Branan Griffin was a weapon for Putnam County on both sides of the ball last Friday in a big region matchup against Towers.
The senior two-way player helped lead the War Eagles (5-3, 3-1) to a 40-3 win over the Titans (3-4, 0-3).
Griffin “filled in” for starter Ethan Whatley at quarterback and scored two rushing touchdowns. He also caused a fumble on defense, which Putnam County recovered and turned into a touchdown a few plays later.
“He did a good job stepping in for us on the offensive side,” War Eagles head coach Joel Harvin said of Griffin. “Ethan Whatley was a bit banged up, and we wanted to keep him out to help him recover and return to full health for the rest of the season, making sure we didn’t prolong any injury.
“So, Branan, who has played quarterback for us before, did a really good job of filling in for him. He’s made a lot of good plays for us and broke the game open there with a long touchdown run. He’s just a really good football player.”
Towers led 3-0 after the first quarter, but Griffin put Putnam County on the scoreboard with a three-yard touchdown run with 10:59 remaining in the first half. On the next possession, Griffin forced a fumble from a Titans’ ball carrier, and the War Eagles recovered it at the Towers’ 3-yard line.
Putnam County took the lead a few plays later when running tailback Bill Waters scored a touchdown on a direct snap into the end zone. His score gave the War Eagles a 14-3 lead with 8:28 left in the second quarter.
Putnam County and Griffin still weren’t finished in the first half. The defense forced a three-and-out on its next possession, and Griffin then broke off a 37-yard touchdown run, making it a 21-3 contest after the PAT.
The War Eagles led 28-3 at halftime, after junior Kumari Thomas intercepted a pass and returned it deep into the Towers’ red zone before scoring a rushing touchdown a few plays later, stiff-arming a defender along the way.
Putnam County’s defense forced a safety, with running back Elijah Dunn then scoring on a six-yard run. Kicker Alex Jimenez also added a 26-yard field goal in the second half, contributing to the War Eagles’ points total.
Putnam County scored 40 unanswered points, sparked by Griffin’s play early in the second quarter.
Harvin said he was proud of Griffin, who missed the first few games with an ACL tear and is still playing through the pain.
“You don’t see many kids that can play starting quarterback and then flip over and also play every snap at inside linebacker,” Harvin said. “He did a really good job for us, made many good plays, and against a tough defense like Towers, it can worry you as a coach because you don’t have all your weapons, but we didn’t really skip a beat when he was in there.
“I’m proud of him, and he’s actually our Player of the Week for his performance. He’s a very selfless and unselfish kid who does everything that he can to help the team.”