High school football playoff scores: Northeast falls to Appling County 49-0, plus other scores
A strong 2023 season for Northeast High School came to a disappointing end amid dreary weather Saturday when the Raiders fell to the Appling County Pirates, 49-0, in Macon in the first round of the Georgia High School Association playoffs.
Rain poured down at Thompson Stadium as the afternoon game kicked off, and Northeast’s offense struggled in the poor conditions. Appling County thrived on the other side of the ball, feeding their strong running backs throughout the first half to make the game a blowout.
“We just got off to a rough start with the rain and a fumble they returned, and we had trouble stopping the run,” said Northeast head coach Jeremy Wiggins. “We just had a bad draw, and we didn’t play our best football tonight.”
The Raiders were without star running back Nick Woodford, who was the focal point of Northeast’s offense for much of the year until a knee injury sidelined him late in the season.
“It shows us how we can adjust without Nick, but it also shows us how powerful we are with him when we get him back next year,” Wiggins said. “We’ll be glad to have him back next season.”
Even when conditions improved in the second half, the hole was too much for the Raiders to climb out of, as the passing game never established itself and Appling County continued to dominate on the ground.
The loss was just the third of the year for Northeast after they finished the regular season 8-2 and second in their region. The matchup against Appling County was an unlucky one — many rankings listed the Pirates as one of the top five teams in 2A despite them ending up third in their region.
“I’m proud of our guys, you know, they came out in the second half and fought, they played a great season. It’s gonna be hard losing some of these seniors who have been here since the sixth grade, but we’ll be ready to work,” Wiggins said.
With Woodford recovering and a long offseason ahead, the Raiders will look to retool and defend the region in 2024.
“We got a lot of stuff we gotta work on in the offseason, just technique stuff, strength stuff, and coaching stuff,” Wiggins said. “We’ll be in the weight room, just keep getting in there and we’ll get better for next year.”
A tough first-round loss
The Raiders entered the matchup after finishing second in their region despite just one region loss. Appling County came into the contest as one of the best 2A teams in Georgia. The Pirates went 8-2 with losses to powerhouse Ware County and region foe Toombs County but finished third in their region because of a tiebreaker.
With a heavy rain and some strong winds setting in just before the 3:15 p.m. kickoff, the Raiders struggled to score throughout the first half. Appling County took advantage of the rain, with Jamarion Williams striking on the ground for multiple touchdowns.
The Pirates also took advantage of miscommunication between Raiders players when they snagged a fumbled Northeast handoff and returned it 20 yards for a touchdown. The lopsided first half ended with Appling County leading 35-0.
Hopes of a second-half comeback for the Raiders were dashed on the very first play of the third quarter when Appling County took a screen pass 64 yards for a score. The final two quarters went quickly from there, as the Raiders failed to score despite entering the red zone a few times.
Other scores
New Hampstead 40, Westside 12
Perry 35, Burke County 14
Benedictine 41, Baldwin 0
Pierce County 42, ACE 7
Toombs County 64, Southwest 6
Mary Persons 35, Long County 19 (Fri.)
Houston County 42, North Atlanta 32 (Fri.)
Warner Robins 48, McIntosh 15 (Fri.)
Marist 38, Northside 21 (Fri.)
Upson-Lee 46, Savannah Country Day 45 (Fri.)
Savannah Christian 48, Peach County 46 (Fri.)
Dublin 49, Screven County 0 (Fri.)
Brooks County 56, Crawford County 0 (Fri.)
Lincoln County 42, Wilkinson County 0 (Fri.)
Strong Rock 21, Stratford 12 (Fri.)
