Effingham Co. extends football win streak. Why the Rebels are surging in region play.

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SPRINGFIELD – During Effingham County’s first possession Friday night, Rebel wide receiver Keion Wallace got behind the Grovetown defense with no one within 20 yards.

Quarterback Nate Hayes threw a perfect pass, but Wallace dropped it.

The three-star recruit made the home crowd forget that one gaffe with his play the rest of the night. Wallace scored two second half touchdowns to lift ECHS to a 28-14 victory, its fifth straight this season.

Asked about the dropped would-be touchdown after the game, Wallace could only shake his head.

“Really, you have to have a short memory but I knew I had to get that back,” said Wallace, who is ranked as a three-star recruit by Rivals. “That should be a layup for me. I have to get that back. That won’t happen again, I promise. Like I said, short memory, you have to move on and make bigger plays to help your team.”

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Wallace didn’t have to wait long to make amends. With the game tied late in the third quarter, he hauled in a 9-yard scoring strike in traffic.

Less than four minutes later, he returned a punt 66 yards for another score, providing ECHS with some breathing room.

“Keion is a great player and that’s what great players have to do,” Rebels coach John Ford said. “The only play that matters is the next play, whether (the first play) was a good play or bad play. Just play the next one. I’m glad they’ve learned that.”

Here's what else you need to know from the game against Grovetown.

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Interception changes momentum

With the score tied at 7-7 in the final minutes of the first half, ECHS defensive back Messiah Bacon intercepted a pass and returned it 20 yards to the Grovetown 27.  Four plays later, Hayes hooked up with Ashley Thompson on a 12-yard TD pass and a 14-7 lead.

Rebels' tailback goes for 100 yards again

Junior running back Jayden Evans ran for 110 yards on 20 carries. Five of his runs picked up first downs on either third down or fourth down.

It was Evans’ second 100-yard game of his prep career. He had 132 yards in a 29-3 win against South Effingham on Sept. 23.

Winning streak signals special season?

The Rebels (5-2, 3-0 Region 2-6A) won their fifth game in a row to equal their longest winning streaks since 2002. ECHS won five straight games in 2016, 2012 and 2006. The 2002 team had a six-game winning streak.

Quarterback earns game ball with play

Hayes had a productive night, tossing three touchdown passes among his 11 completions. The junior finished with 89 passing yards and 45 rushing yards.

Region play continues next week

ECHS will remain home to play Evans next Friday in another Region 2-6A contest. The Rebels are tied with Brunswick for first place in the region standings with a 3-0 region record.

He said it ...

“We didn’t play our best game for whatever reason but it was a region win so we’ll take all of those we can get. We have a really good Evans coming in here (Friday) so we have to clean some of (the bad plays) up.” – ECHS coach John Ford.

This article originally appeared on Savannah Morning News: Effingham County High School football wins fifth straight game