A pair of one-play possessions resulting in touchdowns in the third period gave Ware County the winning margin in a 28-19 victory against Brunswick Friday night in a preseason scrimmage in Memorial Stadium.
Ja’Londi O’Hara had a hand in each of the pivotal scores. The sophomore returned the second-half kickoff 77 yards to set up a touchdown pass from quarterback Luke Hooks to MiKhi Patterson on the next play.
Later in the quarte,r after the Pirates had drawn within 21-19, O’Hara raced 60 yards on an end around for the clinching score on the first play after the ensuing kickoff.
The teams’ junior varsity and ninth-grade units finished up the scrimmage with a scoreless final period.
Pre-season seventhranked Ware County opens its season Friday night at Class AA secondranked Appling County. The game is a return match of the 2022 seasonopener that was canceled by a severe thunderstorm right at kickoff.
Four different players scored touchdowns for the Gators. Zhai Solomon and Jamir Boyd had scoring runs of one and 72 yards, respectively. William Bates added four conversion kicks.
Solomon and Boyd were joined by Trey Orange and Terron Birden as fill-ins at running back for injured returning starter R.J. Boyd. The senior, who’s signed with North Carolina State, is sidelined following knee surgery for an injury suffered in a car wreck earlier this year.
The quartet combined for 168 yards on 21 carries. Boyd, a junior, led the way in his older brother’s absence with 94 yards on seven carries.
Ware County totaled 218 yards rushing. Hooks, a senior returning starter, was 6-of-9 passing for 70 yards and the touchdown operating in a new scheme which showed a shift and/or motion on nearly every snap.
The Gators hurt them-selves with a fumble deep in Pirates territory, two interceptions and a bad snap on a field goal attempt. They also suffered six penalties, mostly false starts and illegal motion or an illegal formation, one of which wiped out a touchdown pass.
Ware County senior quarterback Luke Hooks (left photo) eyes a passing window over the right shoulder of junior offensive lineman Cason Hall during first half action in the scrimmage with Brunswick. Senior Nick Simmons (11) drags down the Pirates’ quarterback for a sack on the wet turf during second quarter play. Photos By ANDREA HEFLIN
“We knew with the fiveday break for the hurricane a lot of things might be a little sloppy,” Ware County coach Jason Strickland said. “I was pleased with how hard we played, and we had to because Brunswick is a real good football team.
“Up front, we knew we’d have a challenge for the offensive line and I thought those guys played physical. It was the same thing on the defensive side of the ball. We have to tackle a little better, but that will come with more repetitions.”
Brunswick’s varsity had 338 total yards with quarterback Grant Moore accounting for 221 on 13-for-24 passing with two touchdowns and an interception.
Ware County threatened on its first possession, but came up empty. After stopping the Pirates on three downs off the opening kickoff, the Gators drove from their 34-yard line to the Brunswick 14.
The key play was a 23yard screen pass to Orange giving Ware County a first down deep in Pirates territory. Two plays later, a pass from Hooks to Jasper Bolds for a touchdown was wiped out by an illegal formation penalty.
After another incompletion, a bad center snap led to a miss on a 38-yard field goal attempt by Bates.
Brunswick countered by going 79 yards in seven plays to take a 7-0 lead on a 38-yard pass from Moore to Jamarious Towns with 4:17 left in the quarter.
The Gators tied it just more than two minutes later, going 67 yards in seven plays with Solomon going the final yard for the touchdown with 2:06 remaining in the first period.
A 51-yard run by Orange two plays before the score gave Ware County first down at the three.
Brunswick’s lone turnover of the game helped put the Gators ahead for good early in the second period. Javoni Miller intercepted Moore at the Gators’ 20 to halt the threat.
Two plays later, Boyd hit into the line, broke free and cut outside on the way to his 72-yard touchdown jaunt with 9:44 left in the first half.
After forcing another Brunswick punt, the Gators moved from midfield to a first down at the Pirates’ five, but again were turned away. On third down at the two, Hooks and Boyd failed to execute a clean handoff, and Brunswick recovered the fumble.
Ware County needed just one play after O’Hara set up the offense at the Brunswick 18 on his kickoff return. From there, Patterson, a sophomore, took a swing pass from Hooks 18 yards to the end zone for a 21-7 lead with 11:41 left in the third quarter.
Brunswick responded by going 82 yards in eight plays for a touchdown on a 22-yard pass from Moore to tight end Heze Kent with 8:18 left in the period. The Gators blocked the conversion kick to lead 2113.
The Pirates turned a second interception by sophomore quarterback Isaiah White, who relieved Hooks after the opening touchdown pass, into a touchdown with 1:45 left in the quarter.
A three-yard run pulled Brunswick to within 21-19. Kent, however, was stacked up on a run for the potential tying conversion attempt out of the wildcat formation.
Taking over after the kickoff at their 40, the Gators sealed the competition between the varsity squads when O’Hara covered the remaining distance on an end around for the touchdown with 1:34 remaining.
The reserve units of both teams threatened to score in the final quarter, but failed ending that scrimmage in a tie. Davion Jones had an interception for the Gators in the period that saw each team’s offense have the ball for six minutes.
Ware County’s Jamir Boyd outruns a Brunswick defender to the end zone scoring on a 72-yard run with 9:44 left in the first half. Photo By ANDREA HEFLIN
