CHATSWORTH —
The middle name of Coahulla Creek quarterback Blaine Williams is Hunter, which is the name he has been known by since he was a kid. But with two other players on the Colts’ team with the name Hunter, Williams decided to go with his true first name for his second season with the Colts because things were getting confusing.
No matter which one he uses, he’s doing a good job of making a name for himself.
Williams threw for four touchdowns and ran for another on Friday night at Murray Field, rolling up 271 yards of total offense on his arm and his legs to lead the Colts to a 55-6 victory over Murray County in the school’s first varsity football contest.
“I’ve dreamed about this my whole life,” Williams said. “I remember going to games when I was a kid and thinking how much I wanted to do that when I grew up a little. I wanted to be underneath the lights on Friday night. It was a dream come true tonight.”
The Colts played a junior varsity schedule in 2011, going 8-2, but coach Jared Hamlin said that until his team laced up the shoes and took the field at night, he wasn’t sure exactly what he had. As this week progressed, Hamlin said both he and his team were getting a game vibe.
“Monday was just an ‘all right’ kind of practice for us, and Tuesday got a little bit better, and then Wednesday was one of the best practices that we have ever had,” Hamlin said. “I knew that if we played like we practiced, then everything would be fine. They exceeded what I expected.”
They were also surprising. The Colts based out of four-man front defense when they played in their preseason scrimmage, but against the Indians’ flexbone offense, Christian Heritage came out in a five-man front and took advantage early. Taking away Murray County’s mid-line trap plays by moving tackle Cordarius Tarver over the nose, the Colts held the Indians to just one first down and 14 yards of total offense in the first quarter of the game.
“It feels amazing,” said Tarver, who was in the Indians’ backfield the entire night. “We were just ready to play and ready to make a little history for our school.”
It was a surprise for the Murray County coaches, too.
“They came out in that 50 defense, and we had to make an adjustment we weren’t prepared for,” Indians coach John Hammond said. “Tarver is a specimen. He gets up field at the tackle, and our plan was to trap him and run the mid-line. When he went to the nose, he was beating the double team and disrupting everything.”
While Murray’s offense was flustered, Coahulla Creek’s offense was not suffering from opening-night jitters. Five of their first six possessions resulted in touchdowns for the Colts, and the Indians avoided being down by six touchdowns at the end of the first half on the basis of a Coahulla Creek fumble and a 77-yard catch and sprint from Leon Pritchett.
That was the lone highlight for Murray, but Williams was putting together his own reel.
The junior started off with an 8-yard pass to Jordan Tant that capped a 61-yard, eight-play drive for the school’s first varsity score with 9:43 left in the first. He followed that with a 12-yard scoring run, taking advantage of a short field and gaining all but one yard on his team’s 50-yard drive. Next, he hooked up with Levi Wilson on a 23-yard scoring pass and then connected with Michael Ward on a 35-yard scoring play.
Cameron Burton added a 5-yard run with 1:32 left in the half to give the Colts a 34-0 lead.
“The defense played extremely well with the exception of one big play, and the offense was strong all night,” Hamlin said. “We’ll enjoy it for a day or two, but we go right back to work on Monday. We had some mental mistakes that we made and mental penalties and we have plenty to get to work on.”
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Related Photos
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Matt Hamilton/The Daily Citizen Coahulla Creek nose guard Cordarius Tarver pulls down Murray County’s Leon Pritchett during their game Friday in Chatsworth. Pritchett scored the Indians’ lone touchdown, a 77-yard pass from Justin Smith.
Discussion
September 1, 2012
Forward progress
Colts make cut, roll in first varsity game
- Sports
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Dalton State notebook: Lady Cats' Ellis ready to fly with Roadrunners
Dalton High School senior Madison Ellis smiles as she hugs fellow Lady Cata-mounts cheerleaders Callie Walker and Taylor Cope on Wednesday at the high school. Ellis celebrated signing with Dalton State College. (Matt Hamilton/The Daily Citizen)
Madison Ellis was ready for Dalton State College athletics even before the Roadrunners were ready for her.
Continued ...
That should leave little doubt about what kind of spirit the Dalton High School senior will bring to the college’s cheerleading program when it launches into action later this year. - For Thomas, books come before hoops
- Redmond is new head coach for North Murray baseball
- Decision is a winner
- Coahulla Creek's Blake Phillips will play for Curtis Pride
- Famber to cheer on at GNTC
- King battles but falls at GSGA tournament
- May 21, 2013
- Bruins rise as Marist dominates in Class 4A boys tournament
- Dalton, Megan Collins third at Class 4A girls state tournament
- Blair tied for second, North Murray girls third in 3A
- Mountaineers’ Vess ready for challenge at Emmanuel
- Sandoval will cheer for DSC
- Good day to be King at GSGA tournament
- Georgia coach resigns following losing year
- May 20, 2013
- A look ahead: State golf tournaments today at Nob North, Dalton Golf and Country Club
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