larke Central High School varsity football quarterback Hezekiah Millender, a senior, dodges an Alcovy High School defender in a Region 8-AAAAA game against AHS on Oct. 25 in Billy Henderson Stadium. The game was CCHS’s Homecoming game, and featured an enthusiastic student section with large cheers and boos. “It was like in the movies, not a boring (crowd) at all,” CCHS sophomore Gioia Portatadino said. Photo by Marcus Quarles
In a dominating victory, the CCHS varsity football team gave a breakthrough performance in front of a Homecoming crowd.
When Covington, Ga.’s Alcovy High School Tigers varsity football team came knocking at Clarke Central High School’s doors, the Gladiators more than answered.
In a Georgia High School Association Region 8-AAAAA matchup, No. 1 CCHS (6-2, 4-0 in region) took down No. 5 Alcovy (2-6, 1-3) in a 48-3 blowout on Oct. 25, featuring massive plays by varsity football running back Corey Watkins Jr. and quarterback Hezekiah Millender, both seniors.
“(I expected) to dominate, I felt like we could,” CCHS varsity head football coach David Perno said. “(Alcovy) had a big win last week at home against Apalachee (High School), and we needed to pounce them.”
Starting from kickoff, the Gladiator defense suffocated the Tigers’ junior quarterback Ayden Goddard Jr., allowing no first downs in AHS’ opening two drives. Meanwhile, CCHS’ Watkins Jr. blew past the Alcovy defensive line, going for two rushing touchdowns and over 100 yards on the ground six minutes into the game.
“I know that we work for (victory), and why just waste it,” Watkins Jr. said. “We’ve been doing this since January so we already knew our expectations coming into the game”.
Central wasn’t just limited to the ground game, Millender bombed the Alcovy secondary, finding tight end Xayvian Berry, a senior, for a touchdown, making the score 21-0 at the end of the first quarter.
Entering the second quarter, AHS nearly scored a passing touchdown that was eventually ruled incomplete by the referees, prompting anger and yelling toward the referees from the Tigers’ coaching staff. The Gladiators capitalized on the dropped points as Millender found sophomore wide receiver Lagracion Little for a near 70-yard touchdown, blowing past Alcovy’s defensive backs in front of the Homecoming crowd.
“We (were) expecting to win, we knew from the jump,” senior defensive lineman Kelin Fanning said. “We knew— (by) half-time, we should be blowing them up.”
By the middle of the quarter, the Gladiator defense showed signs of fatigue and failed to control multiple rushing attacks from Goddard Jr. Still, incomplete passes plagued the Tiger offense and possession turned over on downs. Millender quickly pushed down the field before delivering a 28-yard pass taken home by wide receiver Troy Rucker, a junior.
“We showed glimpses of (our best) tonight,”
— David Perno,
CCHS varsity head football coach
As the half came to a close, Watkins caught a Millender pass to put Central’s lead into the 40s. Junior kicker Heinkel Mejia-Quintero, 5/5 on PATs previously in the game, missed the extra point.
Following the missed kick, an Alcovy player charged the Central sideline, taunting players and leading to a shoving match between the two sides. Mejia-Quintero did not see the field again for the rest of the game, with kickoffs and extra points being handed off to junior running back Antonio Moore.
“We were a little sloppy coming out of the half,” Perno said. “I didn’t like that.”
The Gladiators received the kickoff in the second half, as Berry charged through the Tiger D-line for an 18-yard rushing touchdown, completed with a good extra point by Moore. Central did not score again, instead subbing quarterback Kamron Lawrence, a sophomore, in for the rest of the half to get game time.
“(If we’re winning), the young guys should get in the game there,” Fanning said.
Clarke Central High School varsity football players run out onto Death Valley in Billy Henderson Stadium in a game against Alcovy High School on Oct. 25. The matchup was the Gladiator’s senior night, and featured multiple players from winter sports at CCHS. “It feels like I was just a kid yesterday, it means a lot— playing for four years,” varsity football running back Corey Watkins Jr., a senior, said. Photo by Grady Dunston
Alcovy carried possession through a long, penalty-heavy seven-minute drive that drained the third quarter, finished by a field goal in the top of the fourth. Central then went on a six-minute drive that ended with Moore’s first punt of the night.
“I’m mad we gave them three points, (I feel) they should’ve gotten zero,” Fanning said. “Whether (the offense) scores or not, we have to do our job.”
With a minute left in the game, Central brought themselves to their 30-yard line before being plagued by consecutive penalties on Troy Rucker for an illegal sweeping motion. The clock expired with an incomplete pass in the end-zone, final score 48-3 Clarke Central.
“We showed glimpses of (our best) tonight,” Perno said. “We overall played a good game.”
Perno and the Gladiators are now looking towards a Nov. 1 matchup at No. 3 Winder-Barrow High School (5-3, 3-1), in a game that will impact both teams’ chances at a Region 8-AAAAA championship.
“(Success) is what we work for, and we have an opportunity to play for a Region championship,” Perno said. “That’s all we can ask.”
