Cougars Fall to Rival Gatewood

Piedmont Academy’s trek through one of the toughest football schedules in school history continued last week as the Cougars fell 49-21 to Gatewood on the road in Eatonton.

In the matchup against the undefeated Class AAA opponent, Piedmont coach Wes Tanner was once again proud of how his players battled throughout the contest.

“The fight and grit of this team never ceases to amaze me,” Tanner said. “I appreciate the way we continue to get after it.”

The Cougars found the end zone on a 2-yard run by J.T. Webb, a 1-yard run by Tate Marks and a 1-yard run by Logan Conner. Ezra King added the extra-point kick after each touchdown.

Marks finished the game 5-of-9 through the air for 52 yards while Conner was the team’s leading rusher with 41 yards. Noah Faubli added 27 yards on 10 carries.

Defensively, Webb led the team with five tackles, five assists and a tackle for a loss. Brett Bush had two tackles and two assists while Parker Clark added one tackle and three assists.

“Our players don’t complain,” Tanner said. “They are a tough bunch. There is light at the end of the tunnel. The way this team has worked is going to pay off.”

Piedmont returns home this week to face the Brentwood Eagles in a 7:30 p.m. kickoff. Brentwood enters the game 2-3 overall and is on a two-game winning streak having defeated Windsor (55-0) and Edmund Burke (21-13) in its last two outings.

“We will be facing another solid opponent,” Tanner said. “They always make the most of what they’ve got.”

The Eagles have long run their offense out of the Wing-T formation although they operate it out of the shotgun now.

“Brentwood is a very good team,” said Piedmont defensive coordinator Michael Wilson. “This week will not be easy. Every one of us, from the support staff to the coaches to the players, has to come to practice each day and pay attention so we can execute our game plan this Friday.”

Brentwood runs the football approximately 70 percent of the time and benefits from an athletic quarterback in Peyton Massengale.

“He might be the most athletic player we will face in the regular season,” Wilson said. “They like to run typical Wing-T players but by being in the shotgun they better utilize their quarterback’s passing and running talent. If we are going to stop them and help our offense, we have to be very disciplined on the defensive side of the football . We have to be aware of down and distance and what is likely going to happen based on their formations and motions.”

Having quality practice sessions this week will be key.

“For our players, they have to come in and listen each day in practice,” Wilson said. “For me, I have to make sure the players are executing the drills perfectly and then transferring that technique into the game. Regardless of who we’ve played in the past, it’s apparent from film I haven’t done a good enough job of making that happen.”

Friday’s game is homecoming for Piedmont.

Players of the Week

vs. Gatewood:

Overall: Trent Coots

Offense: Matthew Griffin

Defense: Noah Faubli

Special Teams: Cameron Mobley

Stats vs. Gatewood:

Offense

•Tate Marks: 5-of-9, 52 yards, 4 carries for 8 yards, 1 TD

•Logan Conner: 12 carries for 41 yards, 1 TD, 1 catch for 12 yards

•Noah Faubli: 10 carries for 27 yards

•Trent Coots: 3 carries for 18 yards

•J.T. Webb: 2 carries for 4 yards, 1 TD, 4 catches for 40 yards

Defense

•J.T. Webb: 5 tackles, 5 assists, 1 tackle for loss

•Brett Bush: 2 tackles, 2 assists

•Parker Clark: 1 tackles, 3 assists

•Trent Coots, 1 tackle

•Cameron Mobley: 1 tackle, 1 assist

•Caleb Fairthcloth: 1 tackle, 2 assists

•Matthew Griffin: 1 tackle

•Noah Faubli: 2 assists

•Logan Conner: 2 assists

•Tanner Coppock: 1 assist

•Tanner Locklear: 1 assist

•Banks Benton: 1 assist

Special Teams:

•Ezra King: 3 PATs