Dragons pick up region win at Dawson
PHS Football, Team FYN Sports September 21, 2024
Dawsonville, Ga — It was a beautiful, but warm night for high school football on Friday, September 20th as the Pickens Dragons traveled up to Dawson County to take on the Dawson Tigers. The Dragons, were coming off of a tough loss to White County last week, while the Tigers had the week off to get ready for region play. Using their ground game and a late defensive stop, the Dragons picked up their first region win, 35-23.
The Tigers, won the toss and elected to receive the opening kick off to begin the game. After a long completion from QB Preston Bannister to Dylan Edwards set the Tigers up inside the red zone, the Dragons defense settled down and held Dawson to a 24-yd field goal. With 10:07 left in the first quarter, the Tigers led, 3-0. On their first play from scrimmage, the Dragons would take the lead as QB Hayden Jones scrambled for an 80-yd touchdown. The PAT from McCord Purdy was good and the Dragons would take a 7-3 lead into the second quarter.
Dragons on defense early in the 1st quarter
The Dragons, would add to their lead at the 4:12 mark of the second quarter as RB Carson Mitton punched it in from 1-yd out. The PAT was good and the Dragons now led, 14-3. The Tigers, would answer by scoring their first touchdown of the night as a long kickoff return by Luke Smith helped set up a 10-yd TD run by Bannister. The PAT was good and the Dragons would lead it 14-10 heading into the break.
Dragons on offense in the 2nd quarter
The second half began with the Dragons getting the ball. The offense, would March down the field as Jones would connect with Freshman WR Sawyer Purdy several times during the drive including a 10-yd touchdown. The PAT was good and with 9:59 left in the third quarter, the Dragons led the Tigers, 21-10. Later on in the third, the Dragons would block and recover a field goal attempt by the Tigers.
The Tigers, would get the ball back on the next play after an interception by Smith. Dawson would turn that interception into points as RB Cody McBrayer scored on a 10-yd TD run. The PAT was good and with 4:24 left in the third, Pickens led Dawson, 21-17. The Dragons, would respond to that score with a 45-yd TD run by Jones. His 2nd of the night. The PAT by Purdy was good. Heading to the fourth, the Dragons led the Tigers, 28-17.
Dragons looking to stop the run
A couple of minutes into the fourth quarter, the Tigers would score on a 1-yd TD run by Bannister. His 2nd of the game. Dawson, would then choose to go for two to cut the lead down to 3. The Dragons, were able to stop McBrayer short on the conversion attempt as Pickens now led it, 28-23 with 8:54 left in the game. Later in the fourth, the Dragons would stretch their lead out as Landon Poole would score a 6-yd touchdown. The PAT was good and with 3:58 left to go in the game, the Dragons led the Tigers, 35-23.
Jones throwing the ball to Landon Poole
Penalties would help the Tigers drive down the field, who were looking to cut into the lead with the clock draining. Pickens, got the stop it was looking for as they would pick up the win, 35-23.
6-AAA Region Standings:
North Hall: 3-2 (2-0)
GAC: 2-3 (2-0)
Lumpkin: 3-2 (1-1)
White County: 2-3 (1-1)
Pickens: 3-2 (1-1)
Dawson: 1-3 (0-1)
Chestatee: 1-4 (0-2)
Johnson-Gainesville: 0-4 (0-2)
The Dragons, will continue their three game region road trip next week as they head down to Hall County to take on the North Hall Trojans on Friday, September 27th. The Dragons and Trojans have not played each other since 2017 and it’ll be the Dragons first trip to North Hall since 2016. Kickoff is set for 7:30 pm.
Dragons fall to Bobcats in overtime
PHS Football, Team FYN Sports August 31, 2024
Jasper, Ga — There is a lot going on this weekend in Jasper with it being a Holiday weekend and also the annual Jeep Fest. The main attraction however, is the Pickens vs Gilmer game that took place on August 30th. The Bobcats came away with the win in Ellijay last year, and the Dragons were looking to return the favor. As expected, this game was back and forth all game long. The Bobcats, would survive an overtime thriller picking up the 35-34 win.
On their first play from scrimmage, the Bobcats wasted little time getting on the board as Kyle Cowart took the pitch from Issac Rellinger 77 yards for the touchdown. The PAT was good and with 11:33 left in the first quarter, the Bobcats held a 7-0 advantage. Cowart, would make his presence known on the defensive side of the ball as he would pick off the pass attempt from Hayden Jones and return it near midfield. The Bobcats, would make their way down field with that triple option offense looking to extend their lead.
The Dragons, finally picked up a little momentum as the defense forced a fumble at the 2-yd line with Hunter Dimauro recovering the ball. Late in the first quarter, the Dragons, had a sustained drive going that started on their own 2-yd line. The Bobcats, would recover a fumble inside the 10 to put an end to that drive. Going to the second quarter, Gilmer led Pickens, 7-0.
Hayden Jones handing off to Landon Poole
The Dragons defense, would force a Bobcat punt early on in the second quarter. After a low snap, the knee of punter Douglas Callihan, was determined to be down at the Bobcat 1-yd line. That’s where the Dragons took over as Landon Poole, would score to cut the Bobcat lead to 1. The PAT from McCord Purdy was good, and with 10:23 left in the first half, the game was all tied up at 7. The Bobcats, would untie the game at the 8:28 mark of the second quarter with a 5-yd TD run by Hunter Britain to make it 14-7 Gilmer.
The Bobcats, would extend their lead later on in the quarter as Rellinger found Callihan for a 34-yd TD pass. The PAT was good and with 1:09 left in the first half, the Bobcats held a 21-7 lead. With little time left in the half, the Dragons marched down the field, and capped off the drive with a 1-yd TD run by McCord Purdy. Purdy would then make the PAT, to make it 21-14 Gilmer heading into halftime.
Dragons defense forcing a 4th down
The second half began in exciting fashion as McCord Purdy would take the kickoff back 90 yards for the touchdown. He would connect on the PAT to tie the game at 21 with 11:42 left in the third quarter. No other scoring would be done in the quarter as both teams were able to get stops. The Dragons, were driving as they headed to the fourth.
Dragons on offense in the second half
To start the fourth quarter, Hayden Jones broke a few tackles on the way to a big 36-yd run down to the Bobcat 27-yd line. After an intentional grounding penalty, the Dragons would be forced to punt, and the Bobcats would takeover at their own 21-yd line. A big run by Rellinger helped set up what would end up being a 20-yd TD run by Rellinger. The PAT was good and with 8:18 left in the game, the Bobcats led it, 28-21.
The Dragons, knew they needed an answer and they got one in the form of the Purdy brothers. Jones, would hand the ball off to Carson Mitton, who then tossed it to McCord Purdy on what looked like a reverse run play. Instead, McCord threw it to younger brother Sawyer, who was wide open down the field for a 54-yd TD pass. The PAT by McCord was good and with 6:29 left in the game, the Dragons and Bobcats were tied at 28.
The Bobcats, would chew up a lot of game time as they looked to drive down for a potential game winning field goal. With 31 seconds left, the Bobcats set up dead center for the field goal attempt. The kick would be pushed wide left, and the two teams would be heading into overtime.
Dragons looking to stop the fullback dive
The Bobcats, got the ball to start the overtime period. Wyatt Stokes, would cap off the drive with a 1-yd TD run. The PAT was good and Gilmer led it, 35-28. The Dragons, would get into the end zone after a 5-yd run by Poole. Dragons head coach Craig Bennett, made the decision to go for two and the win. The pass by Jones would fall short in the end zone and the Bobcats would hang on to win, 35-34.
The Dragons, finish the non-region portion of the schedule at 2-1. If you’re a Dragon fan, I’d say you’d be satisfied with that record heading into region play. The Dragons, will now have two weeks to prepare for region play when they host the White County Warriors on Friday, September 13th. Kickoff is set for 7:30 pm.