Putnam County recorded its second-straight win Friday, defeating Butler in its Region 4-AA opener.
War Eagles’ running backs Rashod Daniel and Kaleb Crawford combined to rush for 211 yards and three scores as the War Eagles defeated Butler 35-12 in their Region 4-AA opener last Friday. Sophomore two-way player Branan Griffin also scored a pair of touchdowns.
Putnam County easily defeated the Bulldogs 35-12 in Augusta, evening up its record at 2-2 on the year.
War Eagles’ coach Joel Harvin was happy to see Daniel and Crawford have success on the ground; however, he knows his team can play a cleaner game next Friday after so many penalties last week.
“I thought we had a pretty good night rushing. We almost had two backs rush for 100 yards,” he said. “We’re improving a little bit and getting more comfortable running what we’re doing. Our issue Friday was penalties. It’s something we’re going to work on this week, we are going to fix it. Get our kids to understand committing penalties backs up a drive. They’re drive-killers, but it also puts us in a bind. We had a lot of third-and-long situations. We’re trying to eliminate those things.”
Those unfortunate penalties cost Putnam County a few more scoring opportunities, Harvin added.
“It was kind of a struggle because we moved the ball well, but a lot of our drives were messed up with holding calls and personal fouls. Stuff like that,” he said. “It seemed like we’re very undisciplined and we’re going to fix that. It seems like every week there’s something that shows up that we have done [wrong]. We need to keep fixing that. We’re just going to keep working on this.”
Despite all the mistakes made by Putnam County on Friday, the team overcame quickly against Butler.
The first quarter was back-and-forth as Putnam led Butler 14-6 after the opening 12 minutes. The War Eagles got on the board first as Griffin recovered a fumble in the end zone; however, Butler returned the ensuing kickoff for six, but its 2-point conversion was no good.
Later in the quarter, Daniel capped off a long Putnam drive with his second touchdown of the season. Daniel’s first score of the game on the ground extended the War Eagles’ lead to 14-6 over the Bulldogs. They reached the end zone twice more before the end of the half, leading 28-6.
Griffin scored his only offensive touchdown on the ground, adding to Putnam’s already large lead. The War Eagles’ momentum continued later in the second quarter following a defensive stop. Daniel scampered around the edge for his second touchdown, extending the lead to three scores.
In the third quarter, Butler put together a drive that was capped off by a touchdown, making it 28-12 after another 2-point conversion failed. Either way, that was it for the Bulldogs’ hopes for a comeback. Putnam’s defensive unit then stepped up and pitched a shutout the rest of the night.
Crawford, who had been splitting reps with Daniel and many other backs all game, reached the end zone in the fourth quarter. His score gave the War Eagles their most points of the season. It also came in the closing minutes as Putnam was in complete control with a 35-12 lead.
Daniel rushed for a season-high 115 yards and two scores on 12 carries, averaging a team-high 9.6 yards per attempt. Crawford was close to breaking the century mark with 96 yards on 14 rushes and a touchdown. Griffin also had a solid night on the ground, rushing for 38 yards and a score.
Harvin was pleased with the overall effort, especially on the offensive line with so many young guys playing.
“Some of our young guys are starting to figure it out,” Harvin said. “For the most part, we have a pretty healthy offensive line. We do have some guys at practice that are able to jump in there on Friday night to help us out. We’re also trying to develop depth, which was an issue coming into the season. We’re finally getting to that point where some guys are stepping into a role if we need them to.”
Next Friday, Putnam County will face Josey (1-3) in Augusta for another region game.