Lake Oconee Academy arguably pulled off its biggest win in program history this past Friday against Hancock Central.
The Titans stunned the Bulldogs, surging from 22 points down late in the contest to a 48-44 win.
“It’s something to be proud of the way they didn’t give up and were resilient,” LOA head coach Patrick Stewart said.
The Titans have not faced adversity and had never trailed in a game this year until this past week.
“It was a good wake-up call for them because, after the George Walton game, they needed a little bit of humbling,” Stewart said. “So, it was good for them to get down quick and see how they would respond.”
Poor tackling from the team is one of the reasons why LOA found itself in a 22-point hole.
“We were doing a lot of arm tackling,” Stewart said. “We were in the right spots and doing our job, but we weren’t tackling well.”
At halftime, the Titans knew they would need a big second half to come back and win.
According to Stewart, senior leadership played a massive role in their ability to turn the game around.
“It really started in that locker room at halftime,” Stewart said. “We went in at halftime, and a lot of our senior leaders stepped up and said we’re not going to lose this game.”
The seniors’ message resonated well with the rest of the team, as the Titans came out firing in the second half.
“When we came out, we scored and then recovered an onside kick and scored again, and that flipped the game quick for us,” Stewart said.
Sophomore Jon Funderburke recovered the onside kick, which led to a Titan touchdown.
LOA then found success in the running game, which helped drive this comeback. The Titans rushed for 276 yards, with two players combining for 237.
Freshman CJ Stembridge rushed for 127 yards and one touchdown on nine carries. Junior Walker Poyner also carried the ball 20 times for 110 yards and a touchdown.
Quarterback Ike O’Neal had two touchdowns on three carries. Cameron Kelley also had a rushing touchdown, and junior Cason Bennett returned an interception 80 yards for a touchdown.
“You could tell that Hancock was wearing down against the run, so we just kept fighting, and we were able to finish the game,” Stewart said.
The Titans return to Tucker Field this Friday to play Brentwood Academy at 7:30 p.m.