The Benedictine vs. Ware County game is one of several around the state that fans boast of as one of the best rivalries anywhere. There are no baskets, buckets, or any other symbolic “trophy” that some rivalries pass back and forth, depending on who has the right to hang on to it for a year, until the two teams meet again the following season. No, this matchup has real trophies. As in, state championship trophies. And both teams have ’em.
That was the case this season, with the Cadets and Gators entering their 2023 matchup as their respective classifications’ state champions. Ware County won the 2022 Class 5A state title, while Benedictine coach Danny Britt led his team to its second straight 4A crown.
With the game already having all of the elements one would expect in a big rivalry game, add to that each team coming in as a state champion, and suddenly a big game becomes something even bigger and brighter than ever.
“This game has grown just as each team has grown and become better every year,” said Britt, who is in his 13th season at the private Savannah military school.
This year’s game was the fourth overall contest between the two schools, and all have been played since Britt has been coaching at Benedictine. Each team has won when it was the host.
“The first game that I’ve been involved in was when we went there in 2020, and they beat us with [quarterback Thomas] Castellanos 43-21,” Britt said. “He threw five touchdowns in that game. Then the next year, in 2021, they came to us and we won that one 49-42. Last year, it was an absolute downpour. The field was sloppy and we lost 14-10. Then of course this year we were fortunate enough to win the game 31-24.”
Britt said the game has been a “great challenge and test” for his team, even with the Cadets playing in different classifications through the years. “We’ve moved classifications so much, but no matter which class, we’re in we always look forward to playing this game,” he said. “This has become a really good game for the schools, the players and the fans.”
This year’s game was certainly a challenge for both teams. Benedictine was facing a Ware County team that was winners of 17 in a row, including the 5A state title game last season. Ware was undefeated in its first three games of 2023.
The Cadets, on the other hand, came into this year’s Week 4 matchup winners of 14 straight games dating to last season’s matchup with the Gators. That was the last time Benedictine lost a game (the four-point loss at Ware that was played on a rain-drenched field).
With their winning streak on the line, Britt and Benedictine welcomed Ware County to Memorial Stadium. Britt took us back to the start:
“We got off to a fast start with a 70-yard TD run, but it was called back on a penalty,” he said. “That seemed to energize the Gators, and they came back with not one but two TDs. We went down 14-0 and I thought, ‘Here we go.’”
But behind the arm of QB Luke Kromenhoek, the play of Bryce Baker on offense and defense, and CB Micah Williams (2 INTs), the Cadets came roaring back to take a 17-14 halftime lead. Then, according to Britt, his Cadets went right back to work to start the second half.
“We scored two TDs early in the third quarter, then had a big stop with about three minutes left that forced them to punt,” he said. “That gave us a short field, and we were able to run time off the clock with about three minutes left.”
With the win, Benedictine evened the overall series at 2-2.
