Juston Lewis | Special to the TimesValdosta head coach Rush Propst argues a call to an official during a game against Lee County Friday in Leesburg. Valdosta lost 41-7.

LEESBURG –– Just when it seemed Valdosta (4-4, 2-1 Region 1-6A) had found its groove, Lee County (8-1, 4-0 Region 1-6A) defeated them in dominating fashion.

The Wildcats suffered a 41-7 defeat on Friday the 13th, forcing them to settle for second in the region as the Trojans celebrated their fourth consecutive region championship.

After scoring 81 points combined in their last three contests, the Wildcats only managed a touchdown against Lee.

It came at what could’ve been a critical part of the game.

Quarterback Amari Jones was hit from his blindside and fumbled the ball. A Lee County player picked up the ball and returned it nearly 50 yards for a touchdown.

On the ensuing kickoff, Aalah Brown had an 89-yard return for a touchdown, leaving two seconds left in the third quarter as they prepared for an onside kick.

The Wildcats successfully recovered the onside attempt as the entire Valdosta sideline became energized at the inception of the fourth quarter.

Valdosta had the ball trailing by four touchdowns, but momentum was on their side for the first time in the contest.

They got inside the red zone but couldn’t find the end zone, as the Trojans took over on downs and scored the final touchdown of the game on an 89-yard run by Caleb McDowell.

“We get the ball down to the 11-yard line and can’t score,” head coach Rush Propst said after the game. “Can’t score in the red zone, can’t execute anything to score in the red zone.” 

Lee set the tone for the game from the start.

The Trojans completed an 80-yard touchdown pass on a trick play on the second snap of the game.

After the Wildcats couldn’t move the ball on offense, Chauncey Magwood scored on a 36-yard quarterback run to make it a two-score game.

Valdosta found itself staring down a 20-0 hole with 5:23 remaining in the first quarter after Angel Martinez’s punt was blocked and returned for a touchdown.

Valdosta’s closest chance at points in the first half, came on a field goal attempt that Lee blocked.

After recovering the block, the Trojans drove down the field and added a score for good measure, making it 27-0 at halftime.

“Well right now I don’t have any answers,” Propst said after the game. “When you come over here and get spanked like we did, obviously there’s not a lot we did right. It continues to show up in special teams –– blocked field goal, blocked punt for a touchdown, sack, scoop and score. That’s 21 points right there. A long run where a safety doesn’t fit, there’s four touchdowns. It’d be different if they just came out and drove it down our throat, but right now, we just can’t seem to execute anything offensively and defensively, we gave up some big plays tonight and didn’t tackle good on the back half at times. There’s just not a lot of good to talk about.”

Lee’s physicality and tactics drew the angst of many Valdosta supporters. What some considered late hits or playing outside of the whistles, frustrated the Wildcats all night.

At the end of the game, Lee’s public address announcer counted down from 10 as the seconds on the game clock drained. When it hit zero, the full celebration was on for the Trojans and their fans.

But the mood of the Wildcats wasn’t dejected.

Valdosta suffered its worst loss of the season, losing the region championship and more importantly the top seed in the playoffs, but they weren’t feeling sorry for themselves.

They know their season didn’t end Friday and the job is not finished.

“It’s going to take a lot of hard work, effort and attitude,” Jones said on what it’d take to get to the state championship. “We just have to come to practice every day ready to work with the attitude that we’re still state champions. The goal is still at hand. It’s just a tougher road but I think we can still do it.”

There will be a lot of soul-searching to do ahead of Valdosta’s next game.

UP NEXT

The Wildcats have a bye-week before hosting the first round of the 6A playoffs at Bazemore-Hyder Stadium on Nov. 27.

“We’ll see who wants to be a football player at Valdosta over the next two weeks,” Propst said. “To me, that’s what you’ve got to do. We’ve got to find out who wants to be a football player over the next two weeks and wants to line up and play and be a Valdosta Wildcat. There may be some that will, there may be some that won’t, but we’re going to find the ones that want to be a Wildcat and be ready to play on the 27th of November.”