TEAM SC 27, TEAM GA 18
AUGUSTA — Barnwell's Julius Arnold and Aiken's Austin McKay bookended Border Bowl VI in true MVP fashion.
Arnold's big tackle for loss on Team SC's first defensive series set the tone for that unit, and he recovered a fumble in the final minute that officially put the game away. McKay gave Team SC its first points with a 30-yard field goal, then tacked on its last with a crucial 37-yarder to make it a two-score game with 1:44 left.
Not bad for a couple of guys playing through injuries.
Team SC took a big early lead, then made enough plays late for a 27-18 win. That's now three straight wins in the series for Team SC, which holds a 4-2 advantage over Team GA.
"I was just proud of our guys being able to hang on there in the second half," said Barnwell head coach Dwayne Garrick, a winner again in an all-star game after leading the South team to a North-South title. "They jelled together well this week. Very few turnovers in this football game – that's something you really don't see in an all-star game when you've only got five days to get ready, five days of practice.
"For us to be able to come out and execute the way we did – and the same thing goes for Georgia. Take your hat off to those guys, too. They didn't turn the ball over. They played well on their side of the ball, too. We got a few more breaks, and we capitalized on them."
Arnold was unstoppable Saturday, and he and everyone else knew it. He had two early sacks, blocked a punt that North Augusta's Caree Collier pounced on in the end zone for a touchdown, made a late stop to force Team GA to punt and then finally scooped up the fumble South Aiken's Desmond Lawrence forced to ice the game.
He played through an injury suffered Wednesday, when he was rolled up in practice. Garrick said his senior couldn't have played had the game been held during the week, but they got him taped up Saturday morning, adrenaline kicked in and he was good to go.
"For him to be my guy, from Barnwell, it's great to watch him run around and make the plays he made," Garrick said. "He's a special player. Hopefully he's gonna get a shot at the next level."
Arnold was named Defensive MVP, an award he had locked up early in the second quarter. His punt block and Collier's recovery came just over a minute into the second period, and it gave Team SC a 17-0 lead.
"It's perfect," he said. "I got to play against a great group of guys and play with a great group of guys. The experience is great. I love it."
Then there was McKay, who suffered a groin injury before the game Saturday and still made two field goals and three extra points to go along with a couple of kickoffs into the end zone for touchbacks.
There was a miss from 47 yards with under 5 minutes to play, but McKay's number was called again shortly after. With 1:44 left in the game, his 37-yard field goal gave Team SC a nine-point lead and plenty of breathing room after Team GA pulled to within 24-18.Â
"Guys trusted me, and I trusted them," said McKay, the game's Offensive MVP. "The game was on the line, so we just had to put some more points on the board."
Garrick said the 47-yarder was a ball they initially intended to punt, but they let McKay take a shot at it. It came up just short, and Team GA suddenly was a drive away from winning the game after trailing all afternoon.
"He still did a good job, you know what I'm saying?" said Garrick. "... That last one was key. Last one's key."
That last one was set up by another defensive stop, and then another nice punt return from Aiken's Jeremiah Green. Team SC took over at the Team GA 24-yard line with 3:13 left, and McKay's kick restored the two-score advantage.
Bamberg-Ehrhardt's KeSean Brown scored the game's first touchdown, a 1-yard run that capped a 66-yard drive with 2:03 left in the first quarter. North Augusta's Tanner White kept the drive alive with a four-yard scramble on fourth-and-3 from the Team GA 5.
Arnold and Collier teamed up to make it 17-0 just over 3 minutes later, but then Team GA started chipping away at the deficit.
A safety, set up by a bomb of a punt, put Team GA on the board, and the ensuing drive netted a touchdown and two-point conversion to make it 17-10.
It stayed that way until halftime, as Collier halted some of that momentum with a blocked punt of his own near midfield.
After a scoreless third quarter, Aiken teammates Kory Wallace and Stavon Porter connected for a 9-yard touchdown for a 24-10 lead.
Team GA had an answer 53 seconds later on a drive set up by a deep ball from Thomson's Damekus Taylor. His 6-yard touchdown pass with 9:09 left was followed by a successful two-point conversion, and Team GA was in a position where a touchdown would win the game.
Arnold, McKay and their Team SC teammates made sure that didn't happen.
