(BLAKELY, GA) Lincoln County will play Bowdon for the Class A Division II state football championship on Monday, December 15, at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in downtown Atlanta. The pigskin will fly at 3:30 when the two traditionally strong teams of Red Devils collide.
Bowdon surprised Clinch County 45-6 in Homerville in what was expected to be a close game with the undefeated and second-ranked Panthers. The western Red Devils have scored at least 42 points in all of their victories other than a forfeit win over an Alabama team. They are 12-2 with the two losses coming to higher-class schools that lost in the semifinals last week. Bowdon was ranked #1 until the first of those losses.
Georgia-commit Kaiden Prothro (#1) leads the Bowdon offensive attack with a state-career-record 65 touchdowns. Against Clinch last Friday, he caught two TD passes, returned an interception for a touchdown, and recovered a blocked punt for a touchdown. Before Friday, he had 50 receptions for 931 yards and 24 TDs this season. Joshua Hopkins (#2) is their quarterback with 124 completions in 186 attempts for 2,074 yards and 39 TDs (before Clinch). He is also their leading rusher with over 1,100 yards and 14 TDs. Lucki Bailey (#18) leads the defense with at least 44 solo tackles and 69 assists.
Bowdon has won the last three state football titles. That includes a 45-28 win over LCHS in the 2022 semifinals in Bowdon. Lincoln lost a second round playoff game 14-6 there in 2001. The first meeting between the two long-time powerhouses was the 1989 Class A championship game in Lincolnton when Garrison Hearst returned an interception for a touchdown to seal a 24-7 victory.
The game will be broadcast/streamed on 98.7 FM radio and televised on GPB.
Friday's game against Early County was played in a cold drizzle on a very wet field, as the head official found out on the first play of the game. The wet conditions may have contributed to each team losing two fumbles. Big Red held the Bobcats to 31 yards in the first half to take a 20-0 lead at the break. Two second-half touchdowns brought the final margin to 34-0. Lincoln County improves to 14-0, its most wins since 2006 when it last played in the finals. The Red Devils are 14-8 in state finals.
The Red Devils took the opening kickoff but a personal foul penalty started them at their 23. Christian Elam gained four before Kelby Glaze was stopped cold. Facing 3rd-&-6, speedster Jonathan Norman took the handoff, went through the middle of the line, and then scampered down the right sideline for 73 yards and a touchdown. Fortson Partridge booted the PAT and the Devils led 7-0 with 10:24 remaining in the opening quarter.
The Devil Defense held the Bobcats to five yards on their first drive and forced a punt. LCHS had big gains of 20 and 44 yards nullified by penalties and punted. Another exchange of punts took the teams into the second quarter. The Devil Defense again stopped the Bobcats with only two net yards to force another punt. The snap was fumbled and the Devils recovered at the EC 14. Elam rushed for four before Glaze scored from the 10. Partridge's kick was good for a 14-0 advantage midway the second.
Early lost a yard on their next possession. Norman returned the pigskin 30 yards but an illegal block put the Devils at their own 36. Lincoln
drove on the ground with Glaze gaining 14 for 1st-&-goal at the EC 5. Mekhi Wade scored with just under a minute left in the half. The PAT kick failed, but the Devils led 20-0 on this rainy night in Georgia.
The Bobcats again managed only one yard against the Devil Defense and punted. Norman returned the ball two yards to the EC 40. Glaze then went right untouched on a 40-yard jaunt. Partridge kicked the extra point for a commanding 27-0 lead with 10:11 to play in the third. Glaze rushed 11 times for 96 yards in the game.
Travis Franklin recovered a Bobcat fumble at the LC 37. The Devils drove to the EC 23 before losing the handle with Early recovering at its 24. The teams exchanged another set of fumbles with the Bobcats starting from their 19. Three plays later Norman intercepted and returned the ball about 30 yards to the EC 8. Franklin ran for three before Elam gained one. Aiden Jones then went left and scored on a four-yard run. The PAT kick was good and the Devils led 34-0 with 8:20 remaining.
With Lincoln County substituting to protect their starters and get younger players some field time, Early made its best offensive progress of the night, reaching the LC 32. Franklin then grabbed a Bobcat pass and reached the end zone 75 yards later. Unfortunately an illegal block flag brought the ball back to the LC 15. The final four minutes ran off without a serious scoring threat.
Despite the five-hour drive, the Red Devil faithful outnumbered the home team fans and were vocal, especially on some questionable officiating calls and non-calls.