No. 8
Buford took down No. 18
Mill Creek (Hoschton) 39-27 on Friday night in a showdown between unbeaten high school football powers from Georgia. Between the two programs, a total of 37 players have scholarship and they provided plenty of highlights, especially five-star senior Alabama commits
Justice Haynes of Buford and
Caleb Downs of Mill Creek.
Haynes rushed for 211 yards and two crucial scores. First he scored on a 56-yard run in the third quarter to give the Wolves a 32-14 lead. After Downs scored two rushing touchdowns of his own for Mill Creek to cut the lead to 32-27, Haynes again got into the end zone on a 17-yard touchdown. That carry took Haynes over 200 yards on the night and gave Buford a 39-27 lead midway through the fourth quarter.
Haynes, the nation’s No. 2-rated running back according to 247Sports, also became the sixth player in Georgia history to eclipse 7,000 yards in his career.
Alabama-bound Justice Haynes helped Buford stay unbeaten with over 200 yards on the ground and a pair of touchdowns against Mill Creek. The Wolves have won 32 in a row against Georgia opponents. (Photo: Michael Mixon)
The future Crimson Tide running back also helped Buford get on the board first.
On Buford’s first drive, Virginia Tech commit
Dylan Wittke kept it himself for a short touchdown run. That came a play after Haynes threw a 24-yard pass to sophomore
Jordan Allen to move the Wolves to the 1-yard line.
Downs nearly tied the game up on the next possession. He got into the end zone on a 12-yard run, but a flag nullified it. Instead, the Buford defense featuring five-star juniors
Eddrick Houston and
K.J. Bolden forced a field goal attempt, which was blocked by Bowling Green commit
Alijah Williams.
After an interception by Buford’s
Jadon Perlotte — a five-star sophomore — the Wolves took an 11-0 lead.
Mill Creek quickly drove down the field and cut the lead to 11-6 on a 36-yard pass from quarterback
Hayden Clark to senior three-star
Makhail Wood.
That one-score deficit didn’t last long as Wittke hit senior tight end
Eli McElwaney from 26-yards out to make it 18-6.
Buford quickly forced a punt and on the return Allen returned the kick 82-yards for a touchdown that gave the Wolves a 25-6 lead midway through the second quarter.
Down by 19, Mill Creek fed Downs the ball. First he had a 25-yard run and then a 19-yard catch before he scored on a 12-yard run to cut the lead to 11.
Early in the third quarter, Haynes got on the board himself by running for a 56-yard touchdown to give Buford a 32-14 lead.
Mill Creek wasn’t going away. The Hawks methodically drove down the field and finished off the drive with a 12-yard touchdown pass from Clark to senior
Brendan Jenkins, cutting the Buford lead to 32-20.
After Buford fumbled a punt, Downs scored again and Mill Creek trailed by five.
Haynes then put the game away with a 17-yard rush to give Buford a 39-27 lead.
Buford (7-0) and Mill Creek (6-1) could meet again in the 7A state playoffs.
Senior offensive lineman Ian Chandler celebrates a touchdown in front of a packed house at Buford. (Photo: Michael Mixon)
