By: Robert Driggers
It’s not often that a coach will change his game plan during the course of a game, but that is just what Coach Greg Langdale did against Florence Christian Academy Friday night in an impressive 26-8 win.
“We knew coming into the game that they had a high powered offense, and we thought that we would have to score a bunch of points to win the game. I credit our kids for playing tough and allowing us to adjust our game plan,“ said Langdale.
The Warhawks found the perfect recipe for success in defeating the Florence Christian Eagles-a defense that bent but didn’t break, creating numerous turnovers, and running a ball control offense. This combination resulted in a huge win for the Warhawks
CPA jumped out to a 14-0 halftime score, thanks in part to three costly turnovers by the Eagles on three of their first four possessions. Unable to move the ball against the Eagles on their first possession, the Warhawks punted the ball to the Eagles. After the Eagles managed a first down, the Warhawks caused a fumble that was recovered on the Eagles 30-yd line.
It took the Warhawks only four plays to score, with quarterback Cole Davis scoring from the 5 yard line. Conner Nettles’ extra point was good, and the score was 7-0 with 7:46 remaining in the first quarter.
The Warhawks would then block a punt on the Eagles 3rd possession at the 35 yard line. It would only take four plays for Cole Davis to find the end zone for the second time in the half, and a 15 yard run to make the score 13-0. Nettles’ pass was good, making the score 14-0 with11:07 left in the half. There would be no more scoring in the half, although the Hawks did have a 62-yard touchdown run called back because of a penalty,
Florence Christian received the second half kick-off and promptly returned it to the Warhawks’ 24 yard line. It would take the Eagles six plays to score, which made it 14- 6 with 9:09 left in the third quarter. The two point conversion was good, and the score became 14-8.
On their first possession of the second half, the Hawks went to a run-oriented ball control offense running off a 9 play drive, only to fumble on the Eagles’ 28 yard line with 3:03 left in the 3rd quarter. The Eagles would then began a drive to the Warhawks’ 25 yard line before turning the ball over on downs.
After picking up a first down, the Hawks needed a big play. Cole Davis promptly completed a pass to Caden Crosby, who managed to beat his man for a 50 yard completion to the Eagles’ 5 yard line. Cole Davis then scored his third touchdown of the night, with a 5 yard run on the next play to make the score 20-8. The pass was no good, so the score remained 20-8.
On the ensuing kick-off, the Eagles fumbled the ball where Will Brady recovered the ball on the Eagles’ 42 with 5:20 left in the game. It took the Warhawks just 5 plays with the aid of a face mask penalty to score. Cole Davis did the honors again, rushing for his 4th touchdown of the night from six yards out to make the score 26-8. The pass was no good, leaving the score at 26-8.
Colleton Prep had over 332 yards of offense while holding the Eagles to just 197 total yards. The Warhawks were led by quarterback Cole Davis as he rushed for 139 yards on 22 carries, while his brother Caleb rushed for 62 yards on 10 carries. Caden Crosby had two catches for approximately 65 yards.
“This was a very big win for our program and our team. Really a big win for our team, against one of the better teams we will face this year. I can’t say enough about the play of our defense tonight, which allowed us to change our game plan. As good as our defensive line played, I am equally proud of the way the offensive line took control of the game. We challenged that group at half-time and told them we were putting the team on their shoulders for them to carry us. There is a lot of experience up front and they really did a very nice job,” said Langdale.
‘Defensively, I thought the whole defensive line set the tone for our defense. Their play allowed our linebackers to run free and make tackles. I really thought that Caden Crosby played well in the secondary, as he made some outstanding open field tackles,” he continued. “(There are) lots of good and positive things to build on from this game. One game does not make a season-we still have ten to play. We will turn our attention to Northwoods Academy and work on the mistakes from Friday night,” the coach reported.
The Warhawks are 1-0 and will looking for number 2 as they get set to travel to Northwood Academy next Friday night. Kick-off is at 7:30 PM.
