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2B ♦ WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 8, 2006 The Warner Robins Recreation Department held its annual Optimist Bowl Saturday at McConnell-Talbert Stadium in Warner Robins to determine Its Mighty Mite, Mite and Midget champions and runner-up. Photos by Gary Harmon. i uJL » «a»j» if 'Jhhl: <V ak dmjSK& J- i ii '*!jl ‘ & Bl ' ..JSp fl^Rrl;sp' v •■^ii™WMKifefai,. .- f| j|A| ' *Jy* - |R fp> Ep Eagles cheerleaders perform during a game. '■'WP'- Maalik Leggette of the Dolphins evades a pair of defenders. TAYLOR From page ill be carrying the football on Perry’s opposing team. He wants to lead his 6-3 team into the GHSA Class AAA playoffs for a third year in a row. He also wants to make the best decision about his future in the game and as a college student. “It’s important to me,” said Taylor about wear ing the Panther uniform. “Everybody out here’s real close. I think everybody likes wearing it together because it shows we’re a family.” Ask Taylor about his own definition of old school and he’ll talk about how players PREPS From page iB and fourth for the M.P Bulldogs had the outcome gone a different way. But the Jaguars must travel down from Griffin on the heals of not only this tough loss, but also a heartbreak er, 14-7, the week before to first-place Jackson High on the weekend - Oct. 27 - of the heavy rain in Georgia. “The biggest thing for (Spalding) is they had mis cues in the kicking game,” said Scott. “They missed some PATs and a field goal, things like that. So that was a big struggle for them. They really felt like they should have won (the Jackson game), and Mary Persons kind of caught them off guard, and it was just a game where they didn’t play as well as they have in the past.” TEAM From page iB game against Westside. I say that because the Seminoles were looking to play the role of spoilers. Optimist Bowl in the old days did things “the old way.” “Rough around the edges. Make sure everything gets done,” he said. “I have heard that (about me). People are going to say what they want. I just try to get it done. I’m going to come out for my team unless I can’t go at all.” The major colleges have recognized Taylor’s rugged style and football talents. He received invitations to attend summer football camps at the University of Tennessee and the University of South Carolina. “I liked the Tennessee one a lot,” said Taylor. “It was faster-paced. South Carolina was more like showing The Jaguars certainly wouldn’t have had kicking mistakes last season. When Spalding played at Perry last year in a region game, the visiting kicker, Brett Upson, made a 53-yard field goal on the last play of a big Panther win. But not only is Upson gone, so is last year’s Spalding head coach. “They are a lot better than they were last year,” said Scott. “They have a new coach in Tommy Gilstrap. He’s really made a lot of improvements with them. The kids play a lot harder. You can see on the film how much discipline they have and how structured they are. “As far as defense, they run a 4-4, eight-man type front, cover 3. Offensively, they run a number of differ ent things. They’re real mul tiple. They love to line up in unbalanced formations and Earlier in the season, I heard people say that Westside and Baldwin were laying in the weeds for Northside. A coach from another region said he thought Baldwin and everyone how to throw and catch. I got to meet a lot of the players. They talked a lot about weight-lifting and conditioning, and a little bit about grades.” Taylor does understand the importance of academ ics, and he has the type of transcript that would impress any recruiter. As far as football goes, he is a big fan of the Southeastern Conference, but admits he may not have the size to play in this power league. “I get (letters) from every Ivy League school, Georgia Southern, all the smaller schools,” said Taylor. “I might try to go to Georgia Southern or maybe Valdosta State. I’ve talked to both of two-tight formations, then line up in shotgun with four wides. We will have to adjust to everything they do.” Gilstrap is a former defen sive coordinator at Griffin High School, and this is his first season as a head coach. One thing the Perry defense can look for from the Jaguar attack is the running game as Kerbias Bonner averag es more than 100 rushing yards per game and leads the region in rushing attempts. Spalding’s defensive lead er comes from the secondary. A sophomore, Willie Hamm, leads the league in total interception return yards. “We just have to contin ue to do what we’ve done, which is control the ball, play good field position foot ball and play sound enough defensively to get the foot ball back to our offense,” said Scott. “Coach Gilstrap has been a defensive coordinator for Westside were much better than most people thought. If so, neither team proved the theory against the Eagles. I say that’s because the Eagles are that good. I say it’s because Rodriguez SPORTS Mm ,f . SB* p Jjij^pp _iW ■&' aml* 3F Mfc»- ■ y.:., *• Mpr Logan Bryd of the Eagles runs past defenders. v* •< <l. ’ , ;# k^H Packers and Raiders players go after a loose ball. them. A lot of schools tell me they’re going to evaluate my senior year and decide from there.” Georgia Southern and Valdosta State are known for winning championships at the national level. Taylor knows what an honor it would be to get a chance to contribute to one of these programs, not only for their traditions but also for their close proximity to home. “I liked (GSU coach Brian VanGorder) when he was at Georgia,” said Taylor about the former defensive coordi nator in Athens. “Just watch ing him on T.V Him being down there (in Statesboro) is even more of a reason I would want to go there.” over 20 years. It’s not his first rodeo. He knows what he’s doing.” Scott said he’s not a big fan of the play-in situation is team is in, but recognizes that it affects everyone in the region. He said this is the week, more than any other during the season, to play sound, old fashioned football. Perry still holds the title of the top rushing team in the region and also leads in time of pos session while staying close in rushing defense. “We’ve been a good football team to play good defense, to lead in time of possession and rushing offense,” said Scott. “When you look at an overall season and lead the region in all of this, you have a chance to have a good year.” The Panthers improved to 6-3 overall and won the right to host a play-in game with put the team first and put Ivory in a position to succeed and he grabbed the chance. Ivory completed every pass he threw in the second half. He passed for almost 200 yards and would have bro ken that number except his It’s been a good senior sea son for Taylor, who has bat tled junior lineman Kanorris Davis for the team lead in tackles. Both are among the top five in that category in Region 4-AAA. He said the numbers are a bit down from last season because he’s been able to sit out the latter stages of some of the Panther games. But what it really comes down to is this Friday’s home game against Spalding, a member of the 4-AAA north sub-region. Perry needs a win to qualify for the state tournament. Last year the Panthers won a playoff game for the first time in more than a decade, and Taylor wants to help keep the pro last week’s 38-20 home win against Northeast-Macon. The game followed some of the scripts of other Perry wins this year with a domi nating first half but with a second half - particularly a third quarter - that wasn’t as such. Scott put the blame for the sluggish third quarter on his own shoulders. “We were driving the ball, had fourth and short on the 50-yard-line, and I went for it,” he said. “That wasn’t a very smart decision. We should have punted, backed them up. We could have forced them in a three-and-out and gotten our offense a little better field position. “That gave them some momentum when they scored. I look at that as my fault as a coach. If we had punted, none of that would have happened.” The Panthers led 31-6 at lateral to Rodriguez resulted in Jacobi’s 38-yard bomb to Green. It’s easy to focus on the players I’ve mentioned, but Northside’s offense is the complete package and that’s because of the Eagles’ selfless play. I credit head HOUSTON DAILY JOURNAL gram moving forward as a perennial contender. “We’ve been getting there, ” said Taylor. “We want to get back there again and hope fully get past the second round for the first time in I don’t know how long.” Taylor is also a starting infielder for Perry High’s baseball squad that won in the first round of the state playoffs back in the spring. He said baseball was actually his first love and first ambition as far as hav ing a future in sports, but time eventually swayed him towards football. “I feel like the program’s turned around in the right direction for us,” said Taylor. halftime. Northeast never got closer than the 18-point final despite blocking two punts and forcing two turn overs in the second half. The positives to come out of the win were the precision early in the passing game with quarterback Casey Hayward throwing two touchdowns to Akeen Felder in the first quarter and the continued emergence of another impact player on defense, junior end Tony Davis. “Coach (Chad) Alligood does a great job with this, and that’s taking what the defense gives us,” said Scott about the passing attack, not a common sight in the wish bone game. “Everybody’s packing the box against us. We’re having to throw it to be able to rush it. I think we rushed for over 260 yards last week and had about 150 yards passing. You have to go back and forth.” coach Conrad Nix and his coaching staff for that. It’s fun to watch good human beings be successful. It beats the alternative that usually dominates sports news.