Greg Hollis | [email protected]
NEWBERRY — The Bulldogs makes it through the regular season with an unblemished record after closing the season at home with a shut out. Newberry(10-0, 4-0 region 4-AAA) defeats Swansea(8-2, 2-2 region 4-AAA) 43-0 on Senior Night to capture the region 4-AAA title and finish the season undefeated for the first time since 2001.
Newberry entered the final week of the regular season with a lot on the line. They had a chance to complete the season undefeated for the first time since 2001, a chance to win back-to-back region titles and home field advantage in the postseason. They were able to check all of those boxes and here’s how they did it.
The Bulldogs’ defense took the Tigers best shot on the opening drive. Swansea was able to drive the ball right down the field, but Newberry’s defense stalled them in the red zone. The Tigers then attempted a field goal and the Bulldogs’ special teams came up with the first big play of the game after blocking the field goal attempt.
Newberry’s offense quickly responded, like they have done all year, and scored on another long touchdown play. Senior quarterback Kenton Caldwell found senior wide receiver Cash Brown on a quick screen that Brown took 80-yards for their first score of the game. The Bulldogs’ defense settled into the game and forced a the Tigers to punt on their second offensive drive of the game.
The Bulldogs moved the ball well on their second drive, but Caldwell threw a interception on fourth down near the red zone for the first turnover of the game. Newberry’s defense didn’t give up anything after the turnover and preserved their 7-0 lead going into the second quarter.
The home team had possession of the ball at the start of the second quarter and senior running back BJ Jones on a gimpy ankle broke a long 34-yard run to put Newberry just outside of the red zone. Caldwell found senior tight end Jamel Howse Jr. in the middle of the field. Howse did the rest of the work as he shrugged off a defender and walked into the end zone for the 21-yard touchdown reception. They missed the extra point, but the Bulldogs still held a comfortable 13-0 lead.
The Tigers’ offense struggled after their opening drive and it was in large part due to the Bulldogs’ defensive line. Senior defensive linemen Jordan Wright, Thomas Dewalt and Dontavias Griffin lived in Swansea’s backfield and had their quarterback running for his life the entire night. They forced four Tigers’ offensive drives to end in punts in the first half after the opening drive of the game.
Newberry’s offense were able to make their third consecutive trip to the red zone, but only came away with a 21-yard field goal to extend their lead, 16-0. Then, they drove the ball down the field to put themselves in field goal position late in the half Eric Rubio came up just short on the attempt. He would finished the half one-of-two on field goal attempts.
The Bulldogs received the ball right after halftime and immediately went to work. Brown big night would continue as he took a reverse 23-yards for another big play. Jordan Holiday would finish off the drive with a physical 11-yard touchdown run that ended with him carrying two Tigers’ defenders into the end zone. Newberry took a 23-0 lead.
Brown continued to put on a show on Senior Night in front of the Newberry crowd. He took the hand off on the reverse and appeared to cornered by the Tigers’ defense, but he pulled his trick for Halloween and gave the fans at Mike Ware Field a treat when he reversed field evading defenders for a 50-yard touchdown run. Brown finished the night with nearly 200 all-purpose yards and two total touchdowns, one receiving and one rushing. He gave his squad a 30-0 lead.
The final act of the night for the Bulldogs’ senior class came when senior receiver Jason Dunbar used that 6-foot-3 frame to snatch the ball out of the air over the defensive back and take into the end zone for 50-yard touchdown to put the game away for the Bulldogs and seal the perfect regular season and region title.
Newberry would take a 36-0 lead into the fourth quarter and added another touchdown in the final quarter for security. The Bulldogs had their second shut out of the year, held their four opponents this season to one score or less, scored 40 or more points in seven games this season and scored at least 35 points in nine of the 10 games this season.
“We’ve did a great job at practice this year on how we practice. We don’t bang everyday and we want to make sure the guys are fresh on Friday. It’s been a big emphasis for the last two years and it’s paying off. We don’t have a ton of injuries and the injuries we do have all happened during games. Our guys are excited to win the region championship but we know we have bigger goals ahead. So, we are really focused on that and the long term,” said Bulldogs head coach Cedrick Jeter.
He continued, “I am proud of them and they have done a great job. I feel like we are getting back to where we were at the beginning of the season. We are playing good defense and playing good offense. We didn’t play our best game in the first half, but we came out in the second half and executed.”
“We wanted to come out, get the ball and drive it down the field and really make a point of emphasis to run the ball and show them that we are the better team. That’s what happened that third quarter. Shout out to everyone especially the coaches because they did a great job of game planning and being prepared. Second region championship now it’s time to go on to the playoffs,” Jeter concluded.
Newberry will be at home at Mike Ware Field to start the playoffs on Friday, Nov. 7th.
Reach Greg Hollis @ 803-768-3117 or on X @TheNBOnews