DECATUR —
Junior Jamoral Graham has been gaining steady interest in the recruiting ranks in the past several weeks. But at Newton County, "Smokey" must abide by the same exact rules as his teammates.
So when Newton County High School’s football team took the field for its first home action of 2012 Friday night, Graham walked the sidelines serving a first-quarter "suspension" as the result of a missed practice. To say he was itching to make an impact might be an understatement.
Graham’s five second-quarter touches netted 150 yards and two touchdowns, and Newton County steamrolled Choctaw Central 51-6 for the Cougars’ second consecutive win to start the season.
A week after piling up 313 all-purpose yards in a big win at Southeast Lauderdale, Graham had 150 just in the second quarter Friday night — helping his teammates turn a 10-0 first-quarter lead into a bulging, 38-0 advantage by halftime.
"He missed the first quarter because he missed practice. We started something new when I got here ... practice is important, and we’re going to hold these guys accountable," first-year Newton County head coach Jackie Williamson said. "They have to learn to do what’s right now; and that’s anybody, whether they’re a starter or not.
"Looks like he was certainly ready to go once he hit the field," Williamson said of Graham, who literally counted down the seconds on the first-quarter clock while on the sideline. "He was like a caged animal over here; he was ready and raring to go. He made the most of it when he got out there; didn’t waste any time."
Graham’s teammates had already set the tone for the contest in the first quarter, getting a 23-yard touchdown run from Michael Lee and a 29-yard field goal from Bryden Reed for a 10-0 lead.
In fact, the Cougars scored on their first eight possessions of the night.
Just 1 minute, 54 seconds into the second quarter, freshman quarterback Jacob Edwards found Graham on a 40-yard pass-and-run for a touchdown, then Xavier Sharkey scored on a 12-yard run to push Newton Countys lead to 24-0.
Following a three-and-out by the Choctaw Central offense, Graham got busy again with a 76-yard touchdown run on Newton County’s next offensive play. And, three plays after Choctaw lost its second fumble of the opening half, Edwards found Joe Wansley on a 6-yard touchdown pass to make it 38-0.
Rod Smith added an 18-yard touchdown run early in the third quarter for Newton County, and Jadarius Patrick finished the scoring for the Cougars with a 15-yard touchdown run late in the third period.
Choctaw Central (1-2) avoided the shutout when Demarcus Wilson hit Janerra Bolin on a long pass over the middle, and Bolin made a juggling catch while fighting for the ball with a defender and raced 75 yards for a touchdown with 9:09 remaining.
That was the only pass completion of the night for the Warriors, who managed just 39 yards on the ground.
"Our coaches had a great defensive game plan," Williamson said. "We really wanted to stuff that fullback and knew everything else could take care of itself if we did.
"We did a good job of that and of cutting down on that option on the outside. They only had one first down while the starters were in there and you can’t ask for much more than that."
Newton County, meanwhile, totaled 423 yards — 304 of them in the first half.
Graham had 89 yards on just three rushing attempts and nine Cougars ran the ball 35 times for 388 yards on the night.
Edwards had 39 yards on five carries and was 6-of-8 passing for 135 yards and two touchdowns.
Sports
Graham, Newton County race past Choctaw
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Titles nothing new for Newton County
Newton County captured its seventh fast-pitch state championship, outscoring defending champion Houston 26-3 in two games. The Cougars took home the title despite not having a single senior on their roster –– still, few were surprised.
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Embry completes 5A title sweep
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Morgan takes runner-up at Nationals
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(PHOTOS) Newton County wins Class 4A
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Newton County beats Houston 10-0 to claim 7th fast-pitch championshi
Players from Newton County’s dugout barely made it to the foul line before a celebratory dogpile ensued here Saturday. Indeed, winning never gets old.
The Lady Cougars blanked Houston 10-0 Saturday at Freedom Ridge Park, completing an easy sweep of their best-of-three, Class 4A State Championship Series and gaining a measure of revenge after falling short a year ago. -
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