SNELLVILLE — A stampede of Broncos trampled the Valdosta Wildcats Friday night. Valdosta fell victim to the Brookwood Broncos on Friday, falling 37-6 at Dave Hunter Complex.
Brookwood's rushing attack proved to be too much for the Wildcats. The Broncos rushed for 308 yards in the victory.
One team entered the game 2-0, the other 0-2. But the 0-2 team, Brookwood, dominated this game. Responsibility for the rout fell primarily on the shoulders of Brookwood running back Kenny Miles. Like the first two teams that Brookwood had played, the Wildcats had a hard time stopping Miles all night. He rushed for 249 yards and two touchdowns on 20 carries and gave the Valdosta defense fits all night. The Wildcats had held their first two opponents, both passing teams, to negative rushing yardage, but they had trouble with Brookwood’s huge offensive line, which has four starters 280 pounds or bigger.
On its second possession, the Broncos began moving the football with their trademark power running attack.
Miles carried five times on the drive, for 41 yards. That helped set up a 29-yard field goal by Zach Simmons, giving the Broncos a 3-0 lead.
Brookwood had gained yardage in small chunks on its first three possessions, but with around five minutes left in the half, the Broncos got their first big play. On second-and-10 from the Bronco 45, Miles took the ball on a toss sweep going left, nine blockers cleared space in front of him, and he found a hole. He raced down the Valdosta sideline, shed a tackler at the 5, and trotted into the end zone for the game’s first touchdown. Simmons’ extra point gave Brookwood a 10-0 lead.
After another three-and-out, Valdosta punter John Mark Stephenson’s kick went over the head of returner Josh Jackson. But Jackson ran it down, turned around, and took off. The Broncos’ return team opened a lane for him, and he raced 53 yards untouched for the touchdown, making it 17-0.
Valdosta finally got on the board in the final seconds of the first half, driving 80 yards in 11 plays. Quarterback Michael Turner connected on key passes to David Arnold for 14 yards and Perry King for 19 yards, helping the Wildcats move the ball to the Brookwood 8.
A pass interference penalty moved the ball to the 4. On the next play, Turner rolled left, found his receivers covered and took off for the goal line. He collided with a defender at the 1 and his momentum carried him over the goal line for the touchdown. The extra point was shanked and the Broncos led 17-6 with seven seconds left in the half.
It didn’t take long for Miles to victimize Valdosta again in the second half. On the second play of the third quarter, his linemen cleared a hole again and he raced 81 yards down the sideline before being pulled down at the 2. Two plays later, fullback Brice Smith dove in from the 2, making it 24-6.
Valdosta had a big scoring opportunity at the end of the third quarter. Kevin Stokes picked off a Terrance Davis pass and returned it to the Brookwood 23. The Wildcats moved the ball down to the 4; then disaster struck. A tackle in the backfield and a false start penalty moved VHS back to the 11, then on third down, Turner was hit in the backfield and fumbled.
Brookwood’s Chris Martin picked up the fumble at the 15 and dashed 85 yards for a touchdown, giving the Broncos a 31-6 lead.
A 33-yard run by Miles on Brookwood’s next possession moved the ball into the red zone. Three plays later, on third-and-12 from the 18, Miles took the handoff, went left, found yet another opening and trotted into the end zone for his last touchdown of the day, making it 37-6 with 9:14 left in the game. It was Miles’ final carry of the day and wrapped up a great performance.
Valdosta would move the ball down to the Brookwood 37 on the next drive, but two sacks halted the drive.
After that, both teams put in their reserves for the rest of the game.
Brookwood attempted only three passes all game. A Brookwood receiver caught one pass for 14 yards, and Valdosta defensive backs picked off the other two. But with the way they were running the ball, they didn’t need to throw it much.
For Valdosta, Turner completed 9-of-20 passes for 146 yards. Tavoris Belcher had two catches for 39 yards, while tight end Marcus Ewings caught two passes for 35 yards. Arnold gained 46 yards on 15 carries.
Local Sports
Brookwood overpowers Valdosta, 37-6
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