The Blountstown Tigers got their first taste of competition after a grueling Spring practice Friday night at Bowles Field against Freeport. The Tigers had some new names on the field, some players in new positions, and some players on the sideline with injuries who might have made a difference in the outcome. Freeport took a commanding 21-0 lead by halftime, but Blountstown mounted a comeback and narrowed the margin to 27-22 in the fourth quarter. A late Freeport touchdown run of 60+ yards gave the visitors a 34-22 victory.
“We’re glad we got to play a team of Freeport’s caliber so we can really see where we stand and what we need to work on,” coach Greg Jordan said Tuesday. “We didn’t play very well. We were trying some different things on defense and missed some assignments. Our kids had a great spring and we’ll have to work hard this summer to get better.”
Jawon Mosley rushed for 93 yards on 11 carries and scored on a 26 yard carry in the fourth quarter. Princeton Grant rushed for 99 yards on 9 carries and had a 5 yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter. Brandon Smith had 30 yards on 6 attempts and scored on a 9 yard run. Darren Huff had 28 yards on 6 carries but suffered a knee injury during the game and will be evaluated this week. Probable starter Alexander Garrett is recovering from a knee injury in October and did not see action.
Quarterback PJ Buggs completed 5 of 12 passes for 54 yards and threw one interception for the Tigers.
Patrick Wilson, Jason Money, and Jawon Mosley were the leading tacklers on defense for Blountstown.
The Tigers will return to District 2 Class 1-A next season. The six team district will be composed of Blountstown, Liberty County, West Gadsden, Franklin County, Port St. Joe and Wewa. The student cutoff number was set at 526 and Blountstown High School had 409. The cutoff number in 2004 was 411 and BHS had 417 forcing them to compete in District 2 Class 2-B.
