Bishop Media Sports Network
Still Buzzing
By: Kenneth Harrison Jr.
TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services
I have to revisit something I said about Georgia Tech and Paul Johnson about one month ago.
After the opening week the Yellow Jackets lost three consecutive games. Then they bounced back and won two in a row, topping 60 points each game in the process. The wins were only against Bowling Green and Louisville but they were still impressive.
That was followed up by a homecoming loss to Duke. Yes, Duke football. The Blue Devils have won four of the last five meetings. At that point, it looked like it was time to get rid of Paul Johnson.
The Ramblin Wreck traveled to Blacksburg for a Thursday night game. This was a real turning point in the season. Starting quarterback TaQuan Marshall was injured so Tobias Oliver made his first career start. Oliver ran for 215 yards and three touchdowns to lead them to a 49-28 win. He only attempted one pass and did not complete it.
Oliver seems like the more explosive player so I thought he would remain the starter. Marshall returned last week and played against North Carolina.
“I feel like it’s pretty evident that I can get in and play,” Oliver said. “But at the same time, we’re at the point in the season where I don’t want to get too much that I should be the starter. As of right now, I just want to win.”
Oliver was inserted in the game on the fourth drive, still in the first quarter. He had another great game on the ground with 120 yards and two touchdowns. He also completed both of his pass attempts for 104 yards and a touchdown.
He threw an 86-yard touchdown pass to Qua Searcy, the team’s longest since 2009.
Georgia Tech, which entered the game averaging a nation-leading 366.5 rushing yards per game, ran for 461 yards against a North Carolina defensive line depleted by injuries and suspensions. It was the Yellow Jackets’ fifth 400-yard rushing performance of the season, a school record.
They got off to a 28-10 lead before holding on to win 38-28.
“It got a little crazy there. I thought maybe when we came out and opened the third quarter and put together a nice, long drive for a touchdown and then we got ’em pinned back inside the 20 on the kickoff that maybe we’d get away from them a little bit. But to their credit, they kept playing and they fought back and we did most everything we could to try to help them,” Johnson said.
Now they have five wins and only need one more win to become bowl eligible. They also still have a shot to win the ACC Coastal division. The next two games are home against Miami and Virginia. I know they can win at least one of those games, more than likely against the Cavaliers.
The Miami game is going to be a rare night game at Bobby Dodd Stadium. CPJ has a losing record against Miami and Mark Richt. The Hurricanes have lost their last three games so they are not playing well. This is a very winnable game for Tech.
It looks like Paul Johnson will do just enough to save his job after getting off to a slow start.
Melting Matty Ice
By: JJ Lanier
TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services
NFL history is peppered with players, particularly from the quarterback position, whose legacies have been hindered because the surrounding talent never quite matched up to their own. Matt Ryan is in danger of adding his name to the list.
You can debate where Ryan ranks within the current crop of quarterbacks, but it’s hard to argue against his being in the upper echelon.
Since arriving in the league, he’s had decent coaching and an array of offensive weapons that have helped him maximize his talents. The issue when it comes to the team’s achievements, and ultimately what Ryan will be judged on after he retires, falls on the defensive side of the ball.
I know this “analysis” isn’t anything new; it’s about as expected as my son going to a Chinese buffet and eating nothing but chicken nuggets and french fries.
The reason I mention it now is Ryan is quietly putting together one of his best seasons, something he seems to be doing quite regularly lately, yet the Falcons are in danger of missing the playoffs because their defense thinks they play in the Big 12.
Currently Atlanta ranks 30th in every major defensive category, except for rushing, where they’re 20th.
One of the reason Dan Quinn was brought in four years ago was to bring some stability to the defensive side of the ball. I like Quinn, and I do think he was good hire, but his lack of influence on the defensive side has been a little disappointing.
Since his arrival the Falcons have yo-yoed back and forth from 14th down to 27th, up 8th, and then back down again to their current ranking, 30th.
Conversely, the offense has been ranked, 21st, 1st, 15th, and 11th over the same span. Actually, looks like part of the problem is they can’t get both sides to function at an acceptable rate at the same time.
But to get back to Ryan, if you’re looking for a recent comparison just go ahead stay in the NFC South and Drew Brees.
Whenever Brees retires, he will do so as the most prolific passer in NFL history, and a fantasy football hero. But, because the Saints defense played like the computer setting at the beginning level on Madden, he’ll have had to put up those numbers in order to get the credit he deserves. And he has Super Bowl ring, unlike Ryan.
There’s still plenty of time left on the season for Atlanta to make a run to the playoffs- stranger things have happened- but it’s going to take a near perfect second half of the year to make it come to fruition.
However, at this point it turning out to be a wasted season in which the franchise quarterback played possibly the best ball of his career.
I have no idea when Matt Ryan is going to retire, or how long he’ll be able to play at the level he’s currently at. But if fans have to go through another season where the blame falls on the offensive coordinator or the defense is having a down year, there won’t be many years left in the Matt Ryan era for them to enjoy.
I feel like with some of the personnel moves management understands their window is now and is trying to do what they can. If they can’t bring it all together soon, their franchise quarterback will just be another great quarterback not significant enough to remember.
A Brave Offseason
By: TJ Hartnett
TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services
The Atlanta Braves officially kicked off their offseason on Thursday with a high-profile trade, acquiring 31-year-old career minor leaguer Rafael Lopez from the Padres in exchange for cash.
Okay, that’s not exactly a big deal. Despite catcher Kurt Suzuki hitting free agency, this was a trade made for organizational depth. Lopez spent less than 40 games on the Padres’ Major League roster in 2018, and it was his longest cup of coffee yet. He also didn’t crack the Mendoza line.
Still, the move signals the opening bell for Atlanta, and now that the flood gates have been opened we can speculate wildly about what big moves Alex Anthopolous may have in store for Braves Country between now and Spring Training.
A primary focus will certainly be filling in the recently-vacated right field and catching positions.
Suzuki is an option for a one-year deal, but it may also be time for the Braves to find a more permanent backstop after two years of backup catchers splitting time behind the plate.
Tyler Flowers will still be around to handle back up duty (after both he and Zuk had stellar years in 2017, the Braves offered just one of them a two-year contract, and unfortunately bet on the wrong horse), but Atlanta needs to find someone to solidify the spot.
It’s no surprise to hear that they will be one of my teams fighting to trade with Miami for JT Realmuto. Realmuto has established himself as one of, if not, the best catchers in the game, and he’s wasted on a Marlins team that is not going to be good any time soon.
The prospect price will be high, but don’t be surprised to see Antholpolous offer up some prized arms for this guy.
Yasmani Grandal is an option as well. While he looked appealing prior to the playoffs due to his impending free agency, his dismal performance behind the dish is going to give a lot of teams pause.
Replacing Nick Markakis will be high on the list as well. Coming off of his first All-Star appearance at the age of 34, the stoic right fielder will likely be looking for a multi-year deal.
The Braves are unlikely to make such an offer, though his presence was invaluable over the past four years, and in 2018 in particular. Replacing Markakis will be difficult, and it also lacks easy solutions.
It also seems probable that Antholpolous will be looking for a front-line starter to join the Braves’ rotation in 2019.
Clayton Kershaw is, unsurprisingly, already off the table, leaving Dallas Keuchel and Patrick Corbin as the biggest-name starters left on the market.
Keuchel showed signs of regression in 2018, though he can still fire away, while Corbin had his best year in the bigs, seeming to fully recover from his Tommy John surgery from two years ago.
Corbin is the more appealing option of the two, being younger and coming off a breakout year, which means he will be highly sought after. The Braves could make a splash by taking him off of the market early and making a statement to the rest of the NL.
The last area the Braves will be looking to improve is the much-maligned bullpen.
Atlanta will need to improve their relief corps in a big way before next season, and while relievers are a dime a dozen in baseball, Atlanta needs to find reliable arms.
They might even need to overpay a closer to shore up the last three outs of the game.
We don’t know what will happen yet, but whatever it is, it has already begun.
Statesboro Buries Phoenix
By: Mike Anthony
TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services
A week ago, there were plenty of nerves at Womack Field as the Statesboro Blue Devils gutted out a win over South Effingham to punch their first ticket to the state playoffs since 2013.
On Friday night, the Devils were able to keep the momentum rolling. Statesboro found itself trailing New Hampstead by a count of 21-7 midway through the second quarter, but rallied to score the final four touchdowns of the contest to claim a 35-21 victory.
Statesboro took an early advantage when leading rusher Jaylen Roberson continued his suburb season with a 21-yard touchdown run.
As the second quarter began, the Phoenix answered with a bang. Deyandre Ruffin found open space for a 65-yard scoring run and Justin Mckithen topped that with a 90-yard touchdown run to put New Hampstead on top.
Things appeared to be heading for disaster when the Phoenix blocked and recovered an SHS punt for a touchdown and a 21-7 lead with just a minute remaining in the half, but the Devils got off the mat.
Statesboro responded with a stellar kick return by Will Yawn, another big run by Roberson and a pitch-and-catch from Drake Horton to Ryan Lindsey to reach the red zone.
Horton completed the textbook two-minute drill by finding Corey Gibson for a 10-yard touchdown strike to cut the Devils’ deficit to 21-14 at halftime.
From there on out, it was all Blue Devils.
Roberson found the end zone again midway through the third quarter and the ensuing extra point tied things up. It was Roberson doing the damage again early in the fourth quarter with a 4-yard run on the first play of the final period putting him in the end zone for the third time on the night.
The big plays that had spurred the Phoenix to their early lead were nowhere to be found in the second half as the SHS defense clamped down. And with 1:54 to play, Devardrion Lipsey plunged in from four yards out to wrap things up.
With the win, the Blue Devils improved to 4-6 on the season. More importantly, the Devils and Phoenix entered Friday’s game with identical 1-2 marks in Region 2-AAAAA competition.
The regular season finale turned into a de facto region playoff for seeding. The big win for Statesboro bumped them into the region’s No. 3 seed while New Hampstead was left with the No. 4 seed and will have to tangle with Region 3-AAAAA champion Starr’s Mill in next week’s first round action.
Statesboro will travel to face Griffin next Friday. Ironically, it was a loss at Griffin in the second round of the 2013 playoffs that marks the last time the Blue Devils made an appearance in a state playoff game.
The Blue Devils’ fourth win of the season equaled the total wins for the program over the last three seasons combined and is the most in a single year since a 9-3 mark in the 2013 playoff season.
The team will be a prohibitive underdog at Griffin next week, but now in the second year of the Jeff Kaiser coaching era and with a handful of junior playmakers who have keyed the improvement, Statesboro could be well on its way to reestablishing itself as a perennial playoff participant.
The Jason Bishop Show with Kipp Branch November 3
Knights Claim Another Region Title
By: Rich Bontrager
TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services
In an epic game between two bitter rivals, the Frederica Knights surprised many fans and sports reporters with a spectacular win against Bulloch Academy, 49-12.
Coming into this Region Championship matchup, the series between these two powerhouses stood at 2-2. In each of those four games, the home team had prevailed. This season, the Knights would arrive in Statesboro, GA and dominate in most all areas of the game.
What made the victory extra unique was that Frederica had 6 players not suited up due to injury and Jashawn Sheffield (SR. WR/Safety) was limited to only offensive plays due to a minor injury from last week’s John Milledge loss.
The Knights won the coin toss and elected to start on defense, as they have done all but one game this season. Coach Brandon Derrick trusted his defense to set the tone of the game and create short field position for his offensive squad. The defense did just that.
The Knights would score 14 unanswered points in the first half. First on a 3-yard rushing TD by Jaylin Simpson (Sr. QB) and then again on a 13-yard run by Isaiah Jackson (Sr. RB). Both extra-point kicks were good by Logan Bauer (Sr. K).
In fact, Bauer would kick a perfect game and go 7 for 7, something he had never done all season.
The Knight’s defensive gave Bulloch’s offense moments of frustration. Several times the Gators carried the ball into the “red zone” only to turn the ball over on downs, or miss a field goal.
The Knight’s defense gave up plenty of rushing yards, but always found a way to shut down Bulloch’s offensive machine. Including a big first half-sack by Will Counts (So., DL).
While the Knights would miss yet another scoring opportunity just before halftime, they scored on the first offensive play of the second half as Denver Anthony (Jr., RB) scored on a 60-yard rushing play.
A few plays later, Harry Veal (Sr., LB) recovered a bad lateral by Don Aarons of the Gators. Moments later, Denver Anthony ran for his second TD (16 yds) in less than 2 minutes of the third quarter play. Those scores put Frederica up 28-0.
The defense continued to set up the offense well as Josh Meadow’s made a big 4th down stop on Bulloch and Will Thompson would sack QB Don Aarons.
In total the Knights scored 21 points in the third quarter, and an additional 14 in the fourth.
One of the of most significant factors in getting such a disproportionate win over such
an intense rival like Bulloch was the “team’s unity”, said Coach Brandon Derrick after the game. “Yes, we made mental mistakes late in the game, but our team played extremely well as a unit, and for one another”, he said.
With the Region Championship title, Frederica will enjoy a bye week before beginning playoff action at home on, Friday, November, 16th.
The Knights will have home field advantage throughout the regional play. Along with home field advantage, Frederica will be able to get the six injured and sick players healed up as the “March to Mercer” officially gets underway.
With this win, the Knights conclude the regular season with a record of 7-3, and 4-0 in region play.
Playoff Terrors
By: Jason Bishop
TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services
The Glynn Academy Red Terrors have won their 4th straight Region Championship.
Glynn beat the Bradwell Tigers 42-21.
The Red Terrors took a 7-0 lead on their second possession of the game. Bradwell tied the game up at 7-7 early in the 2nd quarter.
Glynn took charge of the game with two unanswered touchdowns before the half to take a 21-7 advantage into halftime.
Glynn Academy put the game away midway through the 3rd quarter on a 1-yard TD run by TJ Lewis, giving Glynn a 28-7 lead.
The Terrors would pour it on by adding another score late in the 3rd quarter, via a 15-yard TD run by Quany Bostick for a 35-7 lead.
Bradwell would score early in the 4th to make it a 35-14 game. The Red Terrors would respond would score a rushing TD to go up 42-14 mid way through the 4th. The Tigers would score a TD late in the 4th quarter to make the score a little more respectable, 42-21. That would be the final
Glynn Academy picked a great time to play their best of the year, heading into the playoffs.
Bradwell had a chance to win the #1 seed if they could beat Glynn and gotten a favorable scenario in a tie breaker, pending the outcome of the Richmond Hill/Effingham game.
However, with the Terrors win that tie breaker scenario was void and the Red Terrors secured the #1 seed.
The Red Terrors will play Lakeside Evans in the first round of the playoffs. Lakeside Evans won the #4 seed from region 3-6A. That game will be played next week at Glynn County Stadium. With the loss Bradwell falls to the 4th seed.
Glynn Academy finishes the regular season at 7-3. It was a weird regular season for the Red Terrors. It was a season that saw Glynn Academy benefit from a forfeit win by Fort Dorchester, lose three games in a row in the middle of the season and then rebound to win four in row to close the season, all region wins.
Frederica Academy Knights Coach’s Show with Brandon Derrick October 31
MCA Buccaneers Coach’s Show with Tony Glazer October 30
Glynn Academy Red Terrors Coach’s Show with Rocky Hidalgo October 30
