Indian Football Drops Second Straight Region Game

A strong second half propels North Oconee to a region football win over Stephens County.

The Indians and Titans were tied at halftime, but North Oconee took control in the third quarter and defeated Stephens County, 31-21 on Friday night in Bogart.

“Like we talked about last week, playing hard is not good enough at this level when you are trying to beat people and get in the playoffs,” said Stephens County Head Coach Wesley Tankersley. “You have to play hard and execute at the same time. We did not execute. We made too many mistakes and that is why we lost the football game. Ultimately, that falls on me but we all have to do a better job.”

The teams traded touchdowns in the first half.

North Oconee scored first, less than two minutes into the game, when Caleb Shearer threw a 36-yard touchdown pass to Kyle Shearer to give the Titans a 7-0 lead.

However, the Indians bounced back as touchdown runs of one yard and 50 yards from Hudson Spurlock gave Stephens County a 14-7 lead after the first quarter.

North Oconee tied it at 14 early in the second quarter on an eight-yard touchdown run by Ryan Coats.

Stephens County retook the lead at 21-14 with less than two minutes until halftime on a 19-yard touchdown pass from Kenny Colwell to Gamarian Carter, only to see the Titans tie it right before intermission at 21 on a 5-yard touchdown pass from Caleb Shearer to Hayden Bagley.

After the Indians fumbled the opening second half kickoff, Caleb Shearer scored on an 11-yard touchdown run to give North Oconee a 28-21 lead early in the third quarter.

The Titans extended their lead to 31-21 early in the fourth quarter on a 36-yard field goal by Thomas Dowis.

Stephens County moved inside the North Oconee inside the 10-yard line in the fourth quarter, but could not convert a fake field goal and the Titans ran out the clock to pick up the region win.

Stephens County falls to 4-4 overall on the season and 0-2 in the region with the loss. Meanwhile, North Oconee moves to 7-2 overall and 2-1 in the region.

The Indians host Madison County on Senior Night at the Reservation this coming Friday night in a must-win game for Stephens County’s playoff hopes, while North Oconee heads down the road to visit Oconee County.

Stephens County Farm Bureau Player of the Game – DaMarcus Knox
Hart EMC Lineman of the Game – Garrison Walker
X-Factor Sub of the Game – Kyle Watson
First Baptist Church Spirit Award – William Rudeseal