Houston County faces big road test against Central-Carrollton in Game of the Week

Houston County dominated their first two opponents of the season, and in Week 4 they will face one of their biggest challenges before the region schedule.

In the first two weeks, the Bears outscored West Forsyth and Jones County by a collective score of 83-28.

Austin Stinson continues to make a case for best running back in Georgia. In two games he’s run for 537 yards and six touchdowns, for an average of 13.1 yards per carry.

Ryan Maxwell picked up where he left off — an efficient passing machine — with 382 yards on 70% completion.

The defense, which lost an anchor on the defensive line in Jakobe Bryant, has consistently caught their opponents behind the sticks with 14 quarterback hurries, 12 tackles for a loss and six sacks.

HoCo hasn’t run into an opponent like Central-Carrolton just yet. It’s probably safe to assume the Lions are not on the level of Thomas County Central or Lee County, two of the best teams in the state in recent years, but they may be one of the best non-region opponents of any Houston County school.

Last year Central was 12-1 and lost to Benedictine, the eventual 4A state champion, 80-32. The Lions lost 15 seniors but returned some of their best producers.

Region 3-4A Player of the Year JR Harris returned at quarterback. He threw for 2,771 yards, 39 touchdowns and four interceptions last year for a Lions offense that scored 45 points per game.

Their top rusher didn’t return but Jacez Walton did, and he tallied 839 yards and 10 touchdowns last year on 100 carries.

Central hasn’t started as well this year, they enter Week 4 1-2, but they’ve still shown the ability to light up the scoreboard.

Outside of Week 1’s 50-28 loss to Heard County (#1 in 2A) the Lions returned to last year’s level with a 56-7 win against Jonesboro and a 56-49 loss to East Paulding.

Harris lit the Cardinals up with an uber-efficient 18-for-21 passing night for 213 yards and four touchdowns. Walton took 17 carries for 141 yards and two touchdowns in addition to his 27 yards and one touchdown receiving. All but one of their eight touchdowns came in the first half.

Even in the loss to the Raiders, they proved they are capable of big offensive pushes. In the first three quarters they were held to 20 points, but in the fourth they scored 29 in a furious comeback attempt.

How will the Bears’ defense hold up as they try to fill in the gaps left by last year’s (and this year’s) departures? How will they hold up in what could become a shootout?

Kickoff is scheduled for Sept. 11 at 7:30 p.m. in Carrollton.