VALDOSTA – The Valdosta Wildcats’ Winnersville woes continued as they were shut out by the Lowndes Vikings (3-2) 21-0 Friday in the Winnersville Classic.

Lowndes senior playmaker Chase Belcher was named the game’s Most Valuable Player after scoring two of the Vikings’ three touchdowns in a 14-carry, 98-yard performance.

“Chase is just an extremely great football player,” Vikings head coach Jamey DuBose said of Belcher. “He was hot tonight running the ball. He had a lot of individual runs where he popped outside. I know he had a touchdown run down there, I don’t know how many tackles he broke and I don’t know how he got outside but he did an outstanding job. Chase has been big for this program for three years and I know the two years I’ve been here, he’s been a mainstay and he’ll continue to be that.”

By neutralizing the Valdosta’s running attack early on, the Vikings coerced ‘Cats quarterback Joseph Gardner into a subpar game. The junior misfired on 15 of his 21 pass attempts, throwing for only 82 yards and an interception just before halftime.

Trailing 21-0 at halftime, it became increasingly difficult for the ‘Cats (1-4) to keep pace with their cross-town foes without a reliable passing attack.

Friday’s loss marks the third time in the last five meetings that Valdosta has been shut out.

“It played a big factor,” Felton said of the Vikings limiting their running attack early. “They did a good job of loading the box and making you throw the ball. We had people running wide open and just couldn’t complete passes and hit the targets.”

Lowndes senior quarterback Jacurri Brown became the first Lowndes quarterback to win four consecutive Winnersville Classics – putting another feather in a cap loaded with personal accolades.

With his 15-yard touchdown run with 32 seconds left in the first half, the Miami commit became the Vikings’ all-time leader in rushing touchdowns with 47 – moving him past running back Travis Tisdale, who solidified his legendary status at Lowndes with a six-touchdown, 400-plus yard performance in the 2018 Winnersville Classic.

Brown completed just 9 of 26 passes for 80 yards, but had 15 carries for 54 yards – putting his stamp on a game he and his fellow seniors had no desire to lose.

“This was a team win,” Brown said. “Kudos to our defense – first goose egg of the season. This was just a grind-it-out win right here at home and really for the five-peat. I found out this morning that I’m the first quarterback to do it four years in a row. That’s a great accomplishment. We’ve got a chance to do a lot of special things this year and that was one of our goals – beat Valdosta, win the region, go to state. That’s one checked off the list. We’ve got two more.”

Staring deeply down the barrel of a three-touchdown deficit, the ‘Cats came out of the locker room determined to establish what they do best: Running the football.

Following an incompletion by Gardner to start the drive, the ‘Cats fed senior Terrell Denson early and often. Denson racked up positive yardage on four consecutive snaps, setting up a completion from Gardner to senior Nevin Spivey for 17 yards on third-and-6 from the 38.

The drive stalled soon after, however, as the Vikings stopped Denson for a 3-yard loss, then broke up two consecutive passes by Gardner to force a punt.

Things worsened for Valdosta as a botched snap forced reserve punter Grayson Leavy to scramble for a 1-yard gain to turn the ball over on downs. 

The turnover on downs proved non-fatal as senior inside linebacker Jaylin Berrian penetrated into the backfield to tackle Brown for a loss for the second Vikings’ red zone turnover of the night.

On the next Valdosta drive, the ‘Cats were once again able to push the ball downfield midway through the third quarter.

They methodically moved the ball down deep into Viking territory, getting down to the 4-yard line in their most damaging drive of the night. On fourth-and-goal from the 4, Gardner called his own number and made a couple of Vikings miss before making a dash toward the end zone. The Vikings’ Elijah Colvin and Jayden Battle upended Gardner just in time, thwarting him just short of the goal line – electrifying the crowd inside the Concrete Palace.

“I think they’re growing up a little bit, but the goal line stand is a big confidence thing,” DuBose said. “To be able to stop a team such as Valdosta that can run the football, we’re 21-0 tonight with them and you look at (two weeks ago) against Colquitt, they put 42 up on Colquitt. Our defense comes out here tonight and throws a shutout. We’ve got some really good talent and I’ve said it all year, this team is a growth team. It’s kind of like you’ve got to water it in a garden all week and it’s going to get better as the year goes on.”

Felton said of his team getting stopped, “I think if we score right there, it puts them at a disadvantage. Now we’re playing with momentum and maybe it triggers the goal. But right there, we’ve got to punch that in.”

With a chance to atone for not capitalizing on the previous scoring opportunity, the ‘Cats saw their next drive short-circuit as Gardner’s short screen pass to Willie Almond in the backfield was went through the receiver’s hands before being scooped up by the Vikings’ WC Fulton with 6:54 left in the game.

While the ‘Cats once again denied the Vikings in the red zone with an end zone interception by junior cornerback Charlie Porter, they never threatened the Vikings the rest of the way.

“We played great on defense, but we made some mistakes and then, I’m not gonna lie, 11 made some plays,” Felton said. “That’s who he is. There’s a reason he’s a Power Five quarterback. We just adjusted, man. We kept it simple and we blitzed them. We made some plays, they made some plays. They just made more than we did, but I’m proud of my defense.”

The Vikings finished with 322 yards of offense on 70 plays compared to 255 yards for Valdosta on 13 fewer plays. The Vikings converted on 5 of 17 third-down opportunities and two of their four fourth-down opportunities, while Valdosta went 6 of 16 on third-down and 0 for 5 on fourth-down.

Turnovers also hurt Valdosta as they lost two fumbles and one interception in the game.

“I thought tempo hurt them a lot,” DuBose said. “When we upped the tempo and went faster – we’ve got different sets we go to and different speeds – I thought it was a very productive set for us all night. As the night went on, the later it got, I thought (Valdosta) did a good job in the second half of coming out and just running the clock and trying to keep us on the sideline. And they did a very good job.

“We’re a type of offense that…we’ve got to get in a flow and we’ve got to go and they eliminated that a little bit in the second half, which I think frustrated our offensive staff and us. We’re not happy on the offensive side. We’re happy to get the win, but we’re not happy with the way we finished it.”

JAMEY’S MILESTONE

Friday’s win over Valdosta was Lowndes head coach Jamey DuBose’s 150th career victory. After the game, DuBose deflected credit for the milestone – instead lauding his players and coaching staffs for their roles in the achievement.

“There’s a lot of people that were a part of that,” DuBose said of the milestone. “That’s just a number for me. In 150, man, there’s tons of players, there’s tons of coaches and I’m blessed. I am excited to get it on Winnersville. That was a lot of fun. That’s a memory I’ll always think back to. And wow, if 200 could come on something like Winnersville or a state championship, that would be even bigger. I owe everything and all that to all the coaches and players that have been with me because they do an outstanding job.”

UP NEXT

Lowndes hosts Alcovy (1-2) and Cedar Grove (3-1) before opening region play at Tift County Oct. 15.

“To use the garden term again, we’ve got to sprout at the right time,” DuBose said. “We’ve got to play in region play because we’re going to see some really good teams down the road. Our schedule’s not over. We’ve got Cedar Grove on the horizon – a non-region game against a really athletic, good team. Then, of course, everybody knows the Camdens, the Colquitts and the Tiftons on the road, too.

“We’ve got to get ready. We’ve got a lot in front of us, but tonight was big for our seniors. That’s five in a row. That’s all we care about and we’re looking for six in a row next year.”

Valdosta hosts Tift County next week, followed by Westside (Fla.) Oct. 8 before opening region play at Northside Oct. 15.

“I told the guys in the locker room, you’ve got 24 hours,” Felton said. “The ‘woe is me’ lasts 24 hours and we’ve got to pick our head up and keep playing because we’re playing a good Tift team (next week). They’re coming in and they don’t feel sorry for us, which they shouldn’t. We’ve got to get our head up because at the end of the day, we’ve still got a game to play. We’re gonna show up and play.”

Shane Thomas is the sports editor at the Valdosta Daily Times.