The BLITZ Game of the Week to open the 2019 season pits Dawson County and Habersham Central for the second season in a row.

DAWSON COUNTY

Despite losing perhaps its greatest player ever in Coey Watson following the 2017 season, the 2018 version of the Tigers were arguably better. That’s not a slight on Coey at all, but instead a testament the bar he set for others to follow, and a testament to the elite defense, elite offensive line, and elite running game that featured both Sevaughn Clark and Ahmad Kamara. That talent pool resulted in 10 wins for the first time in school history. However, that group is almost completely different, as Clark, Kamara, Zac Baloga, Logan Barnes, Ryan Glass, etc all graduated. It’s a new QB, new RB, and a new-look Tigers team this year. BUT…it’s still a stellar program when you have Sid Maxwell at the helm.

HABERSHAM CENTRAL

Ditto for Habersham Central as above for the Tigers. The monkey came off the back following a playoff run last season that got the Raiders to the Sweet 16. This year presents a new chapter, however, as All-State talents Tre Luttrell and Donovan Curry are gone, as are many other playmakers like Dontarius Bailey, Tracy Lowery, Daniel Matkovic, and Tarin Westbrook. The big-time returning star is junior RB Jackson Clouatre, who returns following a season-ending injury that robbed him of some incredible numbers. Other stars back include Arian Curry, Joshua Wade, Josh Pickett, and Luke Wilson. Ryte Woodruff will take over at QB for the Raiders.

BY THE NUMBERS (2018)

GAME HIGHLIGHTS

Be looking for highlights post-game late tonight as well as a story recapping WEEK 1. BLITZ will also share highlights with Fox 5’s HIGH 5 Sports, so the highlights will play on Channel 5 at 11 PM. You can also follow us on Twitter (@BlitzSportsGa) for live score updates.

OUR PREDICTION

With both teams having a complete re-tooling of their offense, it makes this a tough decision. All the household names from a year ago scoring the TDs in this matchup are gone. However, there are enough holdovers from Dawson County on both sides of the ball, that they may receive the edge right now. It’s up to you to decide our prediction.  FINAL VERDICT: FAN VOTE

DETAILS OF THE MATCHUP

TIME: 7:30 pm kickoff
PLACE: Dawson Co HS / Dawsonville, GA
LAST MEETING: 2018; Dawson County 32, Habersham Central 28
ALL-TIME RECORD: Dawson County 1, Habersham Central 0
RECORDS: Dawson Co Tigers (0-0; 0-0 in 7-AAA); Habersham Central Raiders (0-0; 0-0 in 7-AAAAAA)

HISTORICALLY SPEAKING

This matchup had never been seen until the season-opener last year. That was such a great game that ended with Habersham walking off the field in a heartbreak. Dawson County went for a 4th & GL touchdown to take the win in the final seconds rather than going for the game-tying field goal. It was unforgettable. Perhaps this one will be also.
2018: Dawson Co 32, Habersham 28

TEAM LEADERS (2018 STATS returning players only)

DAWSON COUNTY

PASSING
Maximos Moon: 111 yds, 89% Passing

RUSHING
Shawn Thomas: 417 yds, 8 TD, 11.6 YPC
Dakohta Sonnichsen: 395 yds, 4 TD, 12 YPC
Isaiah Grindle: 269 yds, 2 TD, 9.3 YPC

RECEIVING
Dakohta Sonnichsen: 231 yds, 2 TD
TJ Wilson: 162 yds, 1 TD

TACKLES
Brody Howell: 61 TKL, 3 TFL
Daniel Brock: 51 TKL, 2 TFL, 1 SACK
Bryce Bryant: 41 TKL, 8 TFL
Riley Herndon: 37 TKL, 1 TFL

INTERCEPTIONS
Brody Howell, 2
Riley Herndon, 2
Tripp Caine, 2

HABERSHAM CENTRAL

PASSING
Wyte Woodruff: NO STATS 2018

RUSHING
Jackson Clouatre: 382 yds, 5 TD, 5.5 YPC
Arian Curry: 164 yds, 4 TD, 7.1 YPC

RECEIVING
Josh Pickett: 84 yds, 1 TD
Jackson Clouatre: 30 yds
Matt Brown: 27 yds

TACKLES
Tanner Wade: 50 TKL, 1 TFL
Patrick Tedder: 40 TKL
Josh Pickett: 26 TKL

INTERCEPTIONS
N/A