High School

Collins Hill ready for another shot at its first state title after weathering half a challenge from Grayson

The Eagles put the Rams away in the third quarter and look forward to facing another set of Eagles (Milton) for the state championship.

Mike Swanson

Collins Hill ready for another shot at its first state title after weathering half a challenge from Grayson
Collins Hill ready for another shot at its first state title after weathering half a challenge from Grayson /

By David Friedlander | Photo by Willie Prince

SUWANEE — Collins Hill had rarely been challenged in winning its first 13 games of the 2021 season.

That begged a question leading up to its Class 7A state semifinal game against Grayson: Just how would the No. 1 state-ranked and No. 7 nationally ranked Eagles react if they were?

They gave a resounding answer after taking their second-smallest lead into halftime, and then erupting for 21 unanswered points in the third quarter on their way to a 31-0 victory Friday night at Alan Fahring Stadium.

For a team that had won its previous games by an average of 33.3 points, it was an interesting test with a satisfying result after leading just 10-0 at the half.

The third-quarter surge allowed the Eagles (14-0) to gain a measure of payback against Grayson (10-4), which had beaten them 28-7 in the regular season and 38-14 in the state championship game a year ago.

The result should also bolster their confidence as they prepare for their second trip to the finals against No. 3 Milton next Saturday at Georgia State University's Center Parc Field in Atlanta in search of the program's first state title.

“No panic,” Collins Hill coach Lenny Gregory said. “We told the kids all week that we knew as a staff that (Grayson was) well coached and their kids play hard. Watching them on film, I thought they were the best defense we have seen all year, and I knew they were going to have a good plan for us. We just needed to be patient.”

That patience served Collins Hill well Friday, especially in the first half after Grayson put up a fierce fight and gave the Eagles their most stern test since taking only a 9-6 lead at the half and a 16-14 lead early in the third quarter before pulling away from Mississippi powerhouse Greenville Christian on Sept. 3.

But first, they had to dodge a couple of bullets.

Grayson was able to control the tempo to slow down Collins Hill's high-powered offense and the clock to hold on to the ball for 7:05 to 4:48 in the first quarter.

The Rams also created two turnovers in the first half — a Caden High interception of four-star quarterback Sam Horn and a Jaylen Bell fumble recovery — the latter of which created one of two opportunities inside Collins Hill territory.

But thanks to a defensive effort led by linemen Jaylen George and Asani Redwood, the Eagles kept Grayson off the scoreboard, holding the Rams to just 66 yards and no first downs after the first quarter.

More importantly, that effort allowed the offense to find its rhythm beginning in the second quarter, with Horn getting things kick-started on his way to posting 326 yards of total offense.

The 6-foot-4, 190-pound, Missouri-bound senior made two key plays to get his team going.

A 12-yard scramble on third and 11 from the Collins Hill 19 kept alive an 11-play, 80-yard drive that ended with Horn's 23-yard TD pass to Travis Hunter on an acrobatic catch with 6:04 left in the first half.

Then he ran 37 yards on a QB draw after being backed up at his his own 5, leading to a 21-yard Isaac Bonacci field goal as time expired to give the Eagles a 10-0 halftime lead.

“We had a good game plan going in,” said Horn, who finished the night 24-of-33 passing for 230 yards and a touchdown along with 96 yards and a TD on eight carries. “We really didn't execute at first, but we went into halftime, and we knew what we had to do. I challenged all the linemen to step up, and they did what they had to do. I'm so proud of my linemen.”

The linemen weren't the only ones on the receiving end of a challenge in the locker room during the intermission.

“Coach (Gregory) pretty much told us to go in there and keep being physical, and that we really had to knock them out,” said Hunter, a five-star, Florida State-bound receiver/cornerback who finished with a game-high eight receptions for 75 yards and a TD, plus a fumble recovery on defense. “We're really a second-half team, but if we come out fast, there's no stopping us.”

That assessment proved to be prophetic, as the Eagles controlled all but 1:52 of the third quarter, running 27 offensive plays to Grayson's four, 15 of which came on an 84-yard drive that ended with Horn's 1-yard sneak and put Collins Hill firmly in control at 17-0 with 6:02 left in the quarter.

Running back Spenser Anderson added two more touchdowns on his way to 95 yards on 16 carries for the game.

When the dust settled, the Eagles had amassed 472 yards of total offense (242 rushing, 230 passing) to just 99 for Grayson, and making quite the statement heading into next week's championship game against Milton.

And they'll be looking to make an even bigger statement in that game with the program's first title.

“We came in here … and just made a statement that we're the best team in Gwinnett, the best team in Georgia and the best team in the nation,” said four-star junior tight end Ethan Davis, who didn't play in the first half after a wrist injury late in the first half, but finished with seven catches for 89 yards and expects to play next week. “Can't nobody mess with us.”

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Mike Swanson
MIKE SWANSON

Mike Swanson is the VP of Content for High School On SI. He's been in journalism since 2003, having worked as a reporter, city editor, copy editor and high school sports editor in California, Connecticut and Oregon.

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