Score Atlanta Vol. 12 Issue 1

Time to look great!

VOLUME 12 ISSUE 1 | JANUARY 7-20, 2016

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YOUR SOURCE FOR SPORTS IN GEORGIA

Moment of Clarity | Pg. 4 What lessons the 2015 season taught the Falcons as a fresh offseason arrives.

Coming of Age | Pg. 9 Kyle Sandy lists the biggest surprises of the first half of the high school basketball season.

SHOW ME WHAT YOU GOT Memorable performances underscore Junior Sophomore Elite Classic double-header. | Pg. 7

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Vol. 12 Iss. 1 | January 7-20, 2016

STARTING LINEUP PUBLISHER/EDITOR I.J. Rosenberg

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COLUMNISTS

07

ON THE COVER

09

PREP COVER

ART/CREATIVE DIRECTOR DJ Galbiati Blalock MANAGING EDITOR Craig Sager II ASST. MANAGING EDITOR Kyle Sandy

MARKETING/ Lauren Goldstein

PARTNERSHIP DIRECTOR

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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Copyright 2016 Score Atlanta Publishing, LLC. All rights reserved. Score Atlanta is digitally published every week on ScoreAtl.com. 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 THE ATLANTA FALCONS, TY FREEMAN AND JEFF MARTIN.

ON THE INSIDE AT SCORE Score Atlanta is looking for interns.

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Visit our website, ScoreAtl.com for the our weekly sports rankings. Download the free Georgia High School Scoring App www.scoreatl.com/mobile-app/ or in the app store for live scores all year long.

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DAN’S DOCKETT

COUGARS OUTSHINE NOLES IN CHICK-FIL-A PEACH BOWL WIN

BY DAN MATHEWS | DMATHEWS@SCOREATL.COM

or three straight years in the Chick-Fil-A Peach Bowl, it has been a school from Texas Fstanding on the championship trophy stage

with confetti falling from the roof the Georgia Dome. This year, it is the Houston Cougars over the Florida State Seminoles 38-24.

Not many expected the team led by first year head coach Tom Herman to be the team standing on the stage with ESPN’s Tom Luginbill interviewing them in the trophy presentation.

The Seminoles were favored by seven points in this game and that didn’t bother Herman.

“I felt like we weren’t going to match up player to player,” Herman said. “We’re just not with them. So we felt like we had to use tempo to our advantage and go fast (on offense). Our kids bought into the plan and we practiced, had a great couple of weeks practicing that way.”

UNSTOPPABLE BALANCE

Houston was able to rack up 448 yards of total offense against the nation’s number 15th ranked defense. Most of it was done on the ground, with junior quarterback Greg Ward Jr. running the ball 20 times for 67 yards and two touchdowns.

The Tyler, Tx. native even took a couple of hard hits and had to go to the sideline with minor injuries during the game. So, sophomore quarterback Kyle Postma had to come in to play.

Postma helped lead the Cougars down the field in their final offensive drive of the game to convert two very key third downs to set up the Cougars for their final touchdown to seal the win. Ward however was able to come back on the field to take the final snap of the game to take the knee.

DAN’S DOCKETT 2

NO PLAYOFFS MEANS HUNGRIER FALCONS TEAM FOR 2016

BY DAN MATHEWS | DMATHEWS@SCOREATL.COM

Monday at the Atlanta Falcons team facility A during the season usually serves as a day for meetings, film study, medical treatment and the start of game planning for the next opponent. It is not supposed to be a time for trash bins and bags to be set out for locker clean out.

This signifies the end of the 2015 season, with yet another year of not making the playoffs. This time it featured an 8-8 football team that lost their season finale at home to the New Orleans Saints, to be swept by your division rival.

This all seems like a ton of negatives right? Well, the players seem confident leaving this locker room, as opposed to leaving similar days in the past couple of seasons.

SHAKE IT OFF

Players like cornerback Robert Alford has

no idea what the postseason in the NFL is like, because he’s been on the last three teams who haven’t played past the regular season. That said, he believes the attitude leaving this season is much different than the last two.

“We accomplished a lot this year, as opposed to last year as you can see in our record,” Alford said. “Just for us as a team, where we wanted to be at, in the playoffs we didn’t accomplish that. That’s more disappointing than anything. But, we were more successful this year than we were last year.”

The 2013 season for example, had a team that went 4-12. 2014 was a team that had a chance at winning the division, lost to finish 6-10 and their head coach Mike Smith got fired.

Things were remarkably better for them in 2015, despite the finish. They are also a team

Ward was named the offensive MVP for the game and says that he was still in disbelief over the win during the postgame press conference.

“It really doesn’t seem real,” Ward said.

“Coach always talks about confetti falling and being with your brothers just celebrating a win. I’m really numb to the fact we just won right now.”

The players all week talked about their admiration for Herman and the energy that he has brought to the campus in Houston. It is evident today in the fact that his team has finished 13-1 for the season to tie their program best record from the 2011 season.

Herman was considered to be one of the best offensive minded coaches in college football, when he left Ohio State to become the head coach at Houston. Junior wide receiver Demarcus Ayers thinks that he’s even better than that.

“There’s no better coach to play for than Tom Herman,” Ayers said. “He’s one of the best out there. He’s a very high class guy and he knows how to have relationships with his players on/off the field. He’s going to go down as one of the greatest coaches in college football history.”

Ayers earned his keep in this game as well, with a trick play touchdown pass to junior wide receiver Chance Allen in the second quarter to put Houston up 14-3 at that point.

The defense for the Cougars also helped

win the game, by limiting Seminoles standout running back Dalvin Cook to just 33 yards on 18 carries. They also intercepted Florida State quarterback Sean Maguire four times.

Houston senior safety Trevor Stewart was not named the defensive MVP, for his two interceptions. But, he was able to total up four tackles and recover a fumble. Cornerback William Jackson III was the defensive MVP.

The Cougars got to play in a College Football Playoff “New Years Six” bowl game for the first time in program history, which is something Stewart says he predicted would happen for them before he left school. Not everyone agreed with him.

“I thought about my high school baseball coach,” Stewart said. “My freshman year I remember we went 5 and 7 and I tweeted him.

I said before I graduate I’m going to play in a BCS bowl game. And he tweeted back and he said, you must be transferring, like I couldn’t play in a bowl game there. So last night, last night I posted and tagged him in it, so I know he was watching. He told me he was watching.”

Herman says that the program will have a short time off to enjoy this win and they will be back in the weight room and on the practice fields to get ready for the 2016 season.

Photo courtesy of Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl.

that showed that some problems still exist for them in terms of ball security/penalties.The Falcons were sixth worst in the league in terms of turnover margin, finishing 2015 minus-seven in that category. They were also penalized 100 times this season, but they were the eighth fewest penalized team in the NFL.

It wasn’t so much when they had these things happen to them in games, it was where. Yesterday’s game for example featured the fumble by running back DeVonta Freeman, Matt Ryan interception to set up the Kai Forbath game winning field goal and the unnecessary roughness penalty against offensive guard Andy Levitre to put them out of field goal range.

In his Monday press conference, head coach Dan Quinn called yesterday’s game of microcosm of the season.

“Things we did well and things we needed to improve on,” Quinn said. “Offensively for the season, we ended up finishing second in the league on third down and we played well on third down again yesterday.”

Quinn also points to the fact they had over 400 rushing carries in 2015. But he says that points outside the red zone needs and turnovers need to improve.

now, the Falcons find themselves in search of getting the postseason in 2016. Veteran linebacker O’Brien Schofield hasn’t experienced life without getting to the postseason over the last couple of years.

Schofield came from the two-time defending NFC Champion Seattle Seahawks to the Falcons during last offseason. He says this team is close to their goals.

“I just think it was a couple of games where we were in situations that we couldn’t dig ourselves out of a hole,” Schofield said.

“Carolina is one of those games, where they jumped out on us early and we couldn’t do anything to get back in it. It’s going to be those ones that hurt.”

To a man, almost every Falcons player says they will take some time off to let bumps and bruises heal from the week to week grind that is an NFL season. However, they also added that they cannot wait to be back for team workouts to get ready for the 2016 season.

Linebacker Paul Worrilow says he will be ready to come back from the offseason.

“Excitement and optimism is there for next year,” Worrilow said. “Everybody’s got that desire to improve and make those strides still. We did some good things this year. But, we know there’s plenty things that we have to do better throughout the season.”

Photo courtesy of the Atlanta Falcons.

PENALTIES AND PROTECTION

The Falcons were 7-2 when they won the turnover battle and 1-6 when they did not. So

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

Vol. 12 Iss. 1 | January 7-20, 2016

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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Allatoona Basketball

Grayson Basketball

You might not realize it, but Georgia basketball is possibly the best state in terms of talent in the entire nation.

Surprises, disappointments, five-star players and legendary coaches are littered throughout the state. Visit Sandysspiel.com throughout the year for the best coverage of basketball the state has ever seen.

The Buccaneers captured the Lake City Classic championship on their home floor, beating McEachern in the title game. Allatoona is one of two teams left in Class AAAAA that is undefeated.

Can you guess who the other is? Camden County.

The Rams moved to 13-1 overall with a 73-69 win over No. 9 Dacula on Wednesday. Austin Dukes scored 27 points and sank 14-of-17 free throws to hold off the Falcons. Tre Sconiers finished with 14 points and 15 rebounds in the huge Region 8 victory.

By Ned Kaish

WHO’S HOT

HS Basketball

SCORE LIST

By Craig Sager II LEAGUE LEADERS

Julio Jones and Antonio Brown became two of only four players in NFL history to finish with 1,800 receiving yards in a season. Jones’ 149 receiving yards on Sunday propelled him into second all time in receiving yards in a single season with 1,871 yards, trailing Calvin Johnson’s 1,964 in 2012. Brown also joined the top four, ending the season with 1,834. Jones and Brown tied with an NFLhigh 136 receptions.

DON’T MESS WITH TEXAS The Houston Cougars took out the Florida State Seminoles 38-24 in the 2015 Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl.

Houston was able to rack up 448 yards of total offense against the nation’s number 15th ranked defense. Most of it was done on the ground, with junior quarterback Greg Ward Jr. running the ball 20 times for 67 yards and two touchdowns. Houston finishes the year 13-1 and aims for a spot in the playoffs next year.

RUNNING FOR MILESTONES In Atlanta’s Week 17 loss to the Saints, Pro Bowler Devonta Freeman eclipsed the 1,000-yard rushing mark. Freeman finished his second season with 1,061 rushing yards off of 264 carries and scored a League-best 11 rushing touchdowns. Freeman was also second on the team in receptions with 73 and accounted for 578 receiving yards with three scores. The 2015 season could be remembered as Freeman’s coming out party.

ELITE CLASSIC The American Teams dominated last week’s Junior Sophomore Elite Classic at McEachern High School, beating the Nationals 38-3 in the sophomore game and 38-14 in the junior showdown. McEachern quarterback Bailey Hockman earned MVP of the junior game with three touchdown passes and Buford’s Anthony Grant took MVP of the sophomore game after racing his way to a 165-yaard rushing performance off a game-high 22 carries.

THE YEAR AHEAD

Now that football is officially over, the basketball season finally begins to get the attention it deserves. With two months of the season already in the books, it is clear that Georgia’s classifications are as wide open as they have ever been. The Westlake boys have ascended to the top of the 6A poll, while the Archer girls continue battling a gauntlet of 6A opponents for the top spot.

WHO’S NOT

SCORE ATLANTA | www.ScoreAtl.com

NFL Coaches

New Year’s Six

Hawks

Black Monday came a little early, with a hand full of coaches being canned Sunday night. The Browns, Giants, 49ers, Eagles and now Bucs are among some of the league’s newest openings. A hot name for a couple jobs is former Falcons OC Dirk Koetter. Currently the OC in Tampa, Koetter might get his first head coaching gig this year.

All six premier matchups turned out to be snooze fests. The Rose Bowl, Orange Bowl, Fiesta Bowl, Sugar Bowl, Peach Bowl and Cotton Bowl – all of them – were all blowouts and not competitive. It hurts to see such great games on paper flop the way they did. Here’s to next year being better.

Back to back losses to the New York Knicks. The Knicks. Never a good sign if you are trying to compete for an NBA Title. Arron Afflalo scored 60-plus points in the two games combined.

Coach Budenholzer is still looking for that magic touch that helped the Hawks to 60 wins a year ago.

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

WHERE DID JULIO JONES’ 2015 CAMPAIGN RANK ALL-TIME IN RECEIVING YARDAGE FOR A SINGLE SEASON? ANSWER ON PAGE 14

“

SANITY AT LAST

“We just have to protect the ball more. Next year, we just have to focus on that and keep emphasing that every week-in and week-out.”

- Julio Jones on the Falcons offseason

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Free throws Grayson’s Austin Dukes made Wednesday night.

0

Allatoona losses

3

Touchdowns Bailey Hockman threw in the Junior Elite Classic

0.5

Games back of the Heat are the Hawks

12

Points Isaac Kellum scored in his McIntosh debut

52

Points Kevon Tucker and Derek St. Hilaire combined for against Grayson

149

Yards receiving for Julio Jones vs. New Orleans

0

Points allowed by Alabama’s defense vs.

Michigan State

Vol. 12 Iss. 1 | January 7-20, 2016 Walter Grant picked up defensive MVP honors with his five tackles, two sacks and fumble recovery.

Glynn Academy’s Deejay Dallas led the National team with 74 receiving yards. Xavier McKinney posted six tackles, one tackle for loss and a forced fumble in the defeat.

ON THE COVER

SOPHOMORE ELITES

COVER STORY

JUNIOR SOPHOMORE ELITE CLASSIC PROVIDES MEMORABLE PERFORMANCES

BY CRAIG SAGER II & KYLE SANDY

T

he Junior Sophomore Elite Classic served up a double-header last Tuesday at McEachern High School that showcased Georgia’s top prospects for the Class of 2017 and beyond.

In the Junior Game, The American Team used explosive plays, trickery and opportunistic defense to run away with a 38-14 victory over the National Team in the. Northside-Warner Robins quarterback Tobias Oliver lined up at wide receiver for the American team and showcased his big-play ability right away. Oliver capped off the first drive with a 59-yard touchdown catch from McEachern quarterback Bailey Hockman that came as Hockman fought threw a sack and found him on an off balance toss.

The National Team responded with a 10-play, 70-yard drive that ended with a 32-yard touchdown pass from Woodward Academy’s Ryan Glover to Lowndes’ Xavier Jenkins.

The teams traded touchdowns once again and entered the second quarter tied 14-14.

Hockman found Mays wideout Corey Reed for a 4-yard touchdown pass on a goal line slant and the National team got on the board with a

7-yard run by Roswell’s Sheldon Evans.

The second quarter was where the American team took control of the game as Marist quarterback Jack Dinges took over for Hockman and used a methodical 16-play drive that ended with a 2-yard touchdown run by Locust Grove’s Caleb Huntley. The drive ate up 6:35 of clock and allowed the American Team to take a 21-14 halftime lead. The teams went scoreless in the third quarter before the American team poured on 17 more points in the final frame.

Greater Atlanta Christian kicker Brooks Bruce nailed a 49-yard field goal to make it 2414 and on the ensuing kickoff Mays’ A.J. Cayetano forced and recovered a LeAntony Williams fumble to set up great field position for the American offense. On the next snap, Hockman completed a double-reverse flea flicker to a wide-open J.D. King for a 33-yard score. The final points came with 2:24 left in the game when Dinges lobbed a perfect 53-yard touchdown pass to King.

Hockman was named offensive MVP with his three touchdown performance and Cairo’s

The stars aligned at Walter Cantrell Stadium at McEachern High School for the first ever Sophomore all-star. The American Team was led by head coach Kevin Whitley (Stockbridge) met the National Team guided by Mark Fleetwood (Peachtree Ridge). With scouts littered across the stadium, the Peach State’s best sophomores put on a show, but it was the American Team shining the brightest to secure a dominant 38-3 victory.

The Americans outgained the Nationals 419 to 86 in total yardage and led from the opening drive. Buford’s Anthony Grant was named the Offensive MVP thanks to some tough running and big-play drives. He bulldozed his way to 165 yards on 22 carries and scored on a 1-yard run to open the game at the 7:35 mark of the first quarter. Less than four minutes later, Christopher Rodriguez of Ola plowed in an 8-yard run in which National defenders were draped all over him.

Up 14-0 entering the second quarter, the Americans were in control. The National Team added a 28-yard field goal from Norcross’ Jake Camarda. The American Team quickly answered back using a 5-play, 79-yard drive capped by Rodriguez’s second score of the day.

He finished with 46 yards on nine carries and the two touchdowns.

Linebacker Zakoby McClain of Valdosta garnered Defensive MVP honors as a key cog of the American defense. He finished with a team-high six tackles, four solo and two for loss. The Wildcat also forced and recovered a fumble. It was one of three forced fumbles on the day created by the hard-hitting defense.

Freshman Nolan Smith of Calvary Day scored on a fumble recovery from 30 yards out to make it 28-3 before Mitchell Fineran of Brunswick connected on a 47-yard field goal to give the American Team a commanding 31-3 lead at the half.

Woodstock quarterback Garrett Bass hit Centennial’s Blane Mason on a 14-yard touchdown pass to finish the scoring with 7:53 re-

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maining in the third. Bass rotated in with North Gwinnett’s Cade Fortin. Bass finished 5-of-8 for 91 yards, one touchdown and one interception. Fortin, who started, went 4-of-10 with 82 yards and an interception.

The National Team was under duress all game long, passing for just 50 yards and being sacked seven times. JJ Peterson (Colquitt County) and Dar’Jarri Coleman (South Atlanta) both corralled two sacks apiece. While Kierron Smith (Fitzgerald) and Nolan Smith both tallied one.

The Nationals were led on offense by Taylor County’s Lyn J Dixon. The shifty back finished with 50 yards on 10 rushes. Defensively, freshman JD Bertrand of Blessed Trinity led all defenders with eight total tackles and an interception that was returned for 38 yards.

Photos courtesy of Jeff Martin.

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SIGNING DAY CELEBRATION

NATIONAL SIGNING DAY

Join us for an afternoon of celebration: FEB. 3 | 11am - 5pm *Schools will be assigned specific times

All Metro Atlanta High School Recruits, Coaches & Teams are Invited!

Parents, Friends, Cheerleaders, Family & Fans - Come Show Your Support!

STARS & STRIKES 8767 Roswell Rd. | Sandy Springs, GA 30350 Sign your team up for a time by calling Lauren Goldstein at 404.256.1572 or email her at lgoldstein@scoreatl.com

W W W. S I G N I N G D AY F R E N Z Y. C O M

PREP SPORTS

GHSA BASKETBALL’S BIGGEST SURPRISES

BY KYLE SANDY | KSANDY@SCOREATL.COM

W

ith each new year, storylines present themselves. This season there have been some pleasant surprises and some early disappointments throughout the state.

In Class AAAAAA, no one stands out more than Johns Creek (12-2). The Gladiators started the season 11-0 before suffering their first loss of the year to another turned around program, Brookwood (10-3), who finished 7-19 last year. After a 14-15 season and 10-8 record last year in Region 6, Johns Creek is now 7-1 in region play behind seniors Mark Lancaster and Mason Henkel. Lancaster is averaging more than 16 points and five rebounds per game while Henkel adds 13.1 points and 5.5 boards.

The Gladiators along with No. 5 Tift County and region rival Lambert were the last three teams undefeated in 6A.

A few programs have built off strong seasons and have turned into top ten teams in

AAAAA. No. 9 Riverwood out of Region 7B sits at 15-1 overall with their lone loss coming to last year’s 4A state runner-up, Carrollton, at the Lake City Classic. Improved three-point shooting, primarily from Elijah Jenkins and Charnchai Chantha, has also made the Raiders a threat as they now have perimeter support around double-double machine Kohl Roberts, who is averaging over 16 points and 13 rebounds a night.

No. 7 Camden County (13-0, 4-0) is one of two undefeateds (No. 2 Allatoona) left in the classification. The Wildcats come off a 19-10 season and are the team to beat right now in Region 3. Seniors Jaylen Smallwood (17.3 ppg, 8.0 rpg), Logan Ballard (13.3 ppg, 5.7 rpg) and Keyshaun Street (12.5 ppg) are among the catalysts that drive Coach William Moore’s offense.

The biggest turnaround has been the Shaw Raiders (10-2, 2-0), hailing from Region 1. A 8-16 mark a year ago seems like a distant

memory as Coach Terry White’s team is off to their best start since ’11-12. Averaging 80 points per game, the Raiders are overwhelming teams with their firepower. Seniors Dakeen Diaz (15.7 ppg, 6.8 rpg), Kourtney Shakespeare (12.7 ppg, 5.4 rpg) and the emergence of 6-foot-6 center Cam Paulding (12.3 ppg, 7.1 rpg) has the Raiders in the mix for a playoff berth while battling the likes of LaGrange, Northside-Columbus and Carver-Columbus.

Region 4-AAAA’s No. 8 Eagle’s Landing (13-1, 6-1) has held its own this year with their only loss coming to No. 1 Jonesboro. Jordan Lewis is pitching in 16.6 points per game to pace the Eagles. The competition is stiff in Region 4, but the Chuck Miller Holiday Classic champs are in good shape to contend.

DOWNWARD TRENDS

The biggest disappointment in AAAA? UGA signee Tyree Crump’s Bainbridge Bearcats (7-7, 3-3). The boys from Bearcat Boulevard opened up at No. 4 but find themselves struggling to stay afloat in a deep Region 1. With a star D-I guard, big man Trevon Shaw and DeVonte Jones, the team’s top three scorers from an 18-9, 11-7 season all returning, why shouldn’t they have been highly regarded?

Major overhauls have taken place in Class AAA. Jeff Steele has come over from JohnsonGainesville and has turned Lumpkin County into a contender behind 1,000-point scorer

Jack Howard. The Indians cracked the top ten earlier this season and are 13-3 overall and 4-1 in Region 7 after a 9-20, 5-8 campaign. Coahulla Creek has been inserted onto the map going from 14-11, 8-8 in Region 6 to 13-3, 7-1 this year. Region 2 has seen No. 9 SouthwestMacon (11-3, 7-1) transform into a central Georgia hot ticket thanks to transfer Nick Hargrove and Justin Slocum. The 6-foot-6 Slocum averages 22.1 points and 12.6 rebounds while Hargrove adds 20.2 points, 4.0 rebounds and 5.6 assists. A shoutout needs to go to the gang at Jackson County. 4-22 overall last year with a 0-12 Region 8 record. This year they are 8-7 overall and 2-2 in region.

In AA, Region 2’s Long County (11-3, 5-1) has been a huge surprise following a 6-22, 1-14 year. Sophomore Henry Blair (11.7 ppg) and junior Perrell Brisbane (10.7 ppg, 7.5 rpg) have been two cogs in the success Coach Deshon Brock has seen.

My biggest shock in 1A is just how wide open the field is. Outside of No. 1 Greenforest, everyone has shown the ability to beat each other, but in the process have uncovered flaws in each team. I can’t foresee there being any 40-point first round blowouts especially in 1A-Private. Of course there are a few slight favorites to make the Final Four, but it would not surprise me if two or three unfamiliar faces crash the party.

Photos courtesy of Ty Freeman.

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UNIVERSITY OF GEORGIA

BULLDOGS CAPTURE 10TH WIN AT TAXSLAYER BOWL

BY DAN MATHEWS | DMATHEWS@SCOREATL.COM

fter building a 24-3 lead in the second half, A the Georgia Bulldogs were able to hold on to get the 24-17 win over Penn State in the

TaxSlayer Bowl. The victory gave Georgia 10 wins for the second straight season.

This path to the game was not easy for the Bulldogs, with coaching changes and injured players providing distractions for the team. For a second, it looked like the Nittany Lions were going to be able to pull it to within a tie in the final 22 seconds of the game.

James Franklin’s Penn State team was without standout quarterback Christian Hackenberg from about mid-way through the second quarter all the way through the end of the game with a shoulder injury on his throwing side. Then came in redshirt freshman Trace McSorley to try and pull the Nittany Lions closer to the Bulldogs.

McSorley threw two touchdown passes in the fourth quarter, to finish the game with 142 yards passing and ran for 31 more yards.

McSorley even gave the Nittany Lions a chance to win the game, with a ‘Hail Mary’

GEORGIA STATE

PANTHERS POUNCE ON BOBCATS

pass in the final seconds that would be batted down by the Georgia defense to preserve the win.

CHANGE IN THE AIR…

For the second straight year, the Bulldogs were also without a permanent offensive coordinator for the bowl game. This meant that tight ends/special teams coach John Lilly had to call the plays for the exiting Brian Schottenheimer.

UGA’s offense finished with 327 yards of total offense, led in large part by senior wide receiver Malcolm Mitchell’s 114 yards receiving. He would be on the receiving end of a 44 yard touchdown pass from freshman wide receiver/TaxSlayer Bowl MVP Terry Godwin out of the ‘Wild Dog’ formation.

Georgia’s defense also looked strong again, despite not having coordinator Jeremy Pruitt around to make the calls. They won the turnover battle by plus-one, with the first quarter interception by sophomore safety Dominick Sanders.

Saturday’s game was watched by soon to be head coach Kirby Smart. He joined ESPN’s broadcast crew in the booth during halftime to talk about balancing his duties at Alabama with his future obligations in Athens.

The win for the Bulldogs, gives this senior class 40 wins for their career. It also sets up the future to stay bright for the program, with 17 players that have starting experience on both sides of the ball back for next season.

lowell and Isaiah Williams stepped up today.

When those guys play like that, we become a team very difficult to beat.”

Williams finished with 13 points and four assists. The sophomore has provided stability in the backcourt averaging over eight points and three assists per game.

GOODBYE 2015

BY KYLE SANDY | KSANDY@SCOREATL.COM

n Saturday the Georgia State Panthers (8O 3, 1-1) returned to their winning ways by knocking off Texas State (7-4, 1-1) in a low scor-

ing contest, 58-46. Jeremy Hollowell poured in a game-high 18 points before fouling out. The Panthers shot 52.3 percent to the Bobcats’ 31.4, but Texas State managed to hang around with 20 free throw attempts, sinking 11.

Georgia State improved to 33-7 in conference games since returning to the Sun Belt in 2013-14. The Panthers are 55-16 in their last 71 games dating back to Dec. 14, 2013 and have won 14-of-18 games dating back to last season.

Texas State saw its seven-game home winning streak snapped. Leading scorer Emani Gant was held to eight points. Kavin Gilder-Tilbury scored a team-high 15 and recorded eight rebounds.

“Really proud of the way our team stepped up defensively today,” head coach Ron Hunter said. “It’s hard to hold a team to just 46 points but our guys followed the game plan we laid out and it worked extremely well.

“I’m equally proud of the way Jeremy Hol-

A memorable calendar year of 2015 ended on a sour note on Dec. 30 as the Panthers fell to current 11-2 overall UT-Arlington, 85-70.

Runs of 14-0 and 15-5 were too much for the Panthers to overcome. The first 14-point spurt gave the Mavericks the lead for good and the 15-5 push ballooned the lead to 51-39 in the second half.

Jeff Thomas led the Panthers with 21 points coming off of seven three-pointers. Kevin Ware finished with 17 points, five rebounds and five assists. Four players scored in double figures for UT-Arlington led by Kevin Hervey’s 17 points and eight rebounds.

“At the end of the night, you tip your cap to UT Arlington as they played a very good game,” said Hunter. “The thing we know is that this was just one game and there are still 19 conference games to play. This is a resilient team that I know will bounce back on Saturday.”

THIRSTY THURSDAY

The Panthers look to quench their thirst to begin another winning streak as they welcome Troy (5-8, 0-2) to the GSU Sports Arena on Thursday.

GEORGIA TECH

CONFERENCE PLAY OPENS WITH BACKTO-BACK LOSSES

BY CRAIG SAGER II | CSAGER@SCOREATL.COM

G

eorgia Tech the new year 10-3, but dropped to 10-5 overall and more significantly 0-2 in ACC action after back-to-back road losses to open conference play. The Yellow Jackets fell 86-78 in a hard fought battle at No. 7 North Carolina last Saturday and suffered an 89-84 loss at No. 24 Pittsburgh Wednesday night.

The Jackets return home Saturday, where they await No. 4 Virginia for a 2 PM tip.

Tech led North Carolina by nine points in the first half and took a 42-39 lead into the locker room before getting outscored by 11 points in the final 20 minutes.

Marcus Georges-Hunt matched his career high with 25 points for Georgia Tech and teammate Adam Smith added 20 points with six 3-pointers for the Yellow Jackets, who haven’t beaten North Carolina since January 2011 and haven’t won in Chapel Hill since a year before that. North Carolina used a collective balance to gain control of the game and six players finished in double figures as they shot 58 percent after halftime and 51 percent for the game.

KENNESAW STATE

FIFTH THIRD BANK STADIUM RECOGNIZED FOR UNIQUE ATMOSPHERE

BY KYLE SANDY | KSANDY@SCOREATL.COM

ranks all 125 FCS FootSteamtadiumJourney.com ball Stadiums and there was a surprising that made the national top 10 list. After

it’s first year of competition, Kennesaw State already cracked the Top 10 nationally as Fifth Third Bank Stadium is listed No. 10 on StadiumJourney.com’s Top 25 ranking of Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) stadiums that was released on Wednesday (Jan. 6).

The rankings take into account food and drink choices, atmosphere, neighborhood, fans, access, return on investment, and special features.

The Owls played their inaugural season in 2015 and posted a 6-5 overall record, including a 5-1 mark at home.

“This Top 10 ranking is a great testament to all the hard work put forth by members of the athletics department, stadium employees, and the support provided by the university’s administration,” head coach Brian Bohannon said.

“I can’t tell you how phenomenal our fans were this season and how much energy they provid-

UNDERRATED STAR

Tech’s 89-84 loss to Pittsburgh was defined by an outstanding performance by Pittsburgh guard James Robinson.

Robinson finished with 18 points but really set the pace for the entire game. He even included a span of seven straight points during the Panthers’ first half run. Robinson also dished out eight assists.

“He’s one of the most underrated players in the country,” Yellow Jackets coach Brian Gregory said of Robinson. “He just knows how to play ... he looks like he’s been here for about 14 years but he makes the right play all the time.”

The Panthers did most of their damage at the foul line. Pitt entered the game leading the nation in free-throw shooting (78 percent) and sunk 25 of 30 (83 percent) at the line, including 22 of 24 in the second half to hold off Tech.

Smith remained hot for the Jackets and led Tech with a career-high 30 points, including eight 3-pointers. Mitchell had 20 points and 17 boards as the Yellow Jackets hung around into the final seconds.

The Yellow Jackets have now lost seven straight games against ACC opponents and they open ACC play 0-2 for the fourth straight season. One positive takeaway from Wednesday was the effort on the glass as the Jackets outrebounded Pitt 38-34.

ed our players and coaches. Everyone from our fans, students, marching band, community and sponsor partners were instrumental in us posting a 5-1 home record and helping make Fifth Third Bank Stadium a special place to play.

“I want to thank our fans and staff, and congratulate them on providing the Kennesaw State football with one of the top FCS game day atmospheres in the country,” Bohannon added.

Fifth Third Bank Stadium was one of four Big South Conference venues included in the Top 25, joining Coastal Carolina’s Brooks Stadium (No. 6), Spangler Stadium (Gardner-Webb) rated No. 18, and Presbyterian (Crocker Field at Bailey Memorial Stadium), which was No. 19.

With Coastal Carolina heading to the FBS level next season, Fifth Third Bank Stadium will rank as the top venue in the Big South Conference.

ON THE COURT

Following a heartbreaking 76-73 loss to visiting Mercer, the Owls responded with a 10371 victory over Reinhardt on Monday. The Owls had five players in double-figure scoring as Bernard Morena and Nick Masterson each netted career highs with 24 and 17 points, respectively.

Senior guard Yonel Brown and redshirt junior Kendrick Ray poured in 18 points each and Aubrey Williams totaled 11 points and 12 rebounds for a double-double off the bench.

KSU shot 68 percent from the field in the second half to spark a 59-33 scoring edge.

Morena shot 9-of-10 in the second half for 20 of his career-best 24 points.

Vol. 12 Iss. 1 | January 7-20, 2016 ATLANTA HAWKS

HAWKS KNICKED

BY NEW YORK

BY KYLE SANDY | KSANDY@SCOREATL.COM

A

tlanta (21-15) has fallen from second place in the Eastern Conference to second place in the Southeast and fifth in the conference following a pair of losses to the New York Knicks.

On Jan. 3 they fell at MSG 111-97 and returned home Tuesday night to drop 107-101. The Hawks now trail Miami (21-14) by 0.5 games for the division lead and are 1.5 back of the Bulls (21-12) for second in the East.

Sunday saw the Knicks use a 33-point second quarter to gain separation from the Hawks and hold onto a 10-point halftime lead.

Arron Afflalo exploded for a season-high 38 points and seven triples to lead the Knicks.

Carmelo Anthony, who played the role of supporting cast, finished with 11 points while Robin Lopez and Kristaps Porzingis added 16 and 14 points respectively.

“Credit to New York, they played well as a group,” Hawks coach Mike Budenholzer said.

“Obviously Arron Afflalo had a very good individual game. It just wasn’t one of our better days. I thought the effort was pretty good, our

ATLANTA BRAVES

BRAVES PARTNERING WITH PANASONIC AT SUNTRUST PARK

BY RICKY DIMON | RDIMON@SCOREATL.COM

anasonic Enterprise Solutions Co. anPBraves nounced a partnership with the Atlanta at the Consumer Electronics Show in

Las Vegas on Tuesday. The partnership will ultimately result in a large LED scoreboard at the new SunTrust Park, which is scheduled to open in Cobb County for the start of the 2017 season. Panasonic will provide state-of-the-art technology in three areas: LED solutions, security and eco and sustainability. The company will make its mark both inside SunTrust Park and throughout Battery Atlanta—the multipurpose are surrounding the stadium that will feature restaurants (approximately 20), retail and entertainment. SunTrust Park will have 41,000 seats, while the Battery Atlanta will consist of 350,000 square feet.

“Panasonic will design, install and maintain a high-end, comprehensive large LED scoreboard display, ribbon fascia, digital signage, and video monitors throughout the park and adjacent spaces,” the company revealed.

“Security cameras and security video management system—Video Insights—will also be in-

guys tried.”

Paul Millsap scored 19 points and Kent Bazemore had 18 for the Hawks. Al Horford and Kyle Korver both scored 13.

“We just didn’t have our game today and New York is part of the reason we didn’t have our game,” Budenholzer said. “We have them again on Tuesday. We’ll have to prepare, think about what it takes to execute better on both ends and we’ll do that before Tuesday.”

DOUBLE DOSE

Tuesday treated the Hawks no better as Afflalo torched them yet again with 23 points, seven rebounds and four assists in Atlanta.

Carmelo finished with 23 points, 11 rebounds and seven assists. Porzingis had 17 points and 11 rebounds. All five Hawks finished in double figures led by Paul Millsap’s 19 points and seven boards. Horford flirted with a triple-double with 13 points, 10 rebounds and eight assists.

“We dug ourselves a hole to start the third quarter,” Budenholzer said. “We can’t put ourselves there. It takes a lot of energy and a lot of fight to come back. I credit our guys for fighting and competing. But we have to be better for more of the 48 minutes.”

UP NEXT

Atlanta looks to right the ship as they visit the Sixers (4-33) Thursday night. Three weeks ago, a clobbering of the Sixers sparked a sixgame winning streak.

stalled, which will be managed by Panasonic.

The final facet of the program will be an eco and sustainability plan for the complex.”

VETERAN SIGNINGS

The Braves signed veteran pitchers Alex Torres and Kyle Kendrick to minor-league deals last week. They previously inked David Carpenter, Alexi Ogando and Alex Torres to minor-league contracts this offseason. Looking for depth in the starting rotation and the bullpen, general manager John Copolella—at least in the case of these two players—is going the route of low cost and low risk.

As such, the rewards may not be great.

Torres is perhaps best known as the reliever who has been wearing a protective hat on the mound over the last few seasons. The 28-yearold lefty compiled a 3.15 ERA in 39 appearances with the Mets in 2015 while actually faring better against right-handed hitters. They hit a meager .157 against him. Kendrick posted a horrendous 6.32 ERA while making 27 starts for the Rockies this past season. The 31-year-old righty was especially bad amidst the mile-high conditions of Coors Field (7.62 ERA), but was not good anywhere (5.24 ERA on the road).

Atlanta is hoping to revamp a bullpen that finished last year with a 4.69 ERA. The club was forced to use 32 different relief pitchers—including outfielder Jonny Gomes—due to both ineffectiveness and injuries. Shae Simmons missed the entire 2015 campaign because of Tommy John surgery and closer Jason Grilli suffered an Achilles’ injury in July.

ATLANTA FALCONS

INCONSISTENCIES ATTRACT CHANGE IN 2016 OFFSEASON

BY DAN MATHEWS | DAMTHEWS@SCOREATL.COM

T

he season has come to an end with the Atlanta Falcons finishing the year 8-8, following a 20-17 loss to the New Orleans Saints. All this means, is that the offseason is now here.

So, what is next? Who stays and who goes?

These are questions that are continually asked inside NFL locker room’s after the season comes to an end. The Falcons seemingly have this question coming their direction even more, with their third straight season ending without a playoff berth.

Sure, there is the thought that general manager Thomas Dimitroff’s future with the organization is in doubt. There are also many players that could be on shaky ground, in terms of their future with the team.

One of those players, is veteran wide receiver Roddy White. That said, he’s not concerned about what the future holds.

“I’m going to be a Falcon next year and we’ll roll from there,” White said.

White is due to make about $6.1 million

GHSA BASKETBALL

CLASS 6A-5A SLEEPER TEAMS

BY KYLE SANDY | KSANDY@SCOREATL.COM

B

asketball season is in the heart of the schedule right now. A couple teams coming off under .500 records are playing good basketball, even though their record might not show it. Here are two teams in the state’s highest classifications that could make some noise as the season progresses. Both teams are in the hunt to make the state playoffs, but if they can’t get there, they are programs nobody will want to face.

CLASS AAAAAA

The Harrison Hoyas (7-7, 2-3) have played well and are right in the thick of things in Region 4, battling for a top four seed heading into the region tournament. DJ Rowe was expected to be a big piece of the puzzle this year at the guard position, but he is no longer with the program. Juniors Juwan Owens and Tate Coston have played exceptionally well in his absence. In Tuesday’s 61-59 overtime win over North Cobb, Owens finished with 23 points.

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dollars next season and his number of catches went down to 42, for his third worst career season in that category. You would have to believe that the Falcons would maybe explore options at bolstering the offense in the draft or free agency.

SHOPPING FOR SUCCESS

As of right now, the Falcons will have five draft picks coming up in late April (barring any compensatory picks), with their fifth round pick stripped by the NFL for the crowd noise issue and sixth rounder in the possession of the Tennessee Titans in a trade for offensive lineman Andy Levitre.

The Falcons could decide to free up some cap space and go after players like outside linebacker Von Miller or wide receiver Alshon Jeffery to attempt to bolster both sides of the ball.

That means that some veteran players would likely not be back and White would possibly be one of those guys.

Even though he’s not in danger of being anywhere but Atlanta, Julio Jones still knows that new faces will find their way to the team facility over the offseason.

“Definitely this team is going to change,” Jones said. “You don’t know who is leaving and who is coming. It’s all about that impact you can have on that persons life.”

The heart and soul of the Hoyas however is senior forward Austin York. The big man has manufactured buckets inside and has shown touch from the perimeter. He posted 15 points and 11 rebounds in the win. The Hoyas have the bulk of their region schedule ahead including two meetings with No. 6 McEachern. Harrison should be in-line to capture a state playoff berth, but if they aren’t able to, expect them to play the role of spoiler down the stretch.

CLASS AAAAA

Houston County (5-7, 0-1) has played a challenging non-region schedule to get ready for 2016. The Bears have seen 5-star forward Khavon Moore and Westside-Macon three times this season and took 1-of-3. A 55-50 overtime loss to 1A-Private No. 8 Whitefield Academy early in the season was a promising sign that the Bears have enough talent to stick with anyone. Their best win of the season came against 9-3 Dublin, 88-77. The Bears have a balanced attack which is spearheaded by DL Hall, Jaylon Golds and Amari Colbert. Kolbey Singleton, Marquis Traylor, Javion Johnson and Zion Johnson also get the lion’s share of minutes.

In Region 2B, the Bears are stuck with No.10 Warner Robins, Jones County and NorthsideWarner Robins. They will need to play good ball to get into the postseason, but they have more than enough talent to get the job done.

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Vol. 12 Iss. 1 | January 7-20, 2016

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