State Class AA Football Championship Game
#1 Benedictine Military School Cadets (14-0) vs. #2 Fitzgerald Purple Hurricanes (13-1)
Georgia Dome, Atlanta, Ga. Saturday Dec. 10, 2016
Will be televised on Georgia Public Broadcasting 1 p.m.
WRDO 96.9 FM will began broadcasting at 10 a.m. from the Georgia Dome
Series Record: Tied at 1-1
(if you can't make the game, the Fitzgerald Grand Theater will be showing the game for free on the theater's movie screen)
Back in July when high school football teams began practicing in the state of Georgia, almost every "expert" had Fitzgerald and Benedictine penciled in for the State Class AA Championship game. For once those experts were right, because five months later those two teams have gone through the rest of the classification and will now face off for the state crown. Even though the two schools have only faced off in two other games, there has become a natural rivalry. Benedictine won the first meeting, 51-7 in the second round of the 2013 state Class AA playoffs. Fitzgerald returned the favor last season with a 54-28 victory in the state quarterfinals. This year the two teams have almost put up identical numbers on offense. Benedictine has rushed for 4,061 yards, while Fitzgerald has rushed for 3,894 yards. Quarterback Nick Iannone has passed for 1,678 yards and the Cadets have 1,832 yards passing on the year. Hurricane quarterback James Graham has passed for 1,563 yards, and Fitzgerald has 1,718 yards passing on the year. Benedictine has averaged 420.9 yards per game, and the Hurricanes have averaged 400.8 yards per contest in 2016. On the year, Iannone has completed 100-of-150 passes, besides his 1,678 yards through the air, the junior has passed for 23 touchdowns and only three interceptions. Graham, also a junior, has proven to be more of a dual threat than his Benedictine counterpart. While Iannone has only 15 yards rushing on 12 carries this season, Graham has 768 yards on the ground on 129 carries. He also has 13 touchdown runs on the year. Besides his rushing, Graham has completed 79-of-144 passes for the 1,563 yards, with 23 touchdown passes and only four interceptions. A majority of Fitzgerald's yardage has come from Graham, J.D. King, Ethan Gordon, Damien Devine and Montrell Harris. King, a senior Oklahoma State commit, posted career highs last year in the quarterfinal game against Benedictine with 44 carries and 335 yards on the ground. The carries are right at three games worth for King this season, as he averaging right at 16 carries per contest. In 2016, King has rushed 220 times for 1,701 yards and has scored 20 touchdowns. Fitzgerald has also used him as a wide receiver quite often this year, as King has 19 catches for 468 yards and nine more scores. The senior standout has averaged just over nine yards per offensive touch this season. Gordon has been a nice compliment to King. Just a sophomore, Gordon has rushed for 492 yards on 67 carries with 10 scores. He also has caught 12 passes for 221 yards and four touchdowns. Devine got Fitzgerald off to a hot start in last week's 42-21 semifinal win over Hapeville Charter with a 50-yard return on the game's opening kickoff. On the year, Devine has rushed for 395 yards on 65 carries, and has caught 14 passes for 295 more yards. He has a combined 15 touchdowns on the ground and through the air. Harries has 39 rushes for 273 yards and two scores, and 11 catches for 335 yards and three more touchdowns. Like King, the Cadets' John Wesley Kennedy has also proven to be a dual threat this season. Kennedy's yard per carry average rushing is easy to figure as he has 1,156 yards on the ground on exactly 100 carries. He has also caught 39 passes for 851 more yards. Kennedy has 17 rushing touchdowns and 15 receiving touchdowns on the year. Tyleek Collins is Benedictine's second leading rusher with 895 yards on 91 carries and 11 scores. He also has nine catches for 149 yards and two more touchdowns. Travis Blackshear has rushed for 496 yards on 38 carries, and has caught 18 passes for 346 more yards. He has a combined eight touchdowns on the year. Terrick Smalls has rushed for 692 yards on 70 carries with 13 touchdowns, while Nick Whitfield has 29 catches for 310 yards and four scores. Defensively, Chris Harris leads Benedictine with 117 total tackles, 10 for losses and four sacks. Matthew Lowenthal has 96 total tackles, while Adam King has 87 total stops, 17 for losses and four sacks. Fred Nunn has 83 total tackles for the Cadets, three for loss yardage. Noah Johnson has 64 total stops, including six for loss yardage. Bailey Clark has 61 total stops, 10 for loss yardage; while Chandler White has 58 total stops, four for loss yardage. While the Fitzgerald offense has deservedly gotten a lot of credit this year, the defense has also been outstanding. Donterious Milsap leads the way with 116 total tackles, including five for loss yardage, as well as five sacks. Safety Josh Reliford is the team's second leading tackler with 106 total stops, six for loss yardage, and two interceptions. Marlon Jackson has had an all-state worthy year with 97 total tackles, eight for loss yardage, 10 sacks and three blocked punts. Other standouts have included Markeylan Lundy, 67 total tackles, four for loss yardage and five sacks; Ashton Newell, 64 tackles, nine for loss yardage and three sacks; Willie Ross, 60 tackles and five interceptions; Quay Harper, 58 tackles, three interceptions and two tackles for loss yardage; Rhamir Bryant, 52 total tackles, eight for loss yardage and five sacks; and Callen Ray, 46 tackles, four sacks and four tackles for loss yardage. Fitzgerald will be going for its' first state title since 1948.
