RINGGOLD, Ga. - Heritage had plenty of chances Friday night, but missed opportunities on offense and big plays on defense doomed its chances to beat Troup County and prolong an already impressive season.
The Generals lost 31-7 in the first round of the GHSA Class AAAA playoffs, ending the most successful year in program history.
"We had some chances to put some pressure on them in the first half," Heritage coach E.K. Slaughter said. "Just too many mistakes early. I think if we could've put some pressure on them, it would've been a different game. We made a lot of plays between the thirties, but we couldn't make the play to get in the end zone."
Heritage (9-2) had six possessions in the first half, each ending in Tigers territory as the Generals amassed 181 total yards, but came away scoreless.
The game started in promising fashion for the home team, with the Generals intercepting a pass near midfield on the first series. They were unable to move the ball however, as Troup County (9-2) came up with the first of many stops on defense.
The Tigers got on the board first with a 27-yard field goal early in the second quarter.
The Generals squandered drive after drive before the biggest mistake of the first half, an interception near midfield with just more than two minutes to go.
Troup County took advantage with its first big play of the night, a 48-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Montez Crowe to Jamari Thrash just more than a minute later. A missed 28-yard field goal by Heritage made the halftime score 10-0.
Heritage went three-and-out on the first series of the second half, but a great punt left the Tigers deep in their own territory. That's when the Crowe-to-Thrash combination struck again, this time for a 90-yard score to make it 17-0.
"Things started to mount up really quickly," Slaughter said. "It escalated pretty quickly in about an eight-minute stretch. The defense played lights out most of the game, but we just couldn't get it done."
Troup County added another long touchdown pass from Crowe a few minutes later. He finished 11-of-26 for 334 yards and three touchdowns.
C.J. Shackleford scored on a 5-yard run at the end of the third quarter as Heritage avoided the shutout
The Generals were held to 44 rushing yards on 30 carries. Quarterback Blake Bryan finished his final game as a General 24-of-45 for 249 yards, and Luke Grant, another senior, had 12 catches for 117 yards.
"This senior class did a lot of really good things," Slaughter said. "They've been amazing and fun to coach. I'm excited to see them grow up and have families. They've definitely had an impact on me."