Interesting game. Congrats to South on cementing a winning season by moving to 6-2 on the season and 2-1 in the district. The Dragons can clinch a home field berth in the first round of the playoffs - something South has never had in the history of the school, despite several strong teams in the 1990s - by beating Anderson County in their final district game.

 

Kudos to Grant County for staying with it in this one. South bolted to a 15-0 lead after one period, but a very, very young Grant County team gave ground very slowly the rest of the way; I was impressed that the Braves never showed any quit. South did score one touchdown in each of the remaining periods, but Grant was competitive. In fact, the Braves reached the red zone five times in the ballgame, but turned over the ball twice and missed field goals from 45 and 36 yards. On their final possession in the red zone, they converted a 27 yard FG.

 

The South offense continues to evolve into a varied offense with big-play ability. Two South scores came on big pass plays; a 45 yard pass from Jack Sherry to Jacob Lamb, who caught the ball on a dead run over the right shoulder. The pass came after a bit of razzle-dazzle: Sherry threw the pass after a reverse / flea flicker.

 

The other big South pass play came on a 36 yard pass play from Sherry to Stu Williams, who had two catches for 72 yards and 7 rushes for 92 yards. Williams had two TDs.

 

Michael Gray also had two TDs rushing for South.

 

The Dragons played without 2nd-leading rusher Marc Stephens, who hurt his leg last week.

 

The Dragons missed a PAT; their remaining two points came after Grant QB Nathan Davis was chased out of the back of his own end zone for a safety.

 

The game was decided in the trenches, which forced Grant out of its running game and to the air. Kudos to Davis, a sophomore, who showed quite a bit of moxie. He frequently escaped what appeared to be sure sacks, only to roll out and find a receiver downfield. The young man is quite able to make things happen with his feet and his arm, and the Braves' fans are going to enjoy watching him for the next two years.

 

In fact, the Braves will certainly be an improved ball club over the next couple of seasons, as they have a large and talented sophomore class that is now taking some lumps as they gain experience...

 

South Oldham plays at home against Anderson County next week; Grant County goes on the road against Oldham County. Both games will be broadcast on the Pegasus Sports Network at http://www.pegasussportsky.com, beginning at 7 pm.

Congrats to Coach Reed!