JEFFERSON HIGH School is keeping its dream of a state championship alive as the football team survived the first round of the playoffs against Heard County 21-13.
Up next for the 11-0 Dragons will be the 10-1 Buford Wolves, a perennial state power.
The two schools last met in 2001, when the Dragons fell 41-0. In addition, Buford is the two-time defending state champion.
Buford’s only loss of this season was against Lovett, 28-21. The school advances into the second round of post-season play after defeating Pepperell 24-0 last Friday night.
On average, Buford allows five points per game compared to Jefferson’s 13. While the Wolves score an average of 35 points per game, the Dragons average 38.
The game will be this Friday, at 7:30 p.m., at Memorial Stadium.
HEARD COUNTY
It came down to the fourth quarter Friday night, in a game which seemed slow moving throughout.
The Dragons scored first with 5:41 in the opening quarter remaining after two back-to-back first downs and the extra point good.
Almost immediately following, quarterback Darius Minor returned a punt 65 yards for a touchdown with 3:36 to go in the first. The extra point was also good, sending the Dragons into the second quarter with a 14-0 lead.
Heard County managed to score its first touchdown in the second quarter after an offsides penalty by the Dragons put the Braves on the 2-yard line. On their third down attempt from the 1-yard line, Heard County crossed into the end zone at 6:37 in the second. The extra point was good, and the remainder of the half was scoreless, sending the Dragons into halftime with a 14-7 advantage.
After a scoreless third quarter, the Braves scored their second touchdown in the fourth, after having the ball on the 1-yard line at fourth down. It looked like fans were set to see a tied ball game, but the extra point for Heard was no good, leaving the score at 14-13 with 8:08 remaining.
After a few nail-biting minutes, it was Minor again, running for a 20-yard touchdown and essentially sealing the win for the Dragons. With the extra point good and just over two minutes left in the game, the Dragons were able to fend off Heard and take the victory.
STATISTICS
Minor had five completions on nine attempts for 78 yards on the night.
Minor also rushed 11 times for 69 yards, including two touchdowns. Chris Jackson rushed four times for 28 yards and J.J. Damons rushed six times for 23 yards.
Sky Porter had three receptions on the night for 53 yards. J.J. Damons had one reception for five yards.
Asher Orr went three for three on PAT attempts.
Defensively, Chris Jackson had 23 tackles. Kyle Mosley and Zac Allen recorded 16 tackles each. Samuel Loggins had nine tackles. Caleb Meek had eight tackles.
