Houston County takes lessons learned from a loss into Northside game

WARNER ROBINS -- Losing wasn't necessarily the shock.

After all, Jones County was in the top 10 in GHSA Class AAAAA and was playing at home, where it knocked off the state's No. 1 team, Northside, a little more than a year earlier.

But the Houston County team that lost 24-17 to Jones County three weeks ago didn't look much like the one that was on a six-game winning streak and ranked second in the state.

The Bears were unsettled on offense, dropped more than a dozen passes and were flagged for 15 penalties.

"We learned that we can't make so many mistakes," quarterback Jake Fromm said. "When you're playing a good ballteam, it's hard to come back from that. We didn't play the solid game we're used to playing, and it came back to bite us in the butt."

The Bears are ranked sixth and have won two straight games by a 95-18 margin, and they carry that momentum into Friday night's battle with top-ranked and defending Region 2-AAAAA and state champion Northside.

"The Jones County game, it really opened our eyes," Houston County offensive lineman Tucker Coody said. "A quick defense. They were one of the first we played that was really fast. We didn't really have that much experience (against) it."

The game took a remarkable amount of time for a high school game that wasn't high-scoring or that went into overtime, about three hours and 22 minutes.

One reason was because Jones County's defense made life tough for Fromm and the Bears' passing game. It was the rarity for the Alabama commitment as he finished with more incompletions than completions.

The Greyhounds' pressure was so tough that Houston County called a rare quarterback draw for Fromm, and he picked up 17 yards on fourth down in the fourth quarter.

"Their front four was very fast," Fromm said. "They got back there to me. I had to move around the pocket, use my feet a little bit, be a little swifty."

It took forever last year for a defense to register a sack against Fromm. The Greyhounds had six in the fourth quarter.

Equally as disruptive for Houston County was its group of usually sure-handed wide receivers struggling to catch the ball.

"Specifically, catching the deep ball," Houston County head coach Von Lassiter said. "We dropped three that would have won the game. We always work on catching the ball as much as we throw it."

And there were penalties, sometimes two on one play. The Bears coughed up more than 150 free yards to the Greyhounds, yet still only lost by seven points.

So the past two weeks have been of an increased focus on catching the ball -- pretty much an afterthought the past season-plus with the talented receivers -- and playing smarter.

On Friday, the Bears will have to deal with another quick defensive line, which Northside brings.

The Eagles allow 173 yards per game, and have eight interceptions and 16 sacks.

"Their defensive line is definitely smaller up front, but they're a quick bunch," Coody said, comparing this year's Eagles' front to last year's. "They really get after it.

"Now, I think we can handle it a lot better."

This story was originally published November 4, 2015 at 11:17 PM with the headline "Houston County takes lessons learned from a loss into Northside game ."