Habersham Central and White County remain unbeaten as we enter Week 2, and they’ll both square off in Mt. Airy in what will be a great litmus test for both teams.
Habersham put up school records in points (72), total offense (803 yds) and rushing yards (624) in a Week 0 72-55 win at East Hall. They had a week to recuperate and gear up for a local rival matchup against neighboring White County, who puts its 2-0 record to the test. The Warriors defeated Franklin County 33-0 to open the season in Week 0, and followed that up last week with a 66-14 blowout win over rivals Lumpkin County. Not a bad start for new head coach Tim Cokely.
Here are the details for Friday night’s Week 2 game vs White County:
TIME: 7:30 pm kickoff
PLACE: John Larry Black Field (Habersham Central)
LAST MEETING: Raiders won 29-23 in a 2016 thriller in Cleveland
ALL-TIME RECORD: Raiders have won 5 of 7
RECORDS: Habersham Central (1-0); White County (2-0)
HIGHLIGHTS: Available per BLITZ, reported late by Now Habersham, and High 5 Sports on Fox 5 (courtesy of BLITZ)
HISTORICALLY SPEAKING:
Habersham won in dramatic fashion in 2016 with a 29-23 win on the road at White County, snapping a two-game losing streak in the series. The Warriors had won in 2012 and 2013 by scores of 31-0 and 35-14, respectively. The Raiders won the first four meetings all-time in 1990, ’91, ’98 and ’99.
PLAYERS TO WATCH:
HABERSHAM CENTRAL:
AJ Curry (SR QB): 179 pass yds, 3 TD, 1 INT; 147 rush yds, TD
Baylor Hinshaw (SR RB): 235 yds, 2 TD
Daniel Matkovic (JR RB): 224 yds, 4 TD
Jim Barnett (SR WR/CB): 4 rec, 68 yds, 2 TD; 2 tackles, 3 pass break-ups, fumble rec
Donovan Curry (JR WR): 2 rec, 70 yds, TD; 7 tackles
Trey Wetherton (SR WR):
Carson Moore (SR CB): 1 tackle
Carson Taylor (SR OLB): 8 tackles, 0.5 TFL
Garrett Kinsey (SR MLB): 4 tackles
Offensive Line: Give the front line a LOT of credit for paving the lanes for Curry, Matkovic and Hinshaw in Week 0
WHITE COUNTY:
Kaleb Crane (SR RB/LB): 300+ rush yds, 5 TD
J-Ben Haynes (FR QB): 200 pass yds, 4 TD in win over Lumpkin
Desmond Lowery (SR RB): Athletically gifted back
Bailey Anderson (RB): will get some quality carries
Brett Bardenwerper (SR K): Solid kicker
Will Anglin (SR LB): Ball hawk
Cody Versluis (JR WR): a top target for Haynes
