Intensity pays off for Central against Southwest

Central head coach Jesse Hicks preached for two weeks that the Chargers needed to play every game with a playoff intensity.

The Chargers got the message as they took care of Southwest 41-0 in a key GHSA Region 2-AAA game Friday at Henderson Stadium. Derrick Evans threw for three touchdowns, two to Ivory Childers, and ran for another, as Central's offense got going in the second quarter and never let up.

Central improves to 3-2 in the region while Southwest's playoff hopes took a major hit as it dropped to 2-3.

"It's always a big game when we play Southwest, and we all knew we couldn't afford to lose," said Evans, who threw for 187 yards, ran for 57 and extended his streak of not throwing an interception yet this season. "When I get in trouble, I always look for Ivory, and we have been playing together since we were like 6 years old, so it usually works out. The offense wanted to give the defense some breathing room, and that's exactly what we were able to do."

Southwest had the ball for much of the first quarter, with Central running only six plays, but the Patriots could not get into the end zone. The Chargers began to dominate in the second quarter. First, Evans found Childers for a 15-yard score to give Central the lead early in the quarter, and minutes later, it scored again on a Evans-to-Childers 8-yard scoring pass.

Central got the ball back again with only a little more than a minute left in the half, and Evans drove it 65 yards on two big passing plays, connecting with Saxton Keitt on a 35-yard scoring pass to make it 20-0 at the half.

Central defense was also a big story. Led by the front line of Chandler King, Zachary Cotton and Javius Johnson, the Chargers held Southwest to 17 yards rushing in the first half.

"I am so proud of the way we played and the way we took advantage of an off week to get back to work, fix a few things and play a great game against a good football team." Hicks said. "We have to stay in playoff mode the rest of the year, and I still believe we are a team to be reckoned with."

This story was originally published October 16, 2015 at 11:43 PM.