy’s offense gained just 71 yards in the first two quarters and 31 of the yards came on a Deejay Dallas pass Morris Demery that later resulted in a punt. Allatoona would find offense in the second half, but Glynn Academy never found answers against a Bucs defense that frustrated the Terrors all night.

“ [Our defense] had a great plan,” said Allatoona head coach Gary Varner. “They were quiet and confident all week assuring me ‘we think we have a plan’, ‘we think we have a plan’.

I knew we wouldn’t be able to move the ball that much on them so I knew we would have to win on the defensive side of the ball.”

Allatoona received the opening possession of the second half and the Bucs set the tone with a 10-play, 80-yard touchdown drive.

Quarterback Brandon Rainey found Derrand Garrett for a 23-yard pickup that brought the Bucs down to the 1-yard line and Rainey dove in

7

from 1-yard out for his 21st rushing touchdown of the season.

The teams traded possessions after the Bucs score and Allatoona forced another punt that was fielded at their own 36 yard-line.

Brandon Archibald picked up five yards on 1st down and it looked like the Bucs were about to start another long drive. On 2nd down, however, fullback Jalen Parrish fumbled after a nice gain that ended with a massive collision with Kshawn Walthour and Glynn Academy’s Walter Thomas recovered the loose ball at midfield.

The Allatoona defense responded once again and forced Kendall Cross to fumble three plays later to give the Bucs the ball back. Parrish shook off the lost fumble and came up with big plays down the stretch to keep the offense moving, including a timely 21-yard reception in the fourth quarter.

“He [Jalen] had that fumble and you could just see the energy go out of him on the sideline,” said Varner. “We just told him to hang in there and he’s going to get another chance and he made it happen.”

Glynn Academy had a field goal blocked in addition to the missed free kick and Banks Entwistle missed a 38-yard attempt with 9:58 left in the fourth quarter. The Bucs put together what proved to be the game-clinching drive after Glynn’s third missed opportunity at putting points on the board and capped off the 64yard, 8-play drive with a 29-yard Skyler Davis field goal with 2:21 left to make it 10-0.

Glynn Academy’s lone score came on the final play as Dallas dove in for a short rushing touchdown down the right sideline.

Allatoona finishes the season 14-1 after dropping its season-opener to East Paulding and the 14-game win streak stands as the new school record after tying last year’s 13-game win streak in the semis.

Archibald finished with a game-high 43 rushing yards and Rainey finished 5-of-9 passing for 73 yards through the air. Juanyea Tarver led the Bucs’ defense with eight tackles, including three tackles for loss.

Photos courtesy of Cady Studios.

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SCORE ATLANTA | www.ScoreAtl.com

GHSA Football State Championships A Public - Clinch County A Private - ELCA AA Pace - Academy AAA - Westminster AAAA - Cartersville AAAAA - Allatoona AAAAAA - Colquitt County Photos courtesy of Rob Saye & Cady Studios

ball as the newly-formed Class 7A highpoints

25TH ANNUAL CORKY KELL CLASSIC

the Peach State’s new heirarchy.

METRO PCS CORKY KELL CLASSIC ANNOUNCES MOMENTOUS 2016 LINEUP

T

Class 5A Kell opens with a 9 a.m. kick-

off with Class 6A Tucker and two teams from Class 7A, Brookwood and North Gwinnett, will play in the 11:45 a.m. timeslot. Walton returns to the Corky Kell lineup and will battle with

BY CRAIG SAGER II | CSAGER@SCOREATL.COM

he MetroPCS Corky Kell Classic, one of the top high school sporting events in the country, will expand to three days in 2016, adding nine new high schools to the 25-year-old kickoff extravaganza lineup for a total of nine action-packed games.

For the first time in Metro PCS Corky Kell Classic history, the action will unfold in middle Georgia. Lee County, Jones County, Houston County and Mary Persons have accepted invitations to play on Thursday, Aug. 18, at Mercer University. Houston County, quarterbacked by Class of 2017 Alabama-commit Jake Fromm and Mary Persons will start off the action at 5:45 p.m. followed by Lee County facing Jones County.

Norcross in another Class 7A showdown at

Four new teams; Buford, Roswell, South Forsyth and Hillgrove, occupy a star-studded Friday night lineup. Friday’s double-header will return to McEachern High School for a third straight year at Cantrell Stadium, the largest high school stadium in the state. State runnerups Buford (4A) and Roswell (6A), will face off in the opening game at 5:45 p.m., followed by quarterfinalist South Forsyth against Cobb County power Hillgrove.

The Georgia Dome will host Saturday’s five-game marathon with nationally-recognized Colquitt County highlighting a field of former state champions and playoff perennials.

This year’s Corky Kell Classic will also introduce a new era of Georgia High School Foot-

2:45 p.m. and two-time defending champion Colquitt County and Mill Creek will return to the field for a rematch of this year’s semifinals at 5:45. The final game is scheduled for an 8:45 . kickoff between McEachern and Archer.

Archer is making its first Saturday appear-

ance in the Metro PCS Corky Kell Classic after splitting its two Friday night appearances the past two Corky Kell’s at McEachern. Eleven of the 48 teams that reside in Georgia’s new Class 7A will be playing in this year’s Corky Kell Classic.

For

more

information,

go

to

www.CorkyKell.com.

Photos courtesy of Sonny Kennedy and Ter-

rance Johnson.

Thursday, Aug. 18 @ Mercer University - Macon 5:45 p.m. Houston County vs. Mary Persons 8:45 p.m. Lee County vs. Jones County

Friday, Aug. 19 @ McEachern High School 5:45 p.m. Buford vs. Roswell 8: 45 p.m. South Forsyth vs. Hillgrove

Saturday, Aug. 20 @ Georgia Dome 9:00 a.m. Kell vs. Tucker 11:45 a.m. North Gwinnett vs. Brookwood 2:45 p.m. Walton vs. Norcross 5:45 p.m. Colquitt County vs. Mill Creek 8:45 p.m. McEachern vs. Archer

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SCORE ATLANTA | www.ScoreAtl.com

UNIVERSITY OF GEORGIA

FIVE-STAR EASON RE-COMMITS TO BULLDOGS

BY DAN MATHEWS | DMATHEWS@SCOREATL.COM

ven after a chance that he could flip his longEJacob time commitment from Georgia to Florida, Eason is staying with the Bulldogs. He

made his decision official early Monday morning as he was recognized as Gatorade High School Player of the Year.

Eason visited with the Bulldogs over the weekend in Athens to see how things could be under new head coach Kirby Smart. During that time, UGA also made their hiring of new offensive coordinator/quarterback coach Jim Chaney official.

“I’ve gotten to know a lot of the other commits there and it just felt really comfortable going back there,” Eason said. “I really liked all the new coaches there. In the end, Georgia was the place for me.”

The five-star prospect committed to Georgia in the summer of 2014. He will play in the upcoming US Army All-American Bowl on January 9 and then report to Athens two days later. Eason threw 43 touchdown passes to help Lake Stevens advance into the Class 4A state semifinals, where they lost 34-31 to Sky-

GEORGIA STATE

BASKETBALL PROGRAM GIVES BACK DURING FOOTBALL SEASON

BY KYLE SANDY | KSANDY@SCOREATL.COM

G

eorgia State (5-2) won its second straight game and are now tied for the best record in school history after seven games after edging Old Dominion on Saturday, 68-64. Redshirt-freshman Jeff Thomas scored a careerhigh 18 points to pace the Panthers. With the win, Georgia State has now won 11 consecutive games at home and is 29-1 at the GSU Sports Arena since the start of the 2013-14 season.

The Panthers led 36-35 at the half but were unable to shake the Monarchs. They final got some separation after 11 lead changes in the first half when Jeremy Hollowell went on a 6-0 run to extend the GSU lead to 57-50, their largest of the game, with 5:05 left. Hollowell scored 16 points and grabbed seven rebounds in the win.

“I thought that was a very impressive win for our team,” Coach Ron Hunter said. “We are still in the process of learning how to win and playing in our system, but we have made a few changes and the light switch is starting to turn on. The most impressive part of this is that we

line of Sammamish.

“He’s such a rare talent,” said Lake Stevens head coach Tom Tri. “He came here as a gangly 6-1 freshman and he’s grown into a 6-foot-6, 210-pound athlete with a great understanding of the game. He has great character and is the type of kid who makes great decisions all the time.

BOWL NEWS

The same day as Eason’s recommitment came news that this year’s offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer will not coach Georgia’s Jan. 2 TaxSlayer Bowl game against Penn State. New head coach Kirby Smart hired Jim Chaney as offensive coordinator over the weekend so the news did not come as much of a surprise. Chaney spent this past season as Pitt’s playcaller. Chaney was offensive coordinator at Purdue from 1997-2005, where he coached Drew Brees, and at Tennessee from 2009-12 and at Arkansas from 2013-14. This is his first season at Pittsburgh, as he was hired by first-year coach Pat Narduzzi last offseason.

Chaney also coached with the St. Louis Rams for three seasons, two as offensive line coach and one as tight ends coach.

The AJC reported that tight ends coach John Lilly is a likely candidate to assume play calling duties, just like he did in the 2014 Belk Bowl after Mike Bobo left UGA to become the head coach at Colorado State.

Several graduate assistants are set to handle added responsibilities in the bowl game while receivers coach Bryan McClendon serves as interim head coach.

did it against a very good team that played well tonight.”

Kevin Ware added 12 points while Markus Crider finished with 13 and seven rebounds off the bench. Old Dominion fell to 4-5 on the year. Zoran Talley and Trey Freeman led the way with 16 points apiece.

Georgia State will return to the road to face Southern Miss on Dec. 19 at 5 p.m. ET in Hattiesburg, Miss. The game will air live on the American Sports Network.

#PANTHERFAMILY

Coach Ron Hunter and son R.J. Hunter, currently of the Boston Celtics, have bought 100 tickets to the AutoNation Cure Bowl in Orlando, giving fans an opportunity to go to the program’s first ever bowl game for free on Dec. 19.

“The support given to us by all of our fans last year during our run to the NCAA tournament was remarkable,” Ron said. “The football team has been among our biggest supporters, helping create an unbelievable environment in the Sports Arena. Although our team cannot be there (playing Southern Miss in Hattiesburg), R.J. and I want to say thanks for the football team and our students with a small gesture.”

Men’s Soccer Tryouts

The Georgia State men’s soccer program will be holding open tryouts for all interested candidates on Friday, Feb. 19, 2016 at the GSU Soccer Complex. The start time for the tryouts is 10 a.m.

GEORGIA TECH

YELLOW JACKETS PREP FOR SHOWDOWN IN ATHENS

BY CRAIG SAGER II | CSAGER@SCOREATL.COM

G

eorgia Tech outscored VCU 50-37 in the second half to capture a 77-64 home victory Tuesday night. Marcus Georges-Hunt netted 20 points and Quinton Stephens sank a pair of 3-pointers that sparked a 14-2 second-half run that lifted the Yellow Jackets. Georges-Hunt also paced the game by getting to the foul line, where he made 11 of 12 attempts. Charles Mitchell posted a double-double with 12 points and 11 rebounds and Josh Heath also scored a dozen.

Mitchell extended his streak of double-doubles to nine games -- every game this season.

“I thought that second half was the best basketball we’ve played,” said Georgia Tech coach Brian Gregory.

One of the biggest challenges against the Rams was how Georgia Tech would have to defend Melvin Johnson. The 6-foot-4 senior is averaging 19.9 points per game this year and was fresh off a career-high 36 points against Florida State. Georgia Tech was able to hold Johnson to 17 points and just 3-of-10 shooting

KENNESAW STATE

REED READY TO RUN

from beyond the arc.

“I thought Georgia Tech guarded us well,” said VCU coach Will Wade. “They did a good job on Melvin. They made him take some shots he doesn’t normally take.”

Gregory used a defensive rotation to keep fresh legs on Melvin as the game progressed.

“We just had a lot of different guys switch off on him, keeping guys fresh,” said GeorgesHunt. “We knew he’s a great shooter, making big-time shots.”

UP NEXT

Georgia Tech’s (7-2) next game is Saturday’s anticipated matchup with Georgia in Athens. The Bulldogs have been inconsistent this year and sit at 4-3 through seven games with wins against Murray State, High Pont, Oakland and Winthrop. Chattanooga, Seton Hall and Kansas State have all handed Georgia single-digit defeats this season. J.J. Frazier, a 5-foot-10 junior recorded his first career double-double in Tuesday’s 74-64 win over Winthrop. Frazier tallied 10 rebounds with 15 points and teammate Yante Maten reached a career-high with 24 points and 12 boards. Frazier is a verstatile guard that will challenge the Yellow Jackets and he can distribute the ball well. Frazier had five of Georgia’s 17 assists in Tuesday’s win and the team assisted 17 of their 21 baskets. Georgia played without leading scorer Kenny Gaines, who is day-to-day with a knee injury.

mentally draining than physically.

“I am rehabbing every day 1-2 times a day.

It has been not only a physical challenge but also mentally challenging,” explained Reed. “The most important thing is to stay positive and keep working hard. The next step is to continue to get stronger and get fit since I can run now.”

BUSY B

BY KYLE SANDY | KSANDY@SCOREATL.COM

rittney Reed struck like a lightning bolt to Bscoring start the 2015 women’s soccer season, an astounding six goals while totaling

12 points in a season opening rout of Alabama A&M, both school records. She was rewarded by being named the Atlantic Sun Conference Player of the Week and the NSCAA Player of the Week, but in game three she tore her ACL ending her season and in the process, the team’s as they fell to 6-10-3 on the year. While playing in only three games, she still finished the season as the Owls’ top goal scorer with seven deposits into the net and second on the team in points with 15, one shy of Cassidy Kemp’s 16.

The former Harrison Hoya standout that played her senior season in Florida, went to the University of Florida her freshman year before transferring back home to Kennesaw.

She received good news from the doctor on Tuesday morning determining that she is cleared to run.

It has been a long rehabbing process in which Reed explained has been at times more

Brittney has juggled soccer, softball and being a member of the Student Athletic Advisory Committee (SAAC) during her time at Kennesaw.

“I represent the student-athletes in the Atlantic Sun Conference by addressing issues and presenting the ideas we agree on at our conference meetings at D1 NCAA SAAC meetings.”

Reed decided to join the committee to prove that she was not only a dynamic goal scorer, but a leader in the community as well, helping her along while she works towards a degree in Sport Management.

“I began by attending KSU SAAC meetings and I knew right away SAAC was a committee that interested me so I applied for D1 NCAA SAAC. I was appointed my junior year.”

MOVING FORWARD

Reed expects to be back in time for the 2016 season and is looking forward to stepping on the pitch with her teammates for her final season. When she returns, she will be greeted by a new head coach after the program’s only leader in school history, Rob King, stepped down after 14 years.

Vol. 11 Iss. 43 | December 17-23, 2015 ATLANTA HAWKS

SPURS SCHOOL HAWKS

BY KYLE SANDY | KSANDY@SCOREATL.COM

fter finally stringing together two straight A wins over the Lakers and the Mavericks, Atlanta (14-12) has now dropped three con-

secutive to the Thunder (107-94), Spurs (10378) and Heat (100-88) dropping them into fourth place in the Southeast division.

Saturday night’s blowout loss at home to the Spurs was the ugliest game of the season possibly, as Atlanta managed just 25 first half points and trailed 47-25 at the break. The Hawks were manhandled in every way possible. They allowed the Spurs to shoot 48.6 percent from the field and grab 49 rebounds while Atlanta shot just 37.5 percent and posted 33 boards. Only one Hawk scored in double figures, Paul Millsap with 22. San Antonio saw four players reach that barrier with Kawhi Leonard posting 22 points, eight rebounds, four assists and five steals.

The Hawks’ total -- 13 points in the first quarter, 12 in the second -- was the lowest for any NBA team in any half this season, according to STATS.

“It was tough,” Millsap said. “I felt like we

ATLANTA BRAVES

BETHANCOURT FINALLY GETS THE BOOT, TRADED TO PADRES

BY RICKY DIMON | RDIMON@SCOREATL.COM

he winding road, bumpy road traveled by T Christian Bethancourt through the Atlanta Braves organization has reached a final desti-

nation that no one could have expected when his career began. Atlanta unceremoniously traded Bethancourt to the San Diego Padres for little-known pitcher Casey Kelly and catching project Ricardo Rodriguez.

Bethancourt had been one of the Braves’ top prospects in the farm system for several years. As recently as the start of this past season, he remained one of MLB.com’s Top 100 prospects. The 24-year-old emerged from spring training penciled into the job as Atlanta’s starting catcher, but those plans changed in a hurry. He batted .133 in eight games during the first two weeks of the 2015 campaign and lost his job to A.J. Pierzynski, 14 years Bethancourt’s senior. The Panama native finished the season with a .200 average to go along two home runs, 12 RBIs and 33 strikeouts compared to only five walks in 48 games (155 at-bats). Because of both his struggles at the plate and questionable pitch-calling behind it,

overthought everything on offense. ... We got caught into their game and nothing good happened with that.”

Tony Parker and company held Jeff Teague to one of his worst performances as a starting guard in the league. He finished 0-of-5 from the field with four points, three assists and five turnovers.

HEATWAVE

Atlanta couldn’t beat the Heat at Philips Arena on Monday night, falling 100-88. They were once again pummeled on the glass, outrebounded 54-37. Chris Bosh finished with 24 points and 10 rebounds while Gerald Green added 20 to lead the way for the Heat. Atlanta received a career-high 28 points from Kent Bazemore in the loss. Since a 7-1 start, the Hawks have lost 11 of 18 games.

“We’ve got to find a way to fight through this, to work through this,” coach Mike Budenholzer said.

With the loss Atlanta is now 8-6 at Philips Arena.

BACK ON TRACK

Atlanta will try to finish the calendar year strong as they have four road games and four home games remaining. On Wednesday night the welcome the 1-25 Sixers to town. A two-game road trip to Boston and Orlando will then set up three games at home starting next Monday against the Trailblazers. The final game of 2015 will be played in Houston on the 29th at 8 P.M.

Bethancourt’s feared arm and renowned defensive skills could not keep him in the Braves’ good graces.

Kelly has made only nine major-league appearances, eight of them starts. The 26-year-old owns a 6.69 ERA and underwent Tommy John surgery following the 2012 season. After missing 2013, he mostly bounced around between Class A and Double-A the past two years. Kelly got roughed up in each of his two starts after getting called up by an underachieving San Diego club this September.

Rodriguez is just 17 years old. Not unlike Bethancourt, the Venezuelan is touted a strong-armed, defensive-minded catcher. He hit .266 while playing Rookie ball in 2015.

NEWS AND NOTES

The Braves signed veteran right-hander Jhoulys Chacin to a minor-league deal—and an invitation to major-league spring training— earlier this week. Chacin, who will be 28 next season, is 40-49 lifetime with a 3.76 ERA in 129 MLB games (113 starts) during tenures with the Colorado Rockies and Arizona Diamondbacks. … Center fielder Ender Inciarte, acquired from Arizona in the recent Shelby Miller trade, could be on the move once again. Although he is a potential piece of the franchise for the long haul, several teams are already blowing up general manager John Coppolella’s phone line. … Former Brave and fan favorite Jason Heyward left the St. Louis Cardinals after one season, signing an eight-year, $184 contract with the NL Central rival Chicago Cubs.

ATLANTA FALCONS

STRUGGLING FALCONS MAKE ROSTER MOVES

BY CRAIG SAGER II | CSAGER@SCOREATL.COM

he Atlanta Falcons announced Tuesday that T they have promoted guard Ben Garland to the 53-man roster from the practice squad.

The team also signed wide receivers R.J. Harris and Jordan Leslie, defensive end Dontay Moch, and linebacker Curtis Grant to the practice squad. The Falcons have also placed safety William Moore on injured reserve, waived wide receiver Leonard Hankerson off of injured reserve, and waived wide receiver Devon Wylie off the practice squad.

Garland, 6-5, 275 pounds was originally signed by the Denver Broncos as a college free agent following the 2010 NFL Draft out of Air Force. In 2010, the Broncos placed him on the reserve/military list to serve his two-year military commitment. Garland returned in 2012, and spent two years on the Broncos practice squad. In 2014, he saw action in eight games with Denver.

Harris, 6-0, 194 pounds was originally signed by the New Orleans Saints as a college free agent following the 2015 NFL Draft out of New Hampshire. He has spent part of 2015

GHSA BASKETBALL

LONG LIVE THE KING: TIGERS EDGE RAMS

BY KYLE SANDY | KSANDY@SCOREATL.COM

K

nocking off a proud program from its perch is easier said than done. An up-and-coming program that looked poised to win its region took and early blow last night. Tucker (7-3) has been a perennial power in basketball and the Tigers’ move into the state’s highest classification last year yielded familiar results, finishing 29-3 and a perfect 10-0 in Region 2-AAAAAA. With Bryce Brown (Auburn), Jon Stephens, Josh Parker and Ayinde Russell all graduated, the Tigers were expected to secede their firm grasp of the region with No. 7 Newton (5-2) making a hard charge for the top spot.

Last season the Rams went 22-9 and 5-5 in region play, but peaked at the right time, upsetting defending state champion Tift County in the first round 52-49 and Dacula 58-54 in the Sweet 16. An Elite Eight meeting with eventual state champion Wheeler ended their season on a 72-54 note, but the promising play down the stretch and youth made Newton a trendy pick this year.

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season as a member of the Saints’ practice squad. Leslie, 6-3, 209 pounds was originally signed by the Minnesota Vikings as a college free agent following the 2015 NFL Draft out of Brigham Young University.

Moch, 6-2, 241 pounds was originally selected by the Cincinnati Bengals in the third round (66th overall) of the 2011 NFL Draft. He spent two years with the team before being signed by the Arizona Cardinals in 2013, where he played in four games. In 2014, Moch was signed by the Tennessee Titans and played in three games. Moch also spent time in the Canadian Football League playing for the Toronto Argonauts in 2015. Grant, 6-2, 240 pounds was originally signed by the San Diego Chargers as a college free agent following the 2015 NFL Draft out of Ohio State.

MOVING FORWARD

Hankerson, 6-2, 211 pounds was originally selected by the Washington Redskins in the third round (79th overall) of the 2011 NFL Draft. He was signed by the Falcons on March 11, 2015 and played in eight games for the team this season, tallying 26 receptions for 327 yards and three touchdowns. Moore has played in 11 games this season and has recorded 51 tackles (38 solo), two interceptions and one forced fumble. In his seven years with the Falcons, he has tallied 362 total tackles (275 solo) 16 interceptions and 11 forced fumbles.

Behind the great guard play of senior Jaquan Simms, explosive scorer junior JD Notae and highly-touted freshman Ashton Hagans, the Rams were off to a hot start. Newton’s only loss came to 4A No. 4 Henry County, 67-66 after defeating the Warhawks 86-63 in a preseason scrimmage.

With a chance to establish themselves as the front runner to win the region, Newton met with Tucker on Tuesday night after losing their only two meetings last year, 67-42 and 51-40.

The Rams held a 26-25 lead at the half but a handful of missed free throws throughout the game would prove costly. Down one with 12.5 seconds left Notae, who scored a team-high 25 points, drove the lane and was called for a charge. Tucker missed the ensuing one-andone but Newton could not hit a contested shot in the waning moments giving the Tigers led by Kenton Eskridge a 57-56 victory.

The loss will be a learning experience for Coach Rick Rasmussen’s team. Tucker did its due diligence and tried to keep the ball out of Hagans’ hands, who runs the offense. Things don’t get any easier for the Rams as they face 5A No. 5 Cedar Shoals at the Classic City Shootout on Saturday. The Jaguars handed Tucker a 62-38 loss to open the season but the Tigers have now won three of their last four games and are 2-0 atop of Region 2.

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