Gilmer’s offense could not be stopped.
The GHS Bobcats ran around and through the Lakeview-Fort Oglethorpe Warriors to begin their football season last Friday.
Only halftime interrupted Gilmer’s scoring, and its defense handled the rest. The Cats led by three touchdowns at the half and added two more scores in the third quarter. LFO came away with a cosmetic touchdown in the game’s final moments as GHS won handily, 42-14.
“I was proud of our offensive line because those guys were big,” said head coach Paul Standard. “We had a new backfield, too, and I thought the quarterback did a good job of running the show and getting the ball distributed.
“It was a good night offensively, but I’ll tell you what, I’m really proud of our defense. That team was scary on offense because they had some players who could go the distance, and the quarterback was good. Our varsity held them to seven points, and did a good job of bowing their necks and making a stop when they needed to. I thought our kicking game was good, and with him (Noah Turner) being able to kickoff to either corner, that’s dynamite.”
Gilmer’s offense scored 28 points on a mere 10 plays to start the game. Three of those touchdowns were scored consecutively on the first play of drives as LFO was buried in a 28-7 hole.
The Warriors went three and out to start the game, the Bobcats set the offense in motion at their 46-yard line. After quarterback Issac Rellinger and fullback Wyatt Stokes traded carries to move the Cats into Warrior territory, halfback Douglas Callihan hit the outside for runs of 12 and 20 yards to move GHS to the 7-yard line.
Stokes handled the rest on two carries, with the final covering 2 yards. The seven-play touchdown drive preceded Noah Turner’s first of six successful extra points on the night.
Trailing 7-0 with 6:36 left in the first, the Warriors embarked on their only touchdown drive against Gilmer’s first-team defense. LFO’s shotgun offense attacked with screens and vertical passes, while its rushing attack was limited to 42 yards on 20 attempts.
Quarterback Darian Keefe completed a 51-yard pass on the drive to advance to Gilmer’s 10. Two plays later, he scrambled for a 10-yard touchdown to the right pylon to cap the nine-play, 80-yard drive.
Over its next three offensive plays, Gilmer delivered haymakers to put the Warriors on the ropes as their defense was continually out of position. LFO opted to stack the line of scrimmage with all defenders within 6 yards of the ball, which left zero room for error.
The first to score was halfback Hunter Britain. He took Rellinger’s pitch around the right edge, slipped a tackler, and out-ran a Warrior for an 80-yard touchdown.
After forcing a punt, it was halfback Kyle Cowart’s turn. He took a first down hand-off 57 yards through the middle of the Warriors’ defense and raced down the sideline for a touchdown.
LFO maintained their defensive strategy, and it got torched again. This time Rellinger kept the ball on the option around the left edge. Like Cowart, he went untouched to the end zone and split two defensive backs on his 72-yard touchdown gallop.
The Warriors were down 28-7 with 9:26 left in the half. Their final two possessions ended on downs, and the latter came to a conclusion when Gavin Daley sacked Keefe for a 15-yard loss.
It marked Gilmer’s third sack of the half. Keefe was also brought down behind the line of scrimmage in the game by Bobcats Ian Berry, Nolan Price and Bryson Shubin-Gibbs. In the second half, the Cats did not miss a beat.
“It was huge for us to finish strong. I said it a couple times in the first half, and I told them, ‘All I’m going to say is White County,’ said Standard, in reference to last season’s loss in week 10. “That’s not a ‘you’ thing, but a ‘we’ thing that includes all of us. We could not let up, and I thought they did a good job on that first drive in the second half.”
The Cats’ fifth touchdown drive spanned 85 yards. Stokes punished the middle of the Warriors’ defense for 56 yard on six carries.
From LFO’s 36, Rellinger rolled to his left and passed to tight end Ben Reece. The senior caught the short pass with plenty of room to run and made his way down the sideline. He was stopped at the 1, and halfback Grant Ballew’s rush on the 10th play of the drive moved GHS ahead, 35-7.
Gilmer’s defense continued to hold strong in the third quarter. After three offensive plays, LFO punted back to the Cats, who only needed four plays to cover 40 yards.
Runs by Ballew and Britain set the offense up at LFO’s 22. On the next play, freshman fullback Peyton Chancey burst through the line of scrimmage and broke three tackles on his way to the end zone.
Turner’s final extra point of the night gave GHS a 42-7 lead with 2:52 left in the third quarter.
A Warrior receiver dropped a long pass in the end zone on their next drive, and they were forced to punt once more.
A running clock was used in the fourth quarter because of Gilmer’s lead. Gilmer’s reserve players took the field on offense and defense while LFO kept its starters in the game.
A fumbled snap gave LFO possession at its 46. They put a six-play drive together that ended with a 15-yard touchdown pass ahead of the final buzzer.
Gilmer produced 457 yards of offense, which included 406 on the ground on 34 attempts. Britain was just shy of the century mark and finished with 98 rushing yards. Senior linebacker Aspen Hataway led the way with nine tackles.
GHS coaches selected players of the week and included junior quarterback Issac Rellinger (offense), senior Nolan Price (defense), sophomore Hunter Britain (two-way player) and senior Noah Turner (special teams).
Scout team players of the week were senior Austin Byrd, sophomore James Nix and freshmen Landon Ledford and Jett Burrell.
Gilmer will travel to Fannin County (0-1) Friday with kickoff scheduled for 7:30 p.m.