GA HS football playoffs scoreboard: Jones County cruises to Round 1 win, plus more scores
The Jones County Greyhounds kicked Georgia high school football playoffs off with a bang Friday night when their explosive offense led the way to a 42-21 win over the Northside-Columbus Patriots in Gray.
The Greyhounds continued their scoring ways thanks to their elite wide receiver corps. Star wideouts Zion Ragins, Tyler Stewart and Javion Solomon all reached the end zone in the first half as quarterback Devin Edmonds finished with 292 passing yards, all of which came in the first half after the backups came in for the third quarter.
“You get guys that can run like our guys can run, good things will happen,” Jones County head coach Mike Chastain said. “Good gracious, we’ve been blessed with that speed. It’s awesome to have that.”
Even with all the offense, Jones County’s defense stole some of the spotlight. Led by dominant linebacker Ched Smith — dubbed “Boogie” by the Greyhound faithful — they held the Patriots to just one first-half score that came on the game’s opening drive.
“Those guys on defense, the whole staff, they work hard every week and put it together,” Chastain said. “They work hard every week, I can’t say enough about the staff on both sides of the ball.”
Northside-Columbus looked strong to start the game but could not keep up with Jones County’s high-octane offense. The Patriots also lost the battle in the trenches, allowing multiple sacks and tackles for loss in the first half as they fell behind.
The first-round victory comes after a solid season for Jones County and keeps their championship hopes alive. The Greyhounds were bounced from the playoffs by the eventual champions in each of the past five seasons.
“Just gotta get over the hump, man. To be the best, you gotta beat the best,” Chastain said. “Let’s go wear ‘em out.”
Jones County will face a tough matchup in the second round when it travels more than two hours to face Coffee County, one of the top teams in Georgia’s 5A classification.
An offensive clinic
Jones County came into the matchup at 7-3 thanks to a mid-season winning streak that lasted five games, until it was snuffed out by region champion Warner Robins. The Greyhounds boasted a strong offense all year, led by breakout quarterback Edmonds and the wide receivers.
Northside-Columbus entered the contest 6-4, though it played a tough schedule against teams like Northgate and Harris County.
The Patriots won their final two games of the regular season to secure a playoff spot, but also entered the game with three key players hurt, including senior receiver Aaron Osborne.
It looked like the game could be a shootout when both offenses made scoring look easy on their opening drives in a 7-7 game. Jones County quickly put those notions to rest, however, scoring five more touchdowns before halftime and holding the Patriots scoreless for the rest of the half to make it 42-7 at the break.
Two of the Greyhounds’ six first-half strikes went for more than 60 yards, including an impressive 84-yard rush by Ragins that all but cemented the win.
Northside-Columbus came out fighting in the second half thanks to running backs Kingston Rivers and Jai Jackson, but a running clock doomed their comeback chances despite two third quarter touchdowns and Jones County using backups on offense. With no scoring in the fourth quarter, the Greyhounds’ 42-21 went into the books.
Other scores
Scores will be updated as they become available.
Mary Persons 35, Long County 19
Houston County 42, North Atlanta 32
Warner Robins 48, McIntosh 15
Marist 38, Northside 21
Upson-Lee 46, Savannah Country Day 45
Savannah Christian 48, Peach County 46
Dublin 49, Screven County 0
Brooks County 56, Crawford County 0
Lincoln County 42, Wilkinson County 0
Strong Rock 21, Stratford 12
Perry, Burke County, Saturday at 4 p.m.
Westside @ New Hampstead, Saturday at 7:30 p.m.
Baldwin @ Benedictine, Saturday at 6 p.m.
Northeast vs Appling County, Saturday at 7:30 p.m.
ACE @ Pierce County, Saturday at 6:30 p.m.
Southwest @ Toombs County, Saturday at 7:30 p.m.
