Perry looks to break losing streak against Peach County
Perry enters Friday night’s GHSA non-region rivalry contest against Peach County looking to build upon some early success and erase years of bad memories in games against the Trojans.
The Panthers (1-0) last victory in the series came 10 years ago, and it’s the only victory over Peach County that Perry fans have enjoyed in almost two decades.
“The kids know how important (the Peach County game) is to the community,” Perry head coach Carl Dixon said. “The last time we beat Peach County at home was 1989. There’s no one really around here that can tell you how it feels to beat Peach County at home except some guys up in their 30s or 40s maybe. We did beat them over there in 2007 or 2008, but we’ve beaten them one time since 1989. They’ve owned the series.”
Perry played keep-away in last season’s matchup, taking advantage of a young Trojans (1-1) team still trying to find its offensive identity and battled into the fourth quarter before falling 13-6.
“It was a tight ballgame,” Peach County head coach Chad Campbell said. “They kind of controlled the clock and managed the clock. We didn’t have the ball a lot or have many possessions at all.”
Peach County enters Friday’s contest off of an unsatisfying 20-19 victory over Warner Robins, but seems to have regrouped this week at practice. The Trojans escaped McConnell-Talbert Stadium with the win against the Demons but were plagued by penalties and turnovers, as well as a blocked punt.
Offensively, they’ve enjoyed great balance. Quarterback Antonio Gilbert, who took over full-time duty behind center this season due to the graduation of Tyrique McGhee, has completed 64 percent of his passes and is averaging 167 yards passing per game. Chris Gibson and the explosive James Jackson pace a ground game contributing 168 yards per contest to the Trojans attack.
“We just have to execute,” Campbell said. “Mentally, we have to be in the game. Sometimes I don’t know where we’re at mentally. I don’t know if we lack focus or what, but we just want to execute and limit mistakes. We’ve had our best week of practice this year this week. We just have to grow up, become more mature, and be able to handle things better.”
The Panthers have had two weeks to prepare after dispatching Rutland 35-14 in the opener. The 21-point triumph was the largest margin of victory for a Perry team since beating Howard 49-6 in 2012.
Perry is led by senior quarterback Damion Bagley, who is new to the position after garnering All-Region honors as a free safety last year. Behind him is the athletic trio of Jarius Hart, Jaqueveon Watkins and Khalil Alexander. Those three, along with Bagley, helped the Panthers rush for more than 300 yards against Rutland.
“To open the season with a win gives the kids a tremendous shot of confidence, and, of course, it makes practice a lot easier,” Dixon said. “It’s our second year in this offense, and we’re beginning to expand a bit on that. It meant a lot to us, it really did.”
This story was originally published September 7, 2016 at 10:05 PM with the headline "Perry looks to break losing streak against Peach County."