DOUGLAS – Lightning interruptions, more than a dozen penalties, and Coffee’s pounding running game proved to be a combination Ware County couldn’t overcome last week in the renewal of the Border War between 10thranked teams in their respective classes.
After a delayed start, and three more interruptions for lightning, the Class 6A Trojans (2-0) ran through the penaltyplagued Gators to a 27-7 victory August 28 at Jardine Stadium in their 54th annual match. The Trojans, who lead the series 31-23, rushed for 331 yards and received all its touchdowns from bullish sophomore Xavier Littleton to control the contest.
Class 5A Ware County (1-1) damaged its hopes with 13 penalties for 113 yards, 10 coming in the lightning-marred first half for 90 of the total. Six of 13 infractions were of the major variety.
Thanks to the running game, which represented all of Coffee’s yardage total, the Trojans survived 10 penalties for 85 yards and a pair of fumbles. It also allowed them to control the clock (30:13 to 17:47), running 62 total plays — only two passing — leading to 19 first downs.
“We came over here and made it about Coffee,” Ware County head coach Jason Strickland said. “They’re too good and we’re not mature enough right now from a team standpoint to be able to overcome penalties. When you play a bad team you can’t do it (penalties). When you’re playing somebody the caliber of Coffee, you certainly can’t do it.
The game started 26 minutes after its scheduled 7:30 p.m. kickoff because lightning appeared in the area about 6:45 p.m. It moved inside the fieldclearing, 10-mile radius about 15 minutes later halting the pre-game warmups.
Once the game started, the teams played less than three minutes before the siren sounded again and the field was cleared a couple of minutes after 8 p.m. Play didn’t resume until 8:56 with a hard rain falling.
The game was stopped twice again in the second quarter, once at the 6:49 mark and again with just 14 seconds left. Once the all-clear was given, the rivals played those final seconds and took a three-minute break for halftime before starting again, this time uninterrupted but in a steady shower.
Beset with seven offensive infractions that got it behind the chains, Ware County managed just 42 total yards and five first downs — two on Coffee penalties — on its 36 plays. Ma’Siyer “MooMoo” McKoy scored the Gators’ lone touchdowns on a oneyard run late in the fourth period. He led Ware County in rushing with 11 yards on six carries.
“Early on we let the moment get to us. We were too emotional instead of getting the emotion out and executing,” Strickland said. “I thought Coffee did a better job of that than us.”
Coffee got its first touchdown off its longest drive of the night, going 84 yards in 11 plays spanning the first and second quarters. Littleton, a 6-foot-5, 265pound tight end/running back, capped the possession with a four-yard run with 10:47 left in the half. Cris Hernandez followed with the first of his three conversion kicks in four attempts for a 7-0 lead.
Ware County quarterback Isaiah White, who was 9-for-19 passing for 37 yards, suffered one of his two interceptions on the ensuing play. The Gators, however, forced a punt that started a string of six straight possessions between the teams ending with a punt the remainder of the half.
The Trojans stretched the lead to 14-0 off the second half kickoff. Senior running back Bobby Reynolds, who had 164 yards on 31 carries, ran six straight times for 49 yards to set up Littleton’s second score, a 22-yarder as a wildcat quarterback.
After the kickoff, Ware County recorded its initial first down — on a defensive holding call on a pass attempt — and another on an eight-yard run by McKoy. However, a sack and two runs for negative yards led to another punt.
Coffee sealed the issue with a 79-yard, 16-play possession that covered nearly eight minutes (7:55) in the third and fourth periods. Again at quarterback, Littleton ran up the middle for a 12-yard touchdown with 8:01 left for a 20-0 lead when Hernandez missed the conversion kick.
“Coffee’s offense is designed to get the three-, four-, five-yard gains,” Strickland said. “By the fourth quarter, being on the field all that time wears on you and those (runs) turn into 20-yard gains.”
The Gators got a break after again punting on the following possession. Camron Carswell fumbled the punt after being hit by his own man, and Elon Jones recovered for Ware at the Coffee 25.
With the help of a pass interference penalty on first down, the Gators scored with 5:19 left when McKoy skirted right end from a yard out as the wildcat quarterback. Jeffrey Gonzales, who also punted seven times for a 34-yard average, added the extra point to make it 207.
Coffee put the game away after recovering an onside kick attempt at its 48. Reynolds ripped off 23 yards on the first play, and three plays and a penalty later, Littleton tallied from eight yards with 3:16 left. He also ran for four touchdowns in Coffee’s opening win against Parkview.
“Obviously, we’re very disappointed because we wanted to win the game,” Strickland said. “But moreso, we’re disappointed in ourselves because we’re better than what we showed tonight.”
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