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Scores and Photos: Friday Night High School Football - Aug. 28
RINGGOLD, Ga. - The season is young, but there was a playoff buzz in Heritage Stadium on Friday night as the Generals went toe to toe with the rival Ringgold Tigers.
After four grueling quarters of back-and-forth action, Ringgold escaped with a 36-34 win.
In a game marred by penalty flags and turnovers, offenses shone and defense proved to be the deciding factor when Garrett Morris picked off a potential winning pass at the 1-yard line.
"I actually got onto Garrett earlier in the game because I thought he blew a coverage and he's a senior," Tigers coach Robert Akins said. "He could have laid down, but he came up big at the end and made the play. He has great heart."
The play abruptly stopped a Heritage drive that looked headed for the end zone. Corbee Wilson completed several big passes, teaming up with Khalyhal Hood to drive downfield. However, the Generals did not even get a chance to try a field goal.
"That was a bad play-calling job on my part," Heritage coach E.K. Slaughter said. "That was on me as much as it was him."
Wilson helped lead multiple comebacks for the Generals, refusing to let the visitors walk away with an easy win.
Ringgold jumped out to a 14-0 lead in the first quarter with a 2-yard run from Dee King and an 80-yard strike from Devin Lancaster to Andre Tarver.
The Generals cut the deficit in half with a trick play that went for 58 yards to Drew Sherrill from Luke Grant.
Ringgold notched a field goal to start the second quarter to make it 17-7 before Grant was on the receiving end of a touchdown to bring Heritage within three.
"I'm really proud of our guys," Akins said. "I think they had a lot of adversity and made some mistakes, but I think they were aggressive mistakes. They were resilient."
The Tigers seemed to have a response to every score by the Generals, relinquishing the lead only once when Heritage scored twice in a row. Wilson hit Grant for a 33-yard score and Hood ran one in from 3 yards out to make it 28-23 with 0:58 left in the first half.
Ringgold immediately responded with a 57-yard bomb to Tarver, who amassed 191 yards receiving on five catches.
The second half started slow with a scoreless third quarter, but there was drama in the fourth. Chase Shelby caught a touchdown from Lancaster early in the quarter. The teams traded turnovers and the Generals did not let up, scoring again with 7:27 to play. Wilson and Grant hooked up for the third time.
"I'm proud of the way our guys prepare, the way they come onto the field," Slaughter said. "I'm proud of the way our coaches carry themselves with dignity and character. There's no one I would rather go to battle with than this group.
"I really wanted this for them. They'll win enough games. They're going to be fighters."
Wilson totaled 210 yards through the air on 18-of-33 passing. Grant had 94 yards passing and 88 receiving.
Lancaster finished 22-of-32 for 376 yards for Ringgold. King had 41 yards on the ground and two scores.
Contact Idris Garcia at sports@timesfreepress.com