Carrollton 42 LaGrange 6

The Grangers battled hard the first half, holding Carrollton to 14 points.  But the offense could not get on track and the Trojans came away with a 42-6 victory Friday night.

LaGrange punted all four possessions in the first half. Carrollton scored on a 56 yard drive with a Will Garrett quarterback sneak and a 51 yard drive when Garrett ran it in from 12 yards out. But in between, Emmanuel Swanson picked off Garrett's pass and LaGrange caused a fumble making the Trojans turn the ball over on downs.  The Grangers showed a fire in their bellies at intermission.

The Trojans worked to extinguish it as they scored on their next two possessions and forced LaGrange to punt on theirs.  A 70 yard drive capped by an eight yard TD run by Garrett and a 60 yard drive, set up by a 48 yard run by Dante Wigley and finished with a six yard scoring run by Malik Sheppard extended the Trojan lead to 28-0.  Daz Dunlap caused a Carrollton fumble and Kimani Barnes recovered, but LaGrange could not get points.  The Trojans did get points on an 85 yard drive finished by a 32 yard touchdown pass from Garrett to Jarrell Rowe. 35-0.  A mishandled pitch gave The ball back to Carrollton, but Tristian Dozier returned the favor, intercepting a Garrett pass. LaGrange again was forced to punt and the Trojans ended their scoring with a 56 yard Will Hesterlee run.  42-0.  LaGrange finally got on the board when Wynton Heard threw a 14 yard pass to Tay Rivers, who caught it in the end zone.   42-6 would be the final.

LaGrange finished the season 3-7, their third losing season in four years.  They also miss the playoffs for the first time since 1999.  Head Coach Donnie Branch announced he is stepping down as head coach .  I truly hope he is kept on as defensive coordinator.  He still has a lot of knowledge of the game and quality years of coaching ahead of him.  Whatever happens, I wish him well.

Troup Co. 27 LaGrange 8

An exciting first half and a one sided second-half led to Troup clinching a postseason berth and pretty much assuring the Grangers miss the playoffs.  LaGrange fell to the Tigers 27 to 8 at Callaway Stadium Friday night and the two halves could not have been more different.

Troup's opening drive resulted in a punt, but LaGrange fumbled the ball away. The Tigers started their next drive on the Granger 47 yard line and capitalized. A 26 yard touchdown run by Dre Towns gave Troup an early 6-0 lead. LaGrange failed on a fake field goal and Troup started at their own 2. The Granger defense held firm, forcing Troup to punt, but a bad snap sailed through the end zone for a safety. 6-2 Tigers. LaGrange took the lead with a 47 yard drive of their own when Hayden Olive caught a 10 yard touchdown pass from Wynton Heard. 8 to 6 Lagrange. After an exchange of punts, Daz Dunlap came away with a fumble and LaGrange started at the Troup 30.  But Taylor Stanford missed a 41 yard field goal and LaGrange went into the locker room leading 8-6.

The second half started in a fashion I have never seen before.  Troup kicked off toward the near sideline but no Granger touched it. The Tigers grabbed it at the LaGrange 26.  Five plays later, Will Smith snuck in from the 1 yard line and Troup took a 13 to 8 lead.  After a puntfest, Troup scored again following a 50 yard drive. Dre Towns ran it in from 16 yards out to give the Tigers a 20 to 8 lead. A Granger three and out gave Troup the ball at their 39. The 61 yard drive was capped when Daryl Dunlap found the end zone from 33 yards out. The game would end with a 27-8 Tiger victory.

The win sends Troup to the postseason to face the loser between Gilmer and Dalton. LaGrange's 13 year playoff run will likely come to an end.  The Grangers next play at Carrollton's Grisham Stadium for pride and to break the three game losing streak to the Trojans. I'll be there to cheer on a LaGrange. I hope you will be, too .