Greyhounds rout Burke County for first win of season
WAYNESBORO — Through the first three weeks of the season, Jones County has clung strong to the belief that a bruising span of games to open the season would at some point pay dividends.
On Friday at Burke County, the Greyhounds rammed the pay window open, dominating the Bears in a 35-0 win.
“I equate it to the younger cousin playing football in the backyard growing up. You’ll have a bit more advantage because you’ve been playing with the older ones growing up most of your life,” Jones County head football coach Justin Montgomery said. “If you play guys that are bigger and faster than you, being able to go through those fiery trials allow you to come out stronger on the other side of it.”
The shutout is the first against the Bears since last September and comes against a Burke County team that was a GHSA Class AA semifinalist the past two years.
But on a rainy night in east Georgia, Burke County’s wing-T attack was no match for both the Jones County ground game as well as a defense that held the Bears to a season-low 185 yards and forced four turnovers.
Speaking of the ground game, Jones County’s effort spoke volumes both up front on the offensive line and through the backfield as it rolled up a combined 270 yards on the ground.
In terms of timing, Friday’s shutout could not be much better timed for Jones County (1-3), which opens region play Friday at Locust Grove. The Wildcats are also 1-3, having allowed more than 50 points in three losses Jones County will make its way to Locust Grove with offensive momentum following a night in which three running backs shared the collective load.
Kaden Canty rushed for 51 yards and two touchdowns. Travis Miller went nine carries for 151 yards and a touchdown, and Laquan Pendleton had three touches for 61 yards and a score.
The willingness to share the credit — regardless of who gets it — is something that began in the running back room well before Friday for a group coached by Jaylan Thomas.
“Coach Thomas has done a phenomenal job of establishing a culture of love and sacrifice, and I think our running backs understand that ‘just because one guy has success, it does not take away from mine.’ Kaden Canty and Travis Miller were our two offensive players of the week, and Laquan ran like crazy the week before,” Montgomery said. “It’s all just a testament to those guys sharing the load and celebrating each other’s success.”
It didn’t take long for Jones County to establish its presence with authority on Friday with its ground game. Two plays after Miller rushed 41 yards, Canty raced 20 yards into the end zone with Miller only a few feet away as both celebrated a 7-0 lead with 11:04 to go in the first quarter. It was just the start that JCHS needed, as unlike the previous three games, the Greyhounds avoided early turnovers to put them in a disadvantaged spot. And with the Jones County defense stymieing the Bears’ offense, Canty made it 14-0 with 7:39 left in the second quarter after feeding off another JCHS running back, as Miller’s hard-running moved the chains twice, leading to a score out of a direct snap.
“We knew we had a good shot at those guys just based off film. Seeing our team continue to grow, a lot of people just look at the points, but we look at the film and watch our players and know what they are capable of,” Montgomery said. “To see them execute what we saw on film and execute our game plan, that was a big win for us. We’ve got some smiling faces going into this region game.”
The Greyhounds may not have turned the ball over on Friday, but they did take advantage of the Bears doing so, as a fumble recovery near midfield set up a 60-yard touchdown by Pendleton and a 21-0 lead before halftime.
In the second half, Jones County simply put the game away. With the Greyhounds defense continuing to have an answer for anything Burke County tried to do on offense, JCHS padded its lead on a 66-yard run by Miller down the home sideline. And perhaps fittingly, the final Greyhound score came from the defensive side of the ball, and Nate Wilson returned a fumble pitch for a touchdown and what would be the final 35-0 score.
“We played three really good football programs in weeks one through three, and they’ve got some good players, some bigger players. They have more resources than we do, and with Burke County, we passed the eye test with those guys. It’s the same standard for us, and I told our guys, ‘Some people will be surprised by this, but we won’t.’ We know what we are capable of. We just have to keep doing what we do.”
