All of the good homecoming vibes for Jenkins High School were soured in shocking fashion by visiting Wayne County on Friday, September 23 at Memorial Stadium. Wayne won 17-14, scoring 11 points in the game’s final seven minutes to stun head coach Tony Welch and the Warriors.
Jenkins led 14-6 with just under seven minutes to play in the game and the Yellow Jackets facing a fourth and short from their own 20. Matthew Fuller took a handoff from a shotgunned quarterback and made one move at the line of scrimmage before dashing 80 yards for a touchdown. The junior converted on the two-point attempt with a direct snap run to tie the game at 14-14.
The Warriors (1-4) were forced to punt around midfield on its next possession. The Yellow Jackets answered with a long, time consuming drive down to the HVJ 2 before using its last timeout to set up a 19-yard game winning field goal from Davis Tanner with only seven seconds left on the clock.
Wayne County (4-1) was ranked No. 10 by the Atlanta Journal Constitution in this week’s Class 4A poll. According to the Georgia High School Football Historians Database, Jenkins has a record of 1-27 all-time in regular season games against opponents ranked in the AJC’s top-10.
Head coach Jaybo Shaw’s team started quickly. The Yellow Jackets recovered a fumble by Jenkins on the opening kickoff of the game before scoring five plays later on Fuller’s three-yard rushing touchdown. They missed the PAT but held a 6-0 lead into the second quarter.
The Warriors took a 7-6 lead with 10:09 remaining in the second after a high snap sailed over the Wayne County punter’s head and into the endzone where Billy Johnson recovered it for a Jenkins touchdown.
John Seidensticker’s attempted 32-yard field goal in the second stanza was blocked when Wayne defenders broke through the HVJ offensive line and easily got to the kick.
It stayed 7-6 in favor of Jenkins heading into the halftime break, largely due to the Warrior defense clamping down on the Wayne running game. But that didn’t last.
Fuller rushed for over 200 yards and two scores last week and he was held to just 42 yards on 11 first half carries against HVJ. He finished the game with 217 rushing yards and two scores on 23 carries for his second straight 200-plus yard rushing performance. Wayne County completed two passes on 11 attempts for the entire game. The Yellow Jackets were penalized seven times and the Warriors five (four in first half).
Jenkins forced a three-and-out from Wayne County to open the second half and, on the ensuing HVJ drive, the Warriors scored on a 23-yard run up the gut by senior running back Joshua Pridgen. It was Pridgen’s third rushing score of the year and he finished the game with 58 yards on 17 carries. Troy Smith caught two passes for 21 yards to lead the Warriors in the aerial game, but Jenkins was never able to sustain a true passing attack.
After a bye week, Jenkins will open region 1-5A play at No. 3 ranked Ware County on October 7 in Waycross.
WCO – 6 - 0 - 0 - 11 – 17
HVJ – 0 - 7 - 7 - 0 - 14
HALF: HVJ, 7-6.
RECORDS: WCO 4-1; HVJ 1-4.
NEXT: HVJ at Ware (10/7).
The Final Score
WEEK 5 SCHEDULE
FRIDAY SEPT. 23
GHSA 7A-Region 1
Coffee Co. 51, Richmond Hill 17
GHSA 3A-Region 3
Beach 28, Groves 0
Calvary Day 34, Savannah Christian 28
Johnson 22, Liberty County 21
Long County 28, Savannah Country Day 14
GHSA 2A-Region 3
Vidalia 36, Windsor Forest 14
SCISA 2A Region I
Bethesda 52, Palmetto Christian 6
GHSA Non-Region
Effingham County 29, South Effingham 3
Wayne County 17, Jenkins 14
Benedictine 26, Bolles School 7
Telfair County 36, Bryan County 20
GHSA/GIAA Non-Region
Bulloch Academy 42, Savannah High 0
GIAA Non-Region
St. Andrew's 43, Memorial Day 0
FOLLOW Travis Jaudon on Twitter/Instagram @JaudonSports. Email him at travisLjaudon@gmail.com.
Optim Orthopedics supports Benedictine Military School, Calvary Day School, Richmond Hill High School, Savannah Country Day, South Effingham High School, and St. Vincent's athletics. Benedictine Military School's team doctor is Dr. David Sedory. The team doctor for Calvary Day School, South Effingham, and Richmond Hill is Dr. David Palmer. Savannah Country Day and St. Vincent's team doctor is Dr. Thomas Alexander. Remember, Optim Orthopedics gets you back into the game!
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