EATONTON, Ga. – Jalon Kilgore scored a 4-yard touchdown with 51 seconds remaining on fourth-and-goal from the 4-yard line to give Putnam County a 27-26 win over Laney.
The touchdown provided a fitting climax to a dramatic game that featured wild swings in momentum, three lead changes, costly turnovers, admirable responses to said mistakes, an incredible defensive effort by Laney and a controversial call at the goal line that affected the outcome in favor of the home team.
Laney’s devoted fan base will hold on to hard feelings for a long time after the Wildcats appeared to be robbed of two points after Laney took a 26-20 lead on a one-yard touchdown run by CJ Holmes with 21 seconds left in the third quarter. On the two-point conversion attempt, Holmes stretched the ball a considerable distance above and past the goal line while his knees were clearly elevated above the ground. Players, coaches and fans were stunned when the referee swooped in to rule that Holmes’ knee was on the ground before the ball crossed the plane.
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Laney’s defense, which played lights out football throughout the game, responded to the disappointment by stopping Putnam County before they reached midfield and forcing the War Eagles to punt with 9:06 remaining in the fourth quarter. But the punt hit a Laney player and Putnam County’s offense returned to the field with the ball at Laney’s 27-yard line.
Four plays later, Laney’s defense had risen to the occasion again by turning Putnam County over on downs. But after Laney assumed possession, the Wildcats lost 16 yards on three plays, including 11 yards on a bad center-to-quarterback exchange. When Laney was forced to punt from deep in its own end zone, the War Eagles were able to return it to Laney’s 25-yard line with 4:08 remaining. Six plays later, Kilgore put the War Eagles ahead for good.
Chance Bush, Kalon Curry, Johnathan Ashley, Brenton Potts and Jayden Shaw were among the Wildcats who formed a brick wall the entire night for Laney’s defense. The unit defended a short field all night because Laney lost four fumbles in their own territory. The only time Putnam County was able to drive from one end of the field to the other and score was towards the end of the third quarter when Laney halted a 59-yard drive at the 7-yard line and the War Eagles were forced to settle for a field goal.
Laney’s entire team deserves commendation for responding admirably to adversity throughout the game. After a nightmare start in which the Wildcats lost a fumble at their own 14-yard line on their first offensive series and then, after falling behind 3-0, fumbled the ensuing kickoff and gave up another touchdown, the Wildcats got a much needed spark from DJ Daggett early in the second quarter.
Trailing 10-0, Laney started at their own 19-yard line and got back-to-back runs by Brenton Potts of 6 and 28 yards respectively. Then Daggett rushed for 5 yards and followed that with a 50-yard touchdown scamper that cut the deficit to 10-7 with 9:40 left in the second quarter.
When Putnam County’s offense took the field, Daggett proceeded to tip, juggle and finally intercept a pass at the Putnam County 30-yard line. Daggett ran it back to the 20, and while fighting off a tackler he spotted teammate Walter Jackson and handed it to Jackson so he could run it into the end zone with 8:35 left in the first half. The defensive touchdown gave Laney its first lead at 14-10.
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Daggett made his only mistake when he fumbled the ball on the first series of the third quarter. Mark Watkins recovered the ball and ran it to Laney’s 4-yard line to set up a two-yard touchdown run by Tamarion Peters to give Putnam County a 20-14 lead with 11:12 left in the third quarter.
But on the very next series, Daggett rushed 6 times for 67 yards and finished a 76-yard drive with an 11-yard touchdown run to tie the game at 20 with 7:59 left in the third quarter, setting up the dramatic, and controversial, finish.
Daggett, Holmes, Kilgore (2 touchdowns), Jackson (an interception to go with his defensive touchdown) and Laney’s incredible linemen will all be featured in Monday’s “Best of the Best” accounting of Friday’s stars. The game in Eatonton that determined the second seed in class 2A, region 4 was one well worth reliving.
Chad Cook is a sports columnist who is known on the field and court as AugBball. Follow him on Instagram @AugBBall
