Warner Robins’ preserves perfect record against Northeast-Macon with last-second score

WARNER ROBINS – Warner Robins (2-0) very nearly lost to Northeast-Macon (1-1) for the first time in school history on Friday, but Antavious Hawkins found paydirt with 16 seconds left to preserve the Demons’ perfect record.

The 21-20 final moved the all-time series to 25-0, but Warner Robins had to withstand 20 unanswered points and a slew of penalties to get it done.

“Composure is the biggest thing, we talk about it all the time. Staying together as a team, staying united, and that’s what you saw,” said Demons head coach Shane Sams.

Warner Robins’ Ethan Adside hauled in a first-quarter interception to give the Demons life after two failed drives. A pair of penalties derailed what could’ve been a momentum-shifting series.

The next Raiders drive also ended with an interception, but a penalty and overthrow by Warner Robins quarterback Chandler Dyson again left the Demons empty-handed.

It was very nearly a scoreless first half before Chandler Dyson’s 52-yard run put Warner Robins on the edge of the red zone. Shortly after, Jaden Hill put the first score on the board with a five-yard scamper.

 “Offensively, we just got to clean up. We got to clean up penalties and we got to clean up turnovers,” Sams said.

Northeast wasn’t without their own issues. Aside from the two turnovers, seemingly every time they were on the cusp of a big scoring drive or defensive stop, a penalty stopped them dead in their tracks.

After going down 14-0 the Raiders came out and delivered multiple explosive plays, the last of which was a 25-yard Tavares Tinsley Jr. touchdown reception to cut the deficit to eight after a missed extra point.

Two touchdowns and a two-point conversion later Northeast led 20-14 with 3:29 left in the game.

The Demons’ defense made the flashy plays, like a first-down sack by Peyton Zitterman on what would be Northeast’s second scoring drive. However, there were times where they couldn’t get off the field on the later downs, whether it be because of penalties or a lack of pressure up front. In that same series, Raiders quarterback Jordan Wiggins scored with his legs on 4th-and-10 from the Demons’ 29-yard line.

The offensive line, as far as false starts went, had similar problems.

“Right now [the] big thing is inexperience up front, and that’s what we’re trying to gather [experience],” Sams said. “That’s why we’ve scheduled two really good teams [in the first two weeks]. [Northeast] has gone to the semifinals [and] the state championship the last two years.”

The offense was not on the same page most of the night. Whether it be false starts, miscommunications on routes or something else, tempers flared at different moments.

But a bright spot was the running back room. A.J. Alexander felt like a guaranteed eight yards every time he hit the field and Jaden Hill was as solid as they come. On a night where the offense was just not clicking, those two helped raise the floor.

“They’re feeding off of each other, supporting each other … it was a great job,” Sams said. “A great team win. They do a lot of good things, [I’m] excited for them … Fighting through adversity is what we preach, and they’ve done a great job of that.”

UP NEXT

Warner Robins faces Northside in the Crosstown Showdown on Sept. 4 at 7:30 p.m.

Northeast returns home to play Perry after the bye week on Sept. 11 at 7:30 p.m.