About The times. (Gainesville, Ga.) 1972-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 26, 2018)
SPORTS The Times, Gainesville, Georgia | gainesvilletimes.com Friday, October 26, 2018 3B COLLEGE FOOTBALL Solid pass rushing presence No. 7 Georgia, No. 9 Florida both have players who can get after QB JIM HIPPLE I Associated Press Georgia Bulldogs outside linebacker D’Andre Walker rushes the Austin Peay quarterback during the game Sept. 1 in Athens. Associated Press Game-wrecking pass-rushers could turn the “World’s Larg est Outdoor Cocktail Party” into a steady stream of sack celebrations. Florida’s Jachai Polite and Georgia’s D’Andre Walker are two of the most disruptive defend ers in the Southeastern Confer ence. Polite, a junior defensive end, has seven sacks in as many games and at least one in each of the last five. Walker, a senior linebacker, has five of the team’s nine sacks and a team-high 10 quarterback hurries. Keeping them at bay is among the top priorities for both offenses heading into Saturday’s rivalry game between the No. 9 Gators (6-1, 4-1 SEC) and the seventh- ranked Bulldogs (6-1,4-1). “It’s the SEC, so every week there’s going to be great rush ers, great defensive linemen, especially in the box,” Bulldogs offensive tackle Andrew Thomas said. “Everyone is pretty good. It’s going to be a challenge for us on our pass protection, but we’re going to work on it and we’ll be good on Saturday.” The Gators rank third in the league with 21 sacks, trailing Ala bama and Auburn. Defensive end Jabari Zuniga has 4y 2 , and line backer Vosean Joseph has three. Polite is the best of the bunch, widely projected to be an early round pick in the 2019 NFL draft. “They’re extremely athletic. Georgia vs. Florida When: 3:30 p.m. Saturday Where: Jacksonville, Fla. TV: CBS They’re quick. They have caused problems for everybody that they have played with their ath leticism,” Georgia coach Kirby Smart said. “They are hard to block. They stay active. Even when you block them, they get in on plays. “You can’t put two people on all of them. You have to try to block those guys and get hands on them. They do a good job of changing stunts, moving fronts, stemming things and are really effective, especially on third down.” Georgia has been mostly solid protecting quarterback Jake Fromm, allowing 11 sacks. Seven of those came on third down, which is Polite’s specialty. The 6-foot-2, 242-pound Day tona Beach native has the kind of speed that keeps offensive tack les awake at night and the kind of balance and body lean that excite NFL scouts and general managers. Playing at the next level is so much part of Polite’s goals that he sort of included it in his Twit ter handle: RetireMoms. “Just to retire my mom,” he said. “I don’t want her to work, just having money for her so she doesn’t have to work.” Polite is well on his way to becoming a millionaire. He bought into new strength and con ditioning coordinator Nick Sav age’s program, allowing him to shed weight, build muscle and get faster and stronger. And he’s get ting closer to becoming an three- down player for the Gators. “He’s really working to become a set-the-edge guy, to become more stout and be able to play all three downs,” Florida defensive coordinator Todd Grantham said. “The biggest thing he gives you is the luxury of being able to win one-on-one matchups.” Walker has done the same for Georgia — and without nearly as much help from teammates. The 6-foot-3, 245-pound Fair- burn, Georgia native has made strides every year he’s been on campus. He finished with 13 V2 tackles for loss, including 5'/ 2 sacks, as a junior but has stepped up his game in his final year. Now, he faces a Florida line that was shaky early in the season and much more stable of late. “I think D’Andre has grown into this role,” Smart said. “He’s a very motivated kid. He plays so hard. It’s important to him. He still has room for improve ment. .. He’s a tough, good foot ball player that probably a lot of people overlooked throughout his career because he’s behind other guys.” It’s unlikely anyone will ignore Polite and Walker on Saturday. Fromm GEORGIA SOUTHERN 34, NO. 25 APPAG\CHIAN STATE 14 Werts leads Eagles in an upset victory JOHN AMIS I Associated Press Georgia Southern wide receiver Darion Anderson (81) celebrates his touchdown with quarterback Shai Werts during the first half against Appalachian State in Statesboro. Associated Press Shai Werts rushed for 129 yards, including a 47-yard touch down run, and Georgia Southern upset No. 25 Appalachian State 34-14 on Thursday night to spoil the Mountaineers’ first week in the Top 25. Werts threw a 57-yard scoring pass to Darion Anderson early in the second quarter. It was Werts’ only completion in three attempts for Georgia Southern (7-1,4-0 Sun Belt). Wesley Fields had scoring runs of 10 and 18 yards in the Eagles’ fifth straight win. Georgia Southern fans stormed the field following the school’s first home game against a Top 25 team. App State quarterback Zac Thomas was knocked out of the game on the opening series for the Mountaineers (5-2, 3-1). The back of Thomas’ helmet hit the ground as he was tackled follow ing a 5-yard run. He was taken to the medical tent on the sideline and then escorted to the locker room. He didn’t return. Backup quarterbacks Peyton Derrick and Jacob Huesman combined to throw four intercep tions, and the Mountaineers also lost a fumble on a punt return. Derrick completed only 3 of 12 passes for 73 yards with two inter ceptions. Huesman took over in the fourth quarter and was inter cepted twice by Kindle Vindor before throwing a 4-yard scoring pass to Malik Williams with only 10 seconds remaining. Derrick completed a 50-yard pass to Corey Sutton to the Geor gia Southern 3 early in the second quarter. Marc Williams’ 1 -yard run tied the game at 7-all. The Eagles quickly scored fol lowing two first-half turnovers by the Mountaineers. Darrell Baker Jr.’s interception set up Werts’ long scoring pass to Anderson. Dexter Carter Jr. recovered Clifton Duck’s fumbled punt return. On the next play, Fields’ 10-yard scoring run gave the Eagles a 14-7 lead. App State linebacker Jordan Fehr was ejected late in the first quarter after he was called for targeting on a late hit on Werts. The game matched longtime friends as opposing coaches. Georgia Southern coach Chad Lunsford was App State’s tight ends coach from 2001-02 and lived in App State coach Scott Sat terfield’s basement apartment for a year when Satterfield also was a Mountaineers assistant. Georgia Tech 49, Virginia Tech 28 Georgia Tech 14 14 14 7—49 Georgia Virginia Tech First Quarter VT—Turner 46 pass from Willis (B.Johnson kick), 13:26 GT—Howard 8 run (Wells kick), 6:56 VT—Hazelton 41 pass from Willis (B.Johnson kick), 5:52 GT—T.Oliver 1 run (Wells kick), :15 Second Quarter VT—Willis 1 run (B.Johnson kick), 10:30 GT—Mason 5 run (Wells kick), 6:57 GT—T.Oliver 5 run (Wells kick), 1:27 Third Quarter GT—T.Oliver 11 run (Wells kick), 9:14 GT—Mason 14 run (Kerr kick), 3:02 Fourth Quarter GT—Mason 1 run (Wells kick), 6:23 VT—Holston 1 run (B.Johnson kick), 3:48 GT VT First downs 36 16 Rushes-yards 78-464 25-122 Passing 0 201 Comp-Att-IntO- 1-0 15-22-0 Return Yards 0 140 Punts-Avg. 2-41.0 4-41.5 Fumbles-Lost 1-0 2-1 Penalties-Yards 6-50 8-87 Time of Possession 42:18 17:42 INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS RUSHING—Georgia Tech, T.Oliver 39-203, Mason 12-82, Howard 12-76, Malloy 4-27, Graham 2-24, Cottrell 3-21, Searcy 2-15, K.Oliver 1-12, Lynch 2-3, Gantt 1-1. Virginia Tech, S.Peoples 6-51, Holston 5-29, Willis 8-22, Grimsley 2-13, Hazelton 1-4, McClease 3-3. PASSING—Georgia Tech, T.Oliver 0-1 -0-0. Virginia Tech, Willis 15-22-0-201. RECEIVING—Georgia Tech,. Virginia Tech, Hazelton 6-81, Keene 3-27, Turner 2-62, S.Peoples 1-13, Grimsley 1-11, Kumah 1-5, Savoy 1-2. MISSED FIELD GOALS—None. Associated Press TECH ■ Continued from 1B the third team to score at least 45 against Virginia Tech this season. Old Domin ion (49) and Notre Dame (45) are the others. Virginia Tech hadn’t given up at least 40 points to three teams since 1991 when Miami (43), Rut gers (50) and Virginia (41) did it. Virginia Tech talked all week of keeping the Yel low Jackets from dominating the time of possession. The Hokies’ first drive lasted 1:34, ending with Ryan Willis’ 46-yard pass to Tre Turner, and their second took 58 seconds, ending with Damon Hazleton’s 41-yard catch. In between, the Yellow Jackets went 75 yards in 12 plays and followed Virginia Tech’s second TD with an 11-play, 75-yard march to tie it at 14. Oliver kept the first drive alive with a 15-yard scramble, and Qua Searcy gained nine on a fourth-and-1 from the Yellow Jackets’ 34 on the second drive. The loss also cost the Hok ies their grip on first place in the Coastal Division as they dropped into a tie with Vir ginia for the lead. THE TAKEAWAYS GEORGIA TECH: Oliver (7 yards per carry coming in vs. Marshall’s 4.7) routinely spun away from contact to gain additional yards against the Hokies. But Marshall connected on 60- and 80-yard scoring throws to beat Vir ginia Tech last season, and Oliver’s lone attempt — just his 10th attempt of the sea son — was miserably short of his target, leading to their first punt, which proved to be the turning point. VIRGINIA TECH: The Hokies’ young defense again got burned by a backup quarterback. In a 49-35 loss at Old Dominion early in the season, drop-back passer Blake LaRussa replaced dual-threat Steven Williams and threw for 494 yards and four touchdowns for the previously winless Mon- archs. TaQuon Marshall had started all seven games for coach Paul Johnson head ing into the game, but sat out Thursday night with an undisclosed “upper body” injury. NO. 13 WEST VIRGINIA 58, BAYLOR 14 Grier throws for three touchdowns for Mountaineers Will Grier threw three touchdown passes and No. 13 West Virginia used a big second quarter to cruise to a 58-14 victory over Baylor on Thursday night. The Mountaineers (6-1, 4-1 Big 12) bounced back from a blowout loss at Iowa State with arguably their best performances of the sea son on both sides of the ball. During a 31-point second quarter, Grier had TD tosses of 25 and 65 yards to David Sills, and Grier ran for a 1-yard score for a 41-0 halftime lead. It marked the most points in a quarter for the Mountaineers since they scored 35 against Clemson in the Orange Bowl following the 2011 season. West Virginia had 10 first-half drives, com piled 435 yards by the break and 568 overall. “We needed to go out and play well and we did. It’s what our team needed,” West Virginia coach Dana Holgorsen said. “It’s going to give us momentum for what we know is going to be a tough November.” Grier had his best game in the span of a month after getting sacked seven times against Iowa State, throwing three intercep tions in the red zone against Kansas and fail ing to get the Mountaineers into the end zone in the second half at Texas Tech. He was limited to 100 passing yards in the 30-14 loss to the Cyclones two weeks ago and had 302 by halftime Thursday. He finished 17 of 27 for 353 yards and sat out the fourth quarter. Baylor (4-4, 2-3) was limited to 287 total yards. “I didn’t see it coming,” Baylor coach Matt Rhule said. “I thought our defense hung in there early, as the offense had some unchar acteristic turnovers.” Charlie Brewer, who nearly brought Bay lor back from a 38-13 fourth-quarter deficit against West Virginia as a freshman last year, threw three interceptions and was replaced by Jalan McClendon in the second quarter. Rhule said Brewer “looked a little out of it” as he left the field and was being evaluated for a potential injury that Rhule didn’t specify. Brewer went 1 of 8 for 22 yards. Evan Staley kicked three field goals for West Virginia. His 44-yarder in the third quar ter boosted the lead to 44-0. THE TAKEAWAY BAYLOR: The Bears lost their third straight road game to a ranked league oppo nent. They still have plenty of chances to get two more wins to become bowl eligible a year after going 1-11 in Rhule’s first season. Baylor dropped to 0-4 against West Virginia in Morgantown. WEST VIRGINIA: The defense had 12 tack les for losses, including five sacks, and was noticeably better after what defensive coordi nator Tony Gibson pointed out were 31 missed tackles in the team’s only loss. Associated Press NFL ERIC SMITH I Associated Press Houston Texans quarterback and Gainesville High graduate Deshaun Watson (4) is lifted by teammate Nick Martin (66) as they celebrate a touchdown against the Miami Dolphins during the second half of Thursday’s game in Houston. Watson throws for 5 scores Gainesville grad leads Texans to fifth straight win Associated Press Gainesville High graduate Deshaun Watson matched his career high with five touchdown passes to lead the Houston Texans to their fifth straight victory, 42-23 over the Miami Dolphins on Thursday night. The Texans (5-3) have left their 0-3 start behind with their longest single season winning streak since reeling off six victories in a row in 2012. Watson threw touchdown passes of 13, 2, 73, 49 and 2 yards to give him 34 career scoring passes to move ahead of Dan Marino (32) for second- most through in NFL history after 15 games. Miami’s Brock Osweiler, who had one tough season in Houston after signing a $72 million contract in 2016, threw for 241 yards with an intercep tion in his third straight start in place of injured starter Ryan Tannehill. Kenyan Drake had a touchdown run and touchdown reception for the Dolphins (4-4). They lost for the sec ond straight week. Rookie Jordan Thomas caught the first two touchdown passes of his career, DeAndre Hopkins had 82 yards receiving and two scores and Will Fuller added 124-yards receiv ing and a touchdown. Texans running back Lamar Miller, who grew up in Miami and spent his first four seasons with the Dolphins, had 133 yards rushing and a touchdown for his second straight 100-yard game. Houston led by 8 when Watson threw a 49-yard touchdown pass to Hopkins on the first play of the fourth quarter to make it 35-20. Watson found the speedy Fuller in front of the defense for a 73-yard touchdown that left Houston up 28-17 late in the third quarter. It was the longest touchdown pass of Watson’s career and the longest reception of Fuller’s. Fuller has caught 11 touch down passes in 11 career games with Watson. The Dolphins used a 41-yard field goal to cut the lead to 28-20 with less than a minute left in the third quarter. MEET ■ Continued from 1B third-best time (20:10). RIVERSIDE MILITARY QUAL IFIES FOR STATE: Austin Erick son was 15th overall (19:08) for the Eagles who finished fourth as a team at the Class A-Area 2 championship on Thursday in Peachtree Corners. Riverside Military won the fourth- place tie against Providence Chris tian by way of its sixth-place runner having a better time (Cooper Lind say, 19:56). In the girls’ race, Lakeview Acad emy’s Sarah Nivens was 14th overall. SOFTBALL LOCUST GROVE 2, BUFORD 0: Ansleigh Hollifield recorded six strikeouts for Buford in the first round of the Class 5A state tourna ment in Columbus. With the loss, the Lady Wolves face Villa Rica in the loser’s bracket on Friday in Columbus. FOOTBALL CLARKE CENTRAL 55, JOHN SON 3: With the loss the Knights fall to 4-5 and 0-4 in Region 8-5A. Johnson hosts Loganville at 7:30 p.m. on Nov. 2 in Oakwood. Compiled by Marcus Etienne High school scores can be reported by 10:30 p.m. each day by calling 770-718-3415 or email sports@ gainesvilletimes.com
