Houston ends skid against Peach
By Robyn Disney TELEGRAPH STAFF WRITER
<!-- begin body-content -->
WARNER ROBINS - Fans rushed the field Friday night at McConnell-Talbert Stadium, Houston County coaches hugged each other and players danced poorly.
For the first time in school history, Houston County beat Peach County 33-20.
The Bears (2-1) got help from their constant source of offense Eric O'Neal, who rushed for 138 yards on 23 carries. But it was the gutsy performance of sophomore quarterback Martez King who snapped the Bears slide against the Trojans (0-3).
King struggled early with two poorly thrown passes. The student section got on King, chanting backup quarterback Jeremy Whitley's name. That changed though in the second quarter when King broke free for a 15-yard run. A 7-yard personal foul penalty set up the Bears on the 8-yard line for Anthony Harris' touchdown.
The students changed their tune, chanting King's name. King broke lose again in the second quarter, this time for a 56-yard touchdown run.
"After the Warner Robins game, we decided to go with Martez," Houston County coach Doug Johnson said. "Because we feel like he's a weapon. Even if he's not throwing, he's another guy the opponent's defense has to account for. A lot of quarterbacks, if they're not throwing, no one worries about them. But Martez is a guy who can run the football. We do need to work on his throwing though."
Each team met the other's punch for punch in the first half. When Ethan Rumph broke up Keith Searcy's potential first-down pass, the Trojans came back to force King to fumble.
The Trojans converted the turnover into a touchdown when Searcy hooked up with Chris Slaughter for a 19-yard touchdown pass.
The game was just as close in the third quarter. The Trojans tied it at 20-20 on a Searcy t0 Slaughter pass of 25 yards. But on the ensuing kickoff, Peach County was flagged for a 15-yard penalty.
Add to that, Lydel Jones' 22-yard return and the Bears were set up on the Peach 34-yard line. Five carries from King got the Bears to the 1 before King left the game with an undisclosed knee injury. Whitley punched the ball up the middle to go up 27-20.
But Peach County wasn't done. Slaughter returned the kickoff 43 yards to the Houston 47. The Trojans converted on a fourth-and-1 to get to the 34, but two incompletions, another 15-yard penalty and an 11-yard sack sealed the game.
"We have to be more disciplined," Peach County coach Rance Gillespie said. "I was proud of our kids they way they hung in there. But we're going to keep working on fundamentals and continue to get back on track."
<!-- end body-content --><!-- begin body-end --><HR class=tagline color=#cccccc SIZE=1>
Contact Disney at 923-3109, ext. 241 or e-mail rdisney@macontel.com
<!-- end body-end -->