Christian Malone
The Valdosta Daily Times
VALDOSTA —
VALDOSTA — For the second week in a row, the Valdosta High football team dominated the first half, built a big lead before halftime and won by a large margin on Friday night.
Valdosta routed Hardaway 36-0 Friday at Bazemore-Hyder Stadium. The Wildcats scored five touchdowns, including one on defense and one on special teams, and posted their second consecutive shutout.
Valdosta has taken the field three times this season (including its preseason scrimmage against Ware County), and its defense has not allowed a point in any of the three games.
On Friday, it only took 19 seconds for Valdosta to grab the lead. Hardaway tried an onside kick on the opening kickoff, but Valdosta recovered at the Wildcat 44. On the second play from scrimmage, Valdosta quarterback Ryan Whilden threw a screen pass to DaShay March. March ran around a blocker near the line of scrimmage, and took off down the field. Near the Hawks' 20, as a Hardaway defender was closing in, March cut back up the field, ran past a couple of defenders and raced into the end zone for a 56-yard touchdown reception. Zach Wang's extra point gave the Wildcats a 7-0 lead.
Late in the first quarter, Hardaway lined up to punt. But the snap went past the punter, and rolled into the end zone. Valdosta’s Reggie McQueen, who was rushing the punt, sprinted after the ball, and dove on it in the back of the end zone for a touchdown. When the teams lined up for the extra point, Hardaway did not adjust to Valdosta’s swinging gate formation, so long snapper Randy Cook snapped the ball to Whilden, the holder, who threw it back to Cook in the end zone for the two-point conversion, making it 15-0.
Early in the second quarter, Valdosta scored again, going 50 yards in four plays. Whilden’s 26-yard pass to Malcolm Mitchell on third-and-8, down to the Hardaway 22, kept the drive alive. On the next play, the Wildcats handed off to March, who went left, got some blocks in front of him, and took off running. March raced towards the end zone, and beat a defender to the goal line to score his second touchdown of the night, making it 22-0.
With 20 seconds left in the first half, Hardaway quarterback Devin Jackson threw over the middle, and was picked off by Valdosta strong safety Randy Cook at the Valdosta 30. Cook took off on the return, followed his blockers, and broke free along the Wildcats’ sideline. Cook sprinted into the end zone for the touchdown with 2.3 seconds left in the half, and Valdosta headed to the locker room with a 29-0 lead at halftime.
Valdosta drove into the red zone with less than four minutes remaining in the third quarter, before Hardaway’s Austin Scott ended the drive with an interception in the end zone. But the Valdosta defense drove the Hawks back, and forced them to punt. Valdosta’s Charone Gatlin returned the punt all the way to the Hardaway 31.
On the first play after Gatlin’s punt return, Whilden threw a screen pass to Phillip Moore, who got some blocks in front of him and raced untouched into the end zone for the Wildcats’ fifth touchdown of the night, making it 36-0 with 1:39 left in the third quarter.
Because Valdosta was leading by 36 points, the fourth quarter was played with a running clock.
The Wildcats drove from their own 27 down to the Hardaway 3-yard line late in the game. But the Hawks stopped Valdosta runs on first and second down, and Whilden's passes on third and fourth down fell incomplete.
Whilden completed 14 of 29 passes for 278 yards and two touchdowns, but also threw two interceptions. Valdosta fullback Jarvis Roberts caught three passes for 81 yards, while Mitchell caught four passes for 78 yards. Moore was the Wildcats' leading rusher, gaining 42 yards on seven carries.
Valdosta hosts Tallahassee (Fla.) Lincoln next Friday at 8 p.m.
