Bartow County Panthers youth football teams sweep league games
The Bartow County Panthers travel football teams hosted Northwest Georgia Youth Football League games Saturday at Cass High School’s Doug Cochran Stadium with all four teams coming away with victories. The 8U Panthers defeated the Bill Arp Falcons 13-6. The 9U Panthers shutout the Bill Arp Falcons 12-0. The 10U BC Panthers routed Bill Arp 40-0 and the 12U Panthers knocked off the 14th-ranked West Georgia Extreme 29-12.
8U BARTOW COUNTY PANTHERS 13, BILL ARP FALCONS 6
In 8U action, Bartow gave up a second quarter, 97-yard touchdown run by Carson Bowen to trail 6-0 at halftime, but came-from-behind with a pair of second half touchdowns for the win. Landon Smith tied the game with a 7-yard touchdown run with 1:36 remaining in the third quarter and Bartow took the lead for good with 2:51 left in the game on a 3-yard touchdown run by Anthony Moreno.
Moreno, who rushed for 50 yards in the game, added a one-point, extra-point run for the Panthers’ 13-6 margin. Smith had 60 yards on the ground for Bartow County and Gary Douglas added a 50-yard run. Cole Williams was 1-of-2 passing with the lone reception of 20 yards made by Jaiden Taylor.
“We came out in the second half and played lights out,” said 8U coach LaShon Darby. “This team shows they have a lot of fight in them. They are going to play four quarters and that’s all we can ask of them.”
Defensively, Karsin Darby led the 8U Panthers with six tackles. Dougas had five stops. Isaiah Pittman made four tackles. Taylor finished with three and Braxton Mealor added two tackles. Smith had an interception and returned it 50 yards. Bartow Panthers 8U (1-1) travels to Coweta County Saturday for a 12:30 p.m. game against the host Shaprsburg Stallions (0-2).
9U BARTOW COUNTY PANTHERS 12, BILL ARP FALCONS 0
The 9U Panthers defense pitched a shutout and the offense got a 13-yard touchdown run by Kaiden Kent in the second quarter to go with a 16-yard scoring run by Cooper Melvin in the final minute of the fourth quarter to defeat the Bill Arp Falcons, 12-0.
The loss dropped Bill Arp to 0-2 in NWGYFL play. Bartow Panthers 9U (1-0) travels to Halbrooks Field in Cobb County Saturday for a 2 p.m. kickoff against the Acworth Warriors (1-1). The 9U BC Panthers are ranked No. 10 in Georgia by D1 Nation Youth Football.
10U BARTOW COUNTY PANTHERS 40, BILL ARP FALCONS 0 Grayson Warmack rushed for three touchdowns and threw for another as the 10U Bartow County Panthers blanked the Bill Arp Falcons Saturday at Cass High School, 40-0. It was the Division 2 opener for both teams in the NWGYFL.
The 10U Panthers raced to a 26-0 lead before the intermission and the defense completed the shutout in the second half.
Warmack had touchdown runs from 3-, 20-, and 22-yards. His touchdown pass was to Jeremy Dent Jr. for 32 yards in the fourth quarter. He also converted one of two, 2-point extra point kicks.
Clayton Hilburn had a 35-yard touchdown run in the first quarter that gave the Panthers a 13-0 lead. He also contributed a pair of 1-point PAT runs. Demarcus Ballenger scored on a three-yard plunge in the second quarter to put Bartow up 26-0 at the time. The Bartow County 10U Panthers (1-0) play at the Sharpsburg Stallions Saturday at 4:30 p.m. Sharpsburg (1-0) defeated the Winston Knights last Saturday 25-20 in their opening league game.
12U BARTOW COUNTY PANTHERS 29, WEST GEORGIA EXTREME 12 With sweltering temperatures approaching the 100 degree mark down on the new sports turf of Doug Cochran Stadium at Cass High this past Saturday afternoon, the 12U Bartow County Panthers maintained their composure and defeated the 14th-ranked West Georgia Extreme 29-12. The Panthers defense had another outstanding game holding the Extreme to only 12 rushing yards on 19 attempts and 52 yards passing on 13 attempts. West Georgia’s touchdowns came on a second quarter pass and a pick-six that was returned 101 yards in the third quarter to keep the contest in question at 22-12. In all, the Panthers out-gained the Extreme 312 yards to 64 and the first down count was 15 to 2. Jacob Ellis ran for a 9-yard touchdown with 2:57 remaining in the opening quarter as Bartow took a 6-0 lead, but West Georgia answered and tied the game with the first touchdown of the year scored against the Panthers’ defense. A 14-yard scoring pass knotted the score at 6-6 with 6:48 remaining in the first half.
The Panthers managed a 16-6 lead by the intermission on a 1-yard touchdown plunge by Isaiah Livsey at the 2:03 mark of the second quarter. It was followed by a two-point conversion pass from Brodie McWhorter to Talan Nix and safety in the final seconds of the half.
Ellis made the tackle for safety on the West Georgia quarterback with only three seconds remaining in the half. Bartow went up 22-6 with 1:09 remaining in the third quarter when McWhorter finished off a Panthers drive with a 1-yard run, but the Extreme stayed within striking range with a 101-yard interception return for touchdown with 0:01.3 left in the third quarter. The Panthers then put the game away with 6:49 remaining on Livsey’s second scoring run. The 33-yard dash to paydirt and an Ellis one-point PAT run provided the final 29-12 result. “I’m proud of the fact we kept our composure,” said Panthers coach Jackson Hyde following the game. “We had opportunities to let this one get away and we didn’t. We gave up our first touchdown of the year, gave up a big play with the pick-six, and it was at least 100 degrees on the turf, but it didn’t phase us. I’ve been coaching youth football for 20 years and this bunch is mentally tougher than any group I’ve had. They are special.” Bartow rushed for 250 yards and four touchdowns. Livsey finished with 71 yards on 14 carries and scored two touchdowns. Ellis totaled 72 yards on seven carries with a touchdown. Baylon Long contributed 72 yards rushing on 13 attempts and caught one pass for 27 yards. Delgado added 10 yards on three rushing attempts. McWhorter carried eight times for 25 yards and one touchdown. He also completed 4-of-9 passes for 62 yards with one pass intercepted. Cam Williams had a 22-yard reception. Nix caught two passes for 13 yards. The coaching staff reported offensive linemen Price Higgins, Cooper Moon, Brice Wilson, Judd Hyde, and Pierce Kincer graded out. On defense, Long had three tackles and one quarterback hurry. Ellis finished with 2.5 tackles, a sack, and a safety. Logan Shrewsbury contributed two tackles and broke up a pair of passes. Livsey had a pair of tackles and caused one fumble, and Brice Wilson finished with two tackles. Other contributors on defense included Xavier Parker, Kelson Mitchell, and Nix 1.5 tackles each. Davis Waddell had a tackle and recovered a fumble. Peyton Emery, Cooper Moon, and Bear McWhorter finished with one tackle each. Mason Tompkins was credited with 0.5 tackles and had an interception. Will Feuerbach added 0.5 tackles.
The loss drops West Georgia Extreme to 1-1 in league action.
With the win, the Panthers improved to 3-0 overall and 2-0 in NWGYFL play. Their next league game is Saturday, September 21 when they host the Winston Knights at 4 p.m. at the old Cass High Cunningham Stadium. Winston is 1-0 in league play and plays at Marietta this Saturday.
Youth football reports are presented on Bartow Sports Zone by CiCi's - Beyond Pizza in the Cherokee Place Shopping Center in Cartersville. Game reports are provided by the Cartersville Parks and Recreation Department, The Bartow County Parks and Recreation Department, and the Bartow Panthers youth travel football program.
