GHS wins 1st playoff game in 10 years
It is week 12 of the football season, and Gilmer High School is still playing.
GHS was on the road in Adairsville to begin the Class 3A state playoffs last Friday. The region champion Tigers were favorites to win, and the Bobcats relished their underdog role.
Aside of its first possession of the game and second of the third quarter, Gilmer’s offense scored every time it was on the field. Facing third down and 30 late in the game, a completion extended the drive before the go-ahead touchdown.
Gilmer’s defense made the clutch plays needed to end the Tigers’ season with a game-winning interception.
The 35-28 victory marked the program’s first playoff win in 10 years and third over the past 24. There were 64 No. 4 versus No. 1 seed matchups across all classifications in the first round, and GHS was one of three No. 4 seeds who won.
“I’m just so proud of our kids,” said head coach Paul Standard. “To get beat by Lumpkin 56-3 in the worst way possible . . . I mean just beat down, and then our guys come back to beat Dawson and Pickens. We lost to White close on the road and ended up being the No. 4. Then we go on the road again and beat a No. 1.
“I can’t be more proud of a group of kids and how they played. They didn’t quit.”
The Bobcats’ ground game averaged 7.7 yards per carry and quarterback Issac Rellinger topped the century mark with 110 yards. Fullback Wyatt Stokes added 89, and halfback Douglas Callihan gashed the Tigers for 84 yards on just five attempts.
Gilmer went three and out to begin the game ahead of three straight touchdown drives.
“They changed their defense up. They stopped us on the first possession then had three straight possessions where they couldn’t stop us. They did a good job of changing their defenses, and we had to do a good job ourselves,” Standard said.
Linebacker Aspen Hataway and safety Bo Cronic were the Cats’ top tacklers on the night with 18 and 16, respectively.
Adairsville was without senior quarterback Jonathan Gough, who was a powerful runner and accurate passer for the Tigers before his season-ending injury.
AHS did not miss him on their first drive. They concentrated their efforts on the ground with seven rushes. The nine-play, 50-yard drive ended with a 4-yard draw. Bobcat Grant Ballew blocked the extra point, and AHS led after six minutes of play.
Gilmer’s first of three straight scoring drives spanned 58 yards on six plays. The Bobcat offensive line made blocks as Stokes ran five times for 35 yards. He rushed right up the middle for a 7-yard touchdown and a 7-6 GHS lead following Noah Turner’s extra point.
GHS was back on offense after forcing a punt and received prime field position at the Tigers’ 43. Rellinger and Stokes moved GHS to the 28 before the latter was spelled by Hataway, who rushed for 14 more yards.
On the eighth play, halfback Hunter Britain scored on an 8-yard option pitch around the right side. Turner’s second of five successful extra points extended the Cats’ lead to 14-6 with 9:15 left in the half.
AHS was able to make some headway on its third series. The Tigers converted a fourth down near midfield with a fake punt, but cornerback Kyle Cowart was there to make a tackle for a 4-yard loss on a reverse. The Tigers were also flagged for a late hit and forced to punt.
It took GHS just six plays to traverse 83 yards. Britain ran for 4 yards on fourth down and 1 from Gilmer’s 25. Two plays later, Rellinger kept the ball around the right edge for a 69-yard touchdown gallop.
GHS led 21-6 with just 57 seconds left in the half and opted for a pooch kick that gave AHS the ball at its 44. Two completions advanced the Tigers to Gilmer’s 16. They scored a touchdown with a 5-yard run to cap the five-play drive.
Gilmer led 21-14 at the half following the successful conversion.
Adairsville received the second half kickoff, and a Bobcat personal foul gave them the ball at the Cats’ 42. Nine straight runs followed, and the final one was for a 12-yard touchdown on fourth down.
The 21-21 tie was short lived for the Tigers. On first down, Callihan took a handoff across the right side of the line, broke a tackle and sprinted 60 yards to the end zone.
Back behind by seven, Adairsville answered with a nine-play, 67-yard scoring drive. A run coupled with a 15-yard GHS penalty resulted in a 37-yard gain on first down. Six plays later, AHS faced fourth down and 14, and a 26-yard completion gave them a first down at the Cats’ 3. AHS was flagged for unsportsmanlike conduct on the play. An 18-yard touchdown run came two plays later as the game was once again tied, 28-28.
GHS was forced to punt, and the defense rose to the occasion to stop the Tigers on Gilmer’s 9-yard line. With 10:07 left in the game, the Bobcats set their sights on the end zone.
Both of Rellinger’s completions came on the drive, and the first was a 12-yard pass to Callihan. Rellinger then rushed for 22 yards to advance Gilmer to Adairsville’s 38. However, a chop block and delay of game penalties moved the offense back before Rellinger was sacked.
Facing third down and 30 from its 47, Standard dug deep into his playbook. Rellinger rolled to his right and receiver Ryder Wofford threw up his hand as he cut toward the sideline. The cornerback sat on the route before Wofford got vertical. Rellinger lofted a perfectly thrown ball over the cornerback’s reach and into the grasp of Wofford.
“I’ve only run that play one other time. It’s a ‘chair rout’ that I only ran one other time at St. Pius. It just worked out perfectly. It was a great fake by the quarterback and a great fake by the receiver and a great throw and catch,” Standard said.
The 44-yard gain electrified Gilmer’s side of the field. Callihan breached the goal line from a yard away three plays later. The 12-play drive took 7:27 off the clock, and AHS received final possession with 3:35 to play.
AHS was able to advance to midfield, but on the fifth play of the drive, Rellinger was there to make the game-clinching interception at cornerback.
Players of the game: Senior Ryder Wofford (offense), sophomore Hunter Britain and junior Grant Ballew (defense), senior Hayden Morrison and junior Memphis Lewallen (special teams) and junior Blane Banks and freshman Douglas Callihan (two-way players).
Scout team players of the week: Riley Duggan, Logan Hightower, Buddy Ferguson and Jett Burrell.
GHS is one of 16 teams in Class 3A still playing, and the Bobcats will travel to Monroe Area Friday for a 7:30 p.m. kickoff.