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The Madison County Journal
INSIDE THIS WEEK
Week 6 predictions are in
Check out the football picks for
week 6 of The Madison County
Journal Pigskin Picker
3B
IB
Thursday, October 8, 2009
www.MainstreetnewsSPORTS.com
Ben Munro/ ben@mainstreetnews.com (706) 795-2567
Subvarsity Football
Mustangs face
Stephens Co. in
Saturday finale
By Ben Munro
ben@mainstreetnews.com
COMING
UP
■ MCMS @
Stephens
Co., Sat., 7
p.m
The Madison County Middle School Mustang
football team will shoot for a 4-2 finish when it
takes on Stephens County Saturday on the road in
its season finale.
The game kicks off at 7 p.m.
The Mustangs (3-2) are coming
off a 33-14 loss last Thursday (Oct.
1) to a bigger and faster Elbert
County squad.
Madison County trailed 27-0
before getting on the scoreboard
with fourth-quarter touchdown
passes from Wesley Johnson to Malik Freeman and
Eric Williams. Garrison Harris added a two-point
conversion.
Elbert County closed the door on the Mustangs
by returning an interception for a touchdown for the
final score of the game.
Madison County didn’t start the contest with
much intensity, coach Tim Drake said, and trailed
21-0 at the half.
“We challenged the guys to win the second half
and play with some pride,” Drake said.
The Mustangs responded by shutting out Elbert
County in the third quarter.
— See ‘Subvarsity football’ on page 2B
Thoughts on MCHS’s
playoff hopes and
phantom penalties
Fans talk, so Madison County High School head
football coach Randell Owens knows the playoff
conversation is out there.
After all, his team is 5-1 and alone in second
place in Region 8-AAAA.
But he says any discussion of his team and the
postseason right now is “coffee shop talk.”
In other words, it’s conversation those outside of
the program can afford to have, Owens and com
pany are intently focused on Friday's game with
Loganville, he says.
While football coaches emphat
ically divorce themselves of any
notion of looking ahead, fans and
unbiased observers are free to
play the “what-if' game.
So here goes.
What if ... Madison County
splits its final four games and
goes 7-3?
Will that be enough to lock up
the Raiders’ third state playoff
bid in five seasons?
Going 2-2 over that stretch —
the games are against Loganville,
Heritage, Apalachee and Clarke Central — would
certainly be daunting, but it’s also doable.
If Madison County continues to run the ball
with success and continues to play defense with
reckless abandon like it has recently, it has a
chance to win every night.
So let’s get a little more daring.
How about 3-1 mark in those four games? That
would secure an 8-2 record and possibly hosting
a first-round playoff game. The last time Madison
County did that? 1982.
Don't think that the Raiders wouldn’t sell a few
tickets for a postseason game in November.
Now here comes the real fun. Since this is just
“coffee shop talk,” let’s throw it out there: 4-0.
Do the Raiders have enough in the tank to run
the table against Loganville, Heritage, Apalachee
and Clarke Central and win the school’s first-ever
region title?
Based on conventional thinking, the knee-jerk
reaction is to think “probably not.” This region is
just too unpredictable for anyone to run though
that stretch unscathed.
Then again, these Raiders continue to win
games that many of us probably thought they
— See ‘Munro’ on page 2B
o
Ben Munro
From the
sports desk
Softball
MCHS hosting
region tourney
Final three rounds to be played in D’ville
By Ben Munro
ben@mainstreetnews.com
Note: Results from
Wednesday action in the region
tournament weren’t available
at press time.
One way or another, the
region title will be decided on
Madison County High School’s
softball field.
As of press time Wednesday
morning, it was the Raiders’
goal to be playing on their
home field for that trophy, not
watching as spectators.
By virtue of an unbeaten
— See ‘Softball’ on page 2B
Ariel Bates takes a swing during a recent Madison County softball victory.
The Raiders headed into this past Wednesday’s region tournament opener
with a 22-1 record. Ben Munro/staff
Prep Football Week 7
Loganville @ Madison Co., Fri., 7:30 p.m.
Madison County safety Matt Dean returns an interception in last week’s win over Habersham Central. The defense
forced three turnovers and limited Habersham Central to just 75 total yards in a 35-6 blowout victory. Ben Munro/staff
All about defense
MCHS defenders lead Raiders into another huge region game
By Ben Munro
ben@mainstreetne ws .com
So how does the Madison County
defense top this?
The Red Raiders limited Habersham
Central to a paltry 75 yards of total
offense last Friday, recorded five sacks
and forced three turnovers in a 35-6 drum
ming of the “other" Raiders from Mt.
Airy.
This Friday, Madison County faces
defending region champion Loganville.
“We’ve just got to come out and do it
again ... We’ve all got confidence in each
MORE INSIDE:
•Friday rewind: MCHS whips
Habersham , 35-6 PAGE 3B
•This week’s opponent: See
preview box for ill is week’s
opponent, Loganville, PAGE 2B
other to do what we’re supposed to do,"
Madison County linebacker Donavan
Carey said after the victory.
This unit has reason to be confident.
The Madison County defenders have
surrendered just 22 points in their last two
games as the team has claimed sole pos
session of second place in 8-AAAA.
This week’s task: Stop one of the state’s
top running backs. Storm Johnson, a
highly-touted Division I-A prospect, who
highlights Loganville,
But this is a defense that, over the past
few weeks, has accepted whatever chal
lenge has come its way.
Against Cedar Shoals three weeks ago,
the defensive unit came up with two key
stops late in a 29-28 victory.
— See ‘Defense’ on page 2B
Cross Country
MainStreet Meet ahead for Raider runners Tuesday
The Madison County cross country
teams will run Tuesday in the seventh
MainStreet Newspapers' meet at East
Jackson High School.
The meet, which started in 2003,
involves schools that fall under the
MainStreet coverage area.
Madison County will run against East
Jackson, Banks County, Commerce,
Jackson County and Jefferson.
The event features both middle
school and high school races. The
middle school meet starts at 4:30 p.m.
The high school varsity boys start at 5
COMING UP
■ Madison Co. @ MainStreet
Newspapers meet (E. Jackson), Ties.
p.m. with the girls’ race to follow.
The course is 3.1 miles and starts
in Eagle Stadium and ends in Eagle
Stadium.
No team — boys or girls — has
won this event more than twice. East
Jackson has won the boys' race the
last two years while Jefferson’s girls
have won the girls' side two years
running.
Madison County’s last victory as
a team in this event came in 2004
when the girls’ team took first. The
boys’ team won the meet in 2003.
An individual Madison County
runner hasn’t finished first since 2003
when Derek Smith won the boys' race
and Debbie Ebalobo won the girls’
race.
Madison County, which ran Tuesday
at home (results weren’t available),
has just three meets remaining before
the Region 8-AAAA championships
on Oct. 31.
Mendi Cromer
nears the
finish line
in a recent
meet for the
Madison
County girls’
cross coun
try team.
The Madison
County cross
country run
ners have
three meets
remaining
before the
Oct. 31 Region
8-AAAA cham
pionships. Ben
Munro/staff