Turnovers are supposed to be game-changing plays, and while that was the case in Cartersville’s 21-14 win over Calhoun with the GHSA Region 7-AAAAA football championship on the line Friday night at Weinman Stadium, the turnover in question backfired.
Calhoun scored midway through the third quarter to cut host Cartersville’s lead to seven when Cole Speer intercepted a Cartersville pass. The senior caught the ball at the 1, and his momentum carried him into the end zone, where he took a knee. Officials marked the ball at the 1, Calhoun was forced to punt four plays later, and the Purple Hurricanes made it a two-touchdown lead with a short drive.
The Jackets (8-2, 4-1) never recovered and will settle for the region runner-up spot. After an open date next week as Georgia’s regular season wraps up, they will host a first-round playoff game. Cartersville (9-0, 5-0) will carry a 62-game regular-season winning streak into the playoffs.
“We got momentum in the second half and then got the interception, but Cole was called down at the 1 and we couldn’t get out and had to punt,” Calhoun coach Clay Stephenson said. “This one is going to sting, but the guys never folded and that says a lot.”
A steady rain hampered the usually productive Calhoun passing attack in the first half as quarterback Christian Lewis completed only two of eight passes and had several slip out of his hand. Meanwhile, Cartersville’s cat-quick running back, Amari White, had no trouble with the wet conditions.