Warriors win in Tiftarea thriller

The Brookwood Warriors remained perfect in GIAA Region 3-AAA play Friday night, though it wasn’t without a battle for the third straight week.

Brookwood quarterback Rodge Waldrop connected with T.J. Thomas on an 8-yard scoring toss late in the fourth quarter to help the Warriors surge to a 50-48 thrilling win at Tiftarea. Thomas, who doubles as a defensive back, also darted in front of a Panthers’ receiver on the ensuing drive for a sensational interception that sealed Brookwood’s region win, which kept the Warriors tied with Valwood at 3-0 atop the region standings.

“Coming off his injury and trying to get him out there a little bit more,(T.J.)felt very confident. They went after him, and I’m glad they did. He’s a great player,” Brookwood coach Shane Boggs said. “I am proud, I thought we played a lot better on defense there in the second half. We just made a lot of plays. We played with poise. We played with grit. We love each other, and I’m real proud of that.”

Brookwood held Tiftarea to 13 points in the second half. The Warriors once again found a spark with explosive plays in the passing game, run game and on special teams. Waldrop passed for 355 yards and four touchdowns. Thomas tallied 104 rushing yards, including a dazzling 31-yard touchdown scamper in the first half. He also snagged nine receptions for 126 yards and three touchdowns.

Rex Schofill added a 75-yard touchdown off a kickoff return that gave the Warriors a 15-6 advantage in the first quarter. He followed with a 47-yard return following a Tiftarea score. It set up Waldrop’s first touchdown toss, a 25-yard pass play to Thomas.

“We weren’t perfect, obviously, on offense, but we were explosive, which was good to see again,” Boggs said. “We were not explosive last week (against Southland). We made the explosive plays. We made the plays in the run game and passing game. If you look at it, there’s a whole bunch of them that made plays. The distribution was a whole bunch of guys making plays, and I’m proud of that.”

The Warriors have won their three region games by 19 points total. Brookwood will close the regular season with two home games; this Friday against Terrell Academy and again on Nov. 3 against Valwood.