Me and my big mouth.
In this very column last week, I led things off with the history Cherokee County’s football teams made last week by posting perfect records for two consecutive weeks.
So what happened last week? Well, most of them hit a tailspin.
Four of the five suffered losses, including Spring Garden and Sand Rock’s first setbacks of the season. Only the Cherokee County Warriors kept the county from being winless with their 40-0 victory at White Plains.
The county teams weren’t the only ones who struggled. Yours truly went 4-3, dropping my overall record to 21-5 on the season.
Is a rebound on the horizon for both the county and myself? Read on to find out ‘What in the World is Shannon Fagan Thinking?’
Asbury (1-3) at Gaylesville (3-2): The first of two homecoming games in the county this week is at Gaylesville. The Rams come into the contest struggling. After their season-opening win against Gaston, they’ve dropped three in a row in which they’ve given up over 50 points.
Sounds like there’s a big night is in store for Keylon Higgins, Michael Reynolds, Hunter Penney and company.
The pick: Gaylesville.
Coosa, Ga. (0-3) at Cherokee County (3-1): The second homecoming game in the county is in Centre.
As bad as I mentioned Asbury has struggled this season, Coosa is in the same boat. A fairly young Eagle squad hasn’t soared to victory yet this season, while the Warriors are flying high.
Two teams on different trajectories here. I like the Warriors to stay on course.
The pick: Cherokee County.
North Sand Mountain (1-3) at Cedar Bluff (2-2): The Bison record is a deceptive one. They’ve lost two close contests against Ider and Tanner. They led Ider by a touchdown late in the fourth quarter, and the Tanner game was scoreless after three.
Meanwhile, Cedar Bluff struggled to do much of anything last week at Trion, Ga.
Defense has been the Bison strong point for most of the season, and I’m afraid the Tigers won’t get into much of an offensive rhythm in this one.
The pick: North Sand Mountain.
Jacksonville (3-2) at No. 2 Piedmont (4-0): Piedmont piled up the points in their record-setting 70-13 win over Weaver last week, and has been on the incline scoring since Week 1’s 27-0 victory over Cherokee County. The Bulldogs are averaging 45 points per game.
While I don’t think 70 points scored last week or the 45 season average is in store for tomorrow night, I do think Piedmont posts another win nonetheless.
The pick: Piedmont.
Hokes Bluff (2-2) at No. 7 Spring Garden (3-1): This game was one of my favorites to cover last year.
The Panthers fell behind three touchdowns early, but battled back to within one score in the fourth quarter. However, the Eagles managed to put the game away with a late score and earn a 42-28 victory in the first meeting between the two schools.
In that game, Cooper Austin had a big night for the Panthers. He caught seven passes for 146 yards and two touchdowns. I look for him to be a big playmaker again, but this time in a Panther win.
The pick: Spring Garden.
Sand Rock (3-1) at Collinsville (2-3): With apologies to former Sand Rock coach Russell Jacoway, maybe the Wildcats need to play all their games on the road.
They’re 3-0 away from the stadium that bears his name, while 0-1 playing at home following last week’s homecoming heartbreaker to Southeastern.
I look for Jacob Cornejo, Trace Haygood, Ace Ashley and company to rebound on the short trip to Collinsville.
The pick: Sand Rock.