Hard-hitting Westside set to host surging West Laurens

In the 12 months since Westside defeated West Laurens 36-10 in Dexter, a bit of a transformation has taken place in the West Laurens program.

A program that enjoyed few winning seasons in the past couple of decades, West Laurens has gone on a bit of a roll. Since that loss to Westside, in which West Laurens led late in the second quarter before giving up 27 unanswered points, the Raiders have won 10 of 12 games. They claimed the GHSA Region 2-AAAA title last year and advanced to the Class AAAA quarterfinals.

After starting this season with three blowout victories, West Laurens meets up again with Westside, itself off to a 2-0 start, Friday at the Ed DeFore Sports Complex.

“We’ve been blessed,” West Laurens head coach Stacy Nobles said. “Last year was great; it taught the kids how to win. It was a battle to get there, getting over the hump. But we did that last year and had a lot of players coming back. We had a great offseason, and now the kids are not just hoping to win, they’re expecting to win.”

Ranked fifth in the Georgia Sports Writers Association Class AAAA poll, West Laurens has outscored its three opponents this season -- Thomasville, Vidalia and Bleckley County -- 117-13.

Last year, West Laurens edged Thomasville 42-35 and lost 30-17 to Vidalia.

“The defense is playing outstanding,” Nobles said. “The whole defensive line is back. We started a lot of sophomores last year on defense because of injuries, and we knew the defense would have to carry us early on. I’ve been really pleased with how they have swarmed to the ball and tackled well.”

Westside, which received votes in the Class AAA poll, also has enjoyed some success early on.

After beating Rutland comfortably in its opener, Westside went to Harris County last week and beat the defending Region 1-AAAAA champion 30-10. A year ago, Westside was taken to the wire by Harris County before winning 35-29.

“Harris County was a tough game; we kind of pulled away at the end,” Westside head coach Spoon Risper said. “Harris County was a very tough team, like we expected, and West Laurens has the same type of team. They’ve always played us well. Coach Nobles has done a wonderful job since he’s been there. He’s a class act, and I have nothing but respect for that program.”

Both teams have enjoyed plenty of success on offense under new quarterbacks.

Savion Knowlton, a junior, completed 25-of-40 passes for 261 yards and five touchdowns in the Seminoles’ first two games. His counterpart at West Laurens, senior Jalen Mack, has completed 10-of-19 passes for 211 yards and two scores as the Raiders go to more of a ground game (689 team rushing yards, six touchdowns).

“Offensive line-wise, we have a little size, we have a little depth,” Risper said. “We’re looking to be even more balanced than we have been in the past.”

This story was originally published September 10, 2015 at 11:16 PM with the headline "Hard-hitting Westside set to host surging West Laurens ."