Anniston, AL – Anniston hosts Villa Rica (Ga.) in playoff-like atmosphere and prevails24-19 for second straight win
By Brant Locklier
There was a playoff-like atmosphere in the stadium as the Anniston Bulldogs hosted the Villa Rica (Ga.) Wildcats Friday night. The Bulldogs took a punch early, then stormed out to a 24-6 lead and then shook off two late touchdowns to win 24-19. “It took us a while to adjust to their speed, but we made some good adjustments on defense,” Anniston coach Rico White said.
His Bulldogs (2-0) battered the Wildcats physically, but tired late in the game and the visitors from Georgia scored two touchdowns in the last six minutes to make it close. “You cannot judge their speed on film, but they are a good football team,” White said. “We needed to get in a tight game and see how we would do. We made a few mistakes, but it was a great experience for us.”
The Bulldogs don’t lose often when they take on teams from Georgia. They are 11-6 against the six teams from Georgia they’ve played all-time and don’t have a losing record to any of them. Fans were still arriving at Lott-Mosby Stadium when the Bulldogs took the opening kickoff and scored in just six plays. Quarterback Kam Sandlin found Jaylon Cunningham in the end zone on 24-yard scoring pass. The Bulldog try for two failed and left the lead 6-0.
Villa Rica’s next two possessions ended on fumbles created by the hard-hitting Bulldog defense. One came at the Anniston 2 and one at the 26. The speed of Devan Barnes was giving the Anniston defense all kind of problems, as he gained over 100 in the first half, but did not get into the end zone. The Wildcats lined up to punt away their fourth possession, but punter Isaiah Johnson tucked it and for 58 yards and the Wildcats were up 7-6 late in the first quarter. [*** read more]
