Spalding Football Turns Heads With Upset Win Over Perry
“Hope” was not a word associated with the Spalding football team this year. Nine wins in the past four seasons had not generated any excitement in Griffin, Georgia. The Jaguars weren’t trending in the right direction either, with only one win in each of the last two years.
Carl Kearney was hired in 2020 to be Spalding’s third head coach in three years. Despite the coaching change and on par with the season prior, the Jaguars went 1-9, allowing 35 or more points in 7 of the 9 losses. They only played one top-10 team all season (Baldwin) and were shut out. Heading into the 2021 season, much of the same was expected.
City rival Griffin defeated Spalding soundly in the first football game of this season 32-14. But the Jaguars rebounded quickly with a 35-28 victory over Union Grove, a team they lost to by 31 points last year. With this win, they had matched their 2019 and 2020 win totals. They didn’t stop there.
The Jaguars played their second straight road game at Ola and outplayed the Mustangs on the back of RB Nazir Berry, who racked up 120 yards and a score. Their 27-17 win marked a huge turnaround and seemingly provided momentum. But would it carry?
Against Pike County, the Jaguars got off to a fast start, racking up 21 points in the first quarter. An all-round performance propelled them to a 49-28 win over a program they had lost to by 1 point in 2020. West Laurens, next up, met the same fate, losing 21-7 to Spalding after winning by a touchdown last year. Spalding had completely turned around their football program at the least hopeful time in the school’s history.
The impressive winning streak was surely to be ended against Perry. The third-ranked (as per AJC) Panthers were led by versatile QB Armar Gordon Jr., who had thrown for 11 touchdowns and only one interception in his first four games.
As expected, Perry jumped out to a 13-0 lead in the second quarter. After trading touchdowns, Nazir Berry put the Jaguars on his back, scampering for a 55-yard touchdown to bring Spalding within 6 at the half.
The Jaguars capitalized off their first possession in the second half, and Berry once again found the end zone from a yard out. Berry didn’t stop there, adding on a third rushing touchdown halfway through the third quarter to extend the lead to 28-20.
All hope was lost for Perry after Spalding tacked on a field goal with just about six minutes left in the game. The Jaguars had just upset the third-ranked Panthers on the road 31-26.
Spalding’s win is sure to turn heads, especially considering they have won more games this season through six games than they did in any season since 2016. To many in Griffin, this upset win comes as no surprise. But it definitely restores hope in the Spalding Jaguars for the rest of the season.
Written by: Dhruv Mohan
