Telegraph Staff Writer
Bradford High School’s defense held visiting Fort White to 102 yards, while the Tornadoes got two scoring plays of more than 50 yards early in the second half to put the game away, celebrating homecoming with a 33-6 win on Nov. 5.
The Tornadoes, who scored the first 26 points of the game, now begin the postseason by hosting a Region 4-1A quarterfinal game against Newberry on Friday, Nov. 12, at 7:30 p.m.
Bradford Head Coach Brian Tomlinson knows that come playoff time, you can forget records. It’s like the start of a new season, but it is good to start that new season having won your regular-season finale.
“It’s always good to go into the postseason,” Tomlinson said. “You start (over at) 0-0, but to be riding high off a win — that’s huge.”
Bradford (5-5) tried some new things offensively, which paid off in touchdowns on its first two possessions. One of those new things was having Dae’Jon Shanks be a factor in the run game. He had 10 carries for 70 yards.
“We just wanted to get more people involved,” Tomlinson said.
Shanks’ effort was part of a 205-yard rushing game, that featured 109 yards on Manny Covey’s five carries. Covey got the second half started with a bang when he broke free for a 79-yard touchdown run.
“I was proud of the team,” Tomlinson said. “We were able to run the football tonight.”
The run game made its mark in a big way on the Tornadoes’ second play from scrimmage when Shanks had a 41-yard carry to the Fort White 6-yard line. Two plays later, Bradford scored on a 4-yard touchdown pass from Amari Jones to Chalil Cummings. A bad snap
prevented Hayden Hughes from attempting the extra point, but Bradford led 6-0 at the 7:11 mark of the first quarter.
Despite the miscue on the PAT, Bradford had a big night on special teams, which included Sincere Hankerson blocking two punts. His first occurred on the Indians’ second possession and gave the Tornadoes the ball at the Fort White 40. Jones promptly completed an 11-yard pass to Jeremiah Crum. A 9-yard reception by Crum later set up fourth-and-1 at the 20. Covey picked up the first down on a 10-yard run. He carried the ball again on the following play, finding his way into the end zone with 2:24 to play in the first quarter. Hughes added the PAT for a 13-0 lead.
Bradford’s offense struggled the rest of the half with penalties and lost-yardage plays, netting minus-44 yards on three possessions. The defense, though, continued its strong play. Following the Tornadoes’ second score, Fort White’s offense gained its initial first down and later went for it on a fourth-and-4 play from the Bradford 43. Torin Brazell and Elijah Williams tackled quarterback Gavin Heaton for a 1-yard gain to force a turnover on downs.
Brazell and Hankerson teamed up to sack Heaton for a 4-yard loss on the Indians’ next series, which resulted in three plays and a punt. The next time Fort White had the ball, it faced a third-and-2 at the Bradford 41. Brazell and Bryson Bowen led a group effort that resulted in holding running back Lecosta Byrd to no gain. Heaton was then held to 1 yard on a quarterback sneak on fourth-and-2.
The Tornadoes’ offense got back on track in a big way to start the second half. Bradford, on the first play after receiving the kickoff, went from its own 21 to paydirt, thanks to one carry by Covey. Hughes kicked the extra point to make it 20-0 just 16 seconds into the third quarter.
Fort White (5-4) went nowhere on its first series of the half, with a chop-block penalty hurting its efforts. The Indians punted on fourth-and-19 from their own 22. Tez Williams fielded the punt at his own 46 and took it the distance for a 54-yard Bradford touchdown at the 8:52 mark of the third quarter. The score stood at 26-0 after Hughes’ PAT.
The Indians had their best offensive play of the night on the first play from scrimmage following the kickoff. Kamarion Griffin had a 28-yard run to the Bradford 31. A personal-foul facemask tacked on another 15 yards. Griffin later caught an 11-yard pass to set up first-and-goal at the 1. Byrd scored on a run from there to make the score 26-6 with 5:34 remaining in the third quarter. Cummings intercepted Heaton’s pass on the two-point play.
Williams returned the ensuing kickoff 33 yards to the Bradford 43. A horse-collar penalty on the play added 15 yards, resulting in the Bradford offense starting out at the Fort White 42. A penalty and a tackle behind the line of scrimmage put the Tornadoes in long-yardage situations. However, on third-and-19, a 17-yard reception by Cummings set up fourth-and-2 at the Fort White 34. Jones was able to draw the Indians offsides on fourth down, resulting in a first down at the 29. Shanks had runs of 5 and 14 yards to gain first
downs, with the second run giving the Tornadoes the ball at the 4-yard line. Jones eventually scored on a 1-yard run with 12 seconds left in the third quarter. Hughes’ PAT capped the night’s scoring.
Jones finished 5-of-12 passing for 52 yards. Cummings caught two passes for 21 yards, while Crum caught two for 20 yards.
The Tornadoes finished with 268 total yards.
Bowen led the team in tackles with 12. Chason Clark and Hankerson had nine and eight tackles, respectively, while Brazell had seven.
It was Bradford’s fourth win in six games after a 1-3 start to the season. The Tornadoes played six teams in larger classifications this season and six teams (including Fort White) that qualified for the playoffs.
“The schedule was brutal. It was hard this year,” Tomlinson said. “We finished it at 5-5. Now it’s time to be 0-0 and go through the playoffs.”
