After flying high against Banks County last Friday, Elbert County came back down to earth. The Elbert County Blue Devils and the Athens Academy Spartans were almost perfectly matched up on Friday, but the Elbert County Blue Devils suffered a 35-34 loss. Despite running the score up even higher than they did in their prior game last Friday (33), the Blue Devils still had to take the loss.
Elbert County's loss came despite strong showings from Jacari Barnett and Jayvyn Hickman. Barnett rushed for 177 yards and three touchdowns, while Hickman rushed for 187 yards and a touchdown while picking up 7.2 yards per carry. Barnett's rushing production has been exceptional recently as that marked his fifth straight game with at least 130 rushing yards dating back to last season.
Even though they lost, Elbert County was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 364 rushing yards. That's the most rushing yards they've posted since the start of last season.
Athens Academy's win was the result of several impressive offensive performances. One of the most notable came from Hampton Johnson, who rushed for 77 yards and a touchdown on only nine carries, and also threw for 143 yards and two touchdowns. Jamari Welch was another key player, rushing for 122 yards and two touchdowns on only 15 carries.
Elbert County now has a losing record at 4-5. As for Athens Academy, the win for them keeps them at an undefeated 9-0.
Coincidentally, both will both be playing Rabun County the next time they take the field. Athens Academy will host Rabun County at 7:30 p.m. on Friday, while Elbert County will head out to face them at 7:30 p.m. on November 1st.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
