About The champion newspaper. (Decatur, GA) 19??-current | View Entire Issue (Dec. 19, 2019)
LOCAL THE CHAMPION, THURSDAY, DECEMBER 19 - 25, 2019 • PAGE 9 stops, reading the offense. Tee Denson celebrates Cedar Grove’s first goal line stand. Photos by Jay Phillips ROAD HUMP r - -o I r t v t.vI CM Hr Aiirnirr f ■ | SHERIFF 7\ ^ i * L _ ■ « The toys were loaded by DCSO SWAT and JEST units Dec. 9 and delivered to a local designated warehouse for the U.S. Marine Corps toy drive. Photo by Asia Ashley TOYS Continued From Page 1 in Dunwoody. DCSO Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT) and Jail Emergency Services Team (JEST) units spent four hours at a Dunwoody Walmart Dec. 7 collecting monetary, gift card and toy donations for the Toys for Tots campaign. The toys were delivered Dec. 9 to a local warehouse for the U.S. Marine Corps toy drive and will be delivered to local families in need. According to the Toys for Tots Foundation website, 566 million toys have been distributed and 258 million children have supported nationwide since the program’s inception in 1947. unniviro Continued From Page 1 With the first half almost over, and both teams tied at zero, Wright took a handoff for 25 yards and into the red zone before scoring a touchdown three plays later. Wright finished the game with 140 yards and two touchdowns on 20 carries. Crisp County was close to scoring in the first half The Cougars had the ball inside Cedar Grove’s 5-yard line, but a strong goal line stand kept the Cougars at zero. On that play, junior defensive tackle Demarius Jackson put an offensive lineman on his back and forced Crisp County to cut the run between the tackles, but senior linebacker N’Korian Newsom and junior safety Antonio Taylor tackled the ball carrier behind the line. “[At halftime] we said we wanted to loosen them up a little,” Patrick said. “So, we came out, spread the ball around, threw it on first down, and that opened up the running lanes for us.” Having a healthy receiving corps helped draw attention away from the Saints’ run game. “It was the attention to the receivers that they had to respect that got our run game going,” Patrick said. Cedar Grove got back on the board in the third quarter, after a big catch from junior wide receiver Sam Pittman set up the Saints second touchdown of the day. Wright took that opportunity to run in a 19-yard touchdown to put the Saints up 14-0. Crisp County responded and scored their first points of the day after a bad Cedar Grove punt gave the Cougars good field position and let sophomore running back Marquise Palmer run in a touchdown two plays later. Cedar Grove had a response of their own. The Saints put sophomore running back Rashod Dubinion in for Wright, and Dubinion took a handoff up the middle for 30 yards. A few plays later, junior quarterback Austin Smith faked a pass to a receiver on a bubble-screen and then found Dubinion over the middle for a touchdown. Dubinion finished the game with 70 yards and a touchdown, while senior linebacker Isaiah Ratcliff had seven tackles, two tackles for loss and a half sack for the Saints’ defense that held Crisp County to just 161 total yards. “[Ratcliff] is the leader of our team and the leader of our program,” Patrick said. “I can’t say enough about him. He’s gonna step up big time on the biggest stages every time.” Cedar Grove almost put the game away after Crisp County went for it on fourth-and-goal with 3:28 left to play in the fourth quarter. That’s when Taylor made a pass breakup to force another turnover on downs. “We pride ourselves on being a second half team,” Patrick said. “We told [our offensive line] that ‘we’re going to ride you until the wheels fall off’ and they did their jobs.” The Saints were forced to punt a few plays later. The punt was partially blocked, and Crisp County was able to pick it up and return it for a touchdown to cut Cedar Grove’s lead to 21-14. However, the Cougars needed an onside kick recovery to have a chance at winning. Following a penalty on Cedar Grove, Pittman recovered the following onside kick, and Smith took a couple of knees to run the clock to zero. “The 2019-2020 class won three state championships in four years,” Patrick said. “This senior class can use that word. They’re a dynasty”
