AJC
Who's hot: North's line, kicker save the day
Published on: 09/26/05 Guys named Schlosser, Kilpatrick and Montgomery grab the headlines, but the names that coach
Matt Moore first mentioned were the big guys up front. And deservedly so.
Clint Duggan, Josh Anderson, David Ward, Josh Profit and
Matt Hamilton kept a tough Norcross bunch away from quarterback
Bradd Schlosser and created huge holes for the running game. Coached by
Tully Payne, the linemen were the key to the 24-21 win, Moore said.
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"They're the first ones on the field, last ones off," Moore said of his offensive linemen.
The linemen's great night could've been all for naught, if not for kicker
Chad Gross. After spraining his MCL making a tackle in a game last week, Gross wasn't able to kick until Thursday. His 45-yard kick would've been good from 65 yards, Moore said. Gross said he has made a kick of 63 yards in practice. North Gwinnett's usual suspects — Schlosser,
Crawford Kilpatrick and
David Montgomery — didn't disappoint. Schlosser completed his first 14 passes before a drop by Kilpatrick. Kilpatrick caught five balls for 61 yards and a touchdown, a modest night for the AJC Gwinnett News Super 11 receiver, but his impact was much greater. Kilpatrick came to the sidelines and told Moore that Norcross defenders were bracketing him and to "get the ball to somebody else." Kilpatrick cleared out his area, leaving receivers
Josh Favaro, Ryan McDaniel, R.J. Bastone and Montgomery open.
"I'll just run deep routes; I'll be the decoy," Kilpatrick told Moore.
"To me, that shows a lot of growth in that young man," the coach said. "A lot of maturity."
The Bulldogs were a slight underdog to the No. 6 Blue Devils, but Montgomery, who had two touchdowns, said Friday's win showed they're the best team in the region. In a jubilant postgame celebration, Kilpatrick wasn't the least surprised with the win.
"That's not a shock," he said loudly. "That's not a shock."
—ROBERT HADDOCKS
