STATESBORO, Ga. ? Chris Rogers
(Athens/Athens Acedemy) and lightning ended any comeback hopes for the White team as the Blue squad pulled out a 14-0 win Saturday afternoon (April 12) at Paulson Stadium.
The annual spring game, presented by the Georgia Neighborhood Ford Dealers, was called at halftime due to rain and lightning in the area. A crowd of 5,862 battled the elements to watch the conclusion of spring drills.
Sophomore quarterback Kyle Collins (Atlanta/Lovett) was driving White down the field in the final minute. Starting at their own 30, he found Michael McIntosh (Jacksonville/First Coast), Tim Camp (Harlem/Air Force Prep) and Darell Norman (Lincolnton/Lincoln County) on three straight completions. A facemask penalty at the end of Norman's catch put the ball on the Blue 30.
Two plays later Collins found McIntosh for 11 yards then Camp for four and seven yards down to the eight. On 2nd-and-goal, Collins aimed for the endzone but his pass was deflected. Rogers caught the deflection four yards deep and ran it all the way back for a touchdown on what turned out to be the last play of the first half.
During halftime the rain picked up and lightning was spotted in the area. The coaching staff decided it was in the best interest for players' safety to call the game.
“I appreciate all the fans coming out. I hate that we couldn't get to play the entire game for their sake. Our players' safety is the utmost concern,” said head coach Chris Hatcher. “We got some work in with our ?1s' and ?2s'. I hate it for some of our backups (because) they were going to get after it in the second half. Lightning got in the way ? the rain didn't bother us.”
Midway through the second quarter Chris Collier (Kissimmee, FL/Osceola) picked off a Collins pass to give the Blue team the ball on the White 32. Lee Chapple (Norcross/Greater Atlanta Christian) was sacked by Kerry Bonds (Tallahassee, FL/Lincoln) on the first play. The redshirt-freshman found Irving Campbell (Lake Worth, FL/Santaluces), who is petitioning for a sixth year from the NCAA, for seven yards. On 3rd-and-9, Chapple connected with Chris Ashkouti (Atlanta/Marist) over the middle for a 31-yard touchdown with 2:27 left in the half.
“Chapple made some nice throws today (and) he does a good job of leading. But it was a vanilla game plan and of course, I was on the Blue team so we came out with a big victory today,” said Hatcher.
Neither team was able to move the ball much in the first quarter. The Blue team accumulated 66 yards of offense while the White was limited to 22.
“I thought we came out and had some big hits on defense. I was real pleased with the way those guys progressed throughout the course of spring (drills). We had some good throws ? both Collins and Chapple had some good plays. Overall, it was what you'd expect. We were rusty in some areas because we were having guys working with some groups they weren't accustomed to working with,” said Hatcher.
Chapple, who was announced as the team's starting quarterback earlier this week, finished 7-of-13 for 118 yards and a score. Steve Cundari (Roswell/Roswell) caught three passes for a game-high 51 yards.
Sean Mayo (Warner Robins/Northside) averaged 40 yards on four punts and converted both extra point attempts.
David Lewis (Fairburn/Creekside) and Evan Mattingly (Marietta/Walton) led the defense with four stops each. Chase DeCarlo (Beaufort, S.C./Beaufort) and Jonathan Loving (Fayetteville/Fayette County) each had one sack.
Collins finished 12-for-20 for 94 yards and the two interceptions. The White team was held to minus-2 yards rushing. Camp caught four passes for 31 yards. Norman and McIntosh caught three passes each for 31 and 21 yards, respectively.
Freshman transfer Charlie Edwards (Tifton/Tift County) averaged 45 yards on three punts.
Darrel Pasco (Clearwater, FL/Countryside/GMC) led the defense with five tackles. Bonds had four tackles, 2.5 for a loss and 2.0 sacks. E.J. Webb (Roanoke, VA/Fleming), Brent Gordon (Fitzgerald/Fitzgerald) Quentin Taylor (Apopka, FL/Apopka) and Casey Wingard (Acworth/Etowah) each recorded a sack.
Hatcher was pleased with the overall progression of the team.
“This team has improved a great deal from day one until today. We're not at the level we need to be but as far as improvement is going, we've improved a great deal. Come fall camp, if we can improve off of this improvement, we may have a chance to have a good football team.”
The second year head coach also noted some players who stood out this spring.
“Larry Beard (Fairburn/Sandy Creek) has had a really good spring, Quentin Taylor didn't play much today but he's had a great spring. Casey Wingard was the surprise of the defense, anchoring down the middle, which was really big for us. William Maxwell (Quitman/Brooks County) also had a nice spring. We moved Cole Fountain (Cartersville/Woodland) to tackle. Jared Flowers (Stillmore/David Emanuel Academy), the freshman, has done pretty well. I think he's going to be a really good player. Tim Camp has had a great, great spring. If you go out and watch him everyday, he makes big-time catches each and every day.”
