LILBURN – For a team that looked primed to be blown away and out of its own home stadium, Parkview High’s response in the second half Friday at The Big Orange Jungle was, in a word, championship.

Down 21-10 to the visiting Colquitt County High Packers at halftime on two touchdowns inside the final minute, the Parkview Panthers not only did all the scoring but all the moving of the football period over the last two quarters. The Region 7-7A champions had 30 unanswered points to win the GHSA 7A second-round all-world match-up 40-21, which sets up a quarterfinal game with fellow Gwinnett County school Archer High on Black Friday at The Jungle.

For the Colquitt County Packers, the debut season for head coach Justin Rogers comes to a close, and it’s the first time since 2008 that Colquitt failed to get past the second round of the playoffs. The Packers returned to Moultrie with a final 9-3 record for 2019 and looking to a future of rebuilding an offense that is losing senior starters at quarterback, running back and four out of five offensive line spots plus three linebackers, two defensive ends and a quality safety.

So much, though, was clicking for Colquitt County in the first half with the running of senior Daijun Edwards and quarterback Jaycee Harden’s three touchdown passes. That put Harden at 39 for the season, one short of tying the school record for one year. The Packers also caused two turnovers on defense.

That latter stat, Parkview was able to even out during the second half. The Panthers also held Colquitt without a first down in the third period as defenders like Kobe Wilson were in the backfield off the snap. The visiting team got four first downs in the final period, but for the game Parkview sacked the quarterback five times. Two of those were by Mason Huntley, who had three the previous weekend to beat West Forsyth in the first round.

Parkview quarterback Jordan Williams completed three deep passes in the first half, but the results were 10 points and a lost fumble caused by Packer cornerback Antonio Spradley. Williams’ offense had the first possession, and his second-down completion in the flat was a catch-and-run of 41 yards to Colquitt’s 12-yard-line. Big junior running back Cody Brown, playing for the first time after missing two games, tried to go right but was caught by cornerback Omarian Daniels. He went up the middle but was smothered by nose Marcus Ponder on the 8.

So the Panthers stetted for the 25-yard Nolan McCord field goal.

In what was a rare occurrence against this caliber of competition, Edwards was able to establish a running presence right at the start with 33 yards on four carries plus a 10-yard catch of a swing pass. In Parkview ground, Harden hit an open Tyler Walker for 24 yards to the 18. From the 4, Harden’s fade went into Tajh Sanders’ hands for the touchdown. Jason Gallardo’s PAT kick put it at 7-3 Colquitt with about 5:12 left in the quarter. This was an 80-yard drive, the first of two by Rogers’ offense.

When Williams completed his second deep ball, Spradley stripped the football loose on the Packer 10-yard-line. Senior safety Nyquann Washington recovered.

As the first quarter ended and the second began, there was a small momentum shift towards the Panthers keyed by Huntley’s two sacks. CJ Daniels then became a pass-catching machine for the orange-clad players. In three receptions, he gained 33 yards, and as the Panthers moved inside the Packer 30 Daniels went a corner route for 25 yards to the 4.

Brown’s ensuing touchdown run was eight yards due to penalty, but at 4:54 until the half Parkview was back in front 10-7. The Panthers wound up with more than 100 yards in fouls.

The play, though, that made this a Colquitt County first half was Rogers’ call for the ‘Wild Hawg’ on 3rd-and-2 at his own 28. With everyone defensively bunched in the middle, Edwards, taking the direct snap, found wide open spaces on the left side to pick up 34 yards on the Panther 38.

As Bubba Wallace added 12 yards to the series, Rogers was faced with another decision, 4th-and-7 on the 24. Coming out of a timeout with 1:25 on the clock, he stuck with the regular offense, and Harden – getting double-team protection on Huntley by center Trey McCoy and guard Thomas Barry – fired a strike to Lemeke Brockington over the middle. It was the leading receiver’s first grab, which covered 17 yards to the 7.

One play later, Harden threw a second fade, this one Brockington hauled in at the back of the end zone with 58 seconds until the half.

Was Parkview about to snatch that advantage back? Tyler Curtis – the back-up running back – set them up to do so taking a squibbed kickoff to Colquitt’s 47. But, for the first time this season, sophomore safety Pershaun Fann picked off a pass and spotted his team on the 43 at the 41-second mark.

Out of a timeout, Harden went up top to Sanders, their second hook-up for a touchdown, this of 55 yards. Gallardo was 3-for-3 in PAT kicking, and the Packers rolled into the half up 21-10. They would also get the football first for the second half.

But the Panthers dominated anything and everything in that new half, starting with David Patterson’s sack of Harden for 3rd-and-12 on that first possession, a three-and-out. Colquitt’s struggles in the punt game that started Nov. 1 in the 1-7A championship loss to Lowndes continued, but the first kick from Emmanuel Perez flipped the field to the Panther 26.

Daniels flipped it right back with a 42-yard catch on the CC 34. A scrambling Williams completed a 3rd-and-14 throw to the 10, but with penalty after penalty, the Panthers settled for a 35-yard McCord field goal at 6:43 of the third quarter.

It was 21-13 Packers, but as Wilson met Edwards in the backfield twice it was another three-and-out. The punt went to the Panther 44, and afterwards the Parkview sideline made its own gutsy decision. On 4th-and-6, Brown took a direct snap in punt formation and plowed ahead to the CC 20 at 3:02.

One of those many penalty flags negated Curtis’ 9-yard touchdown run, but from the 19 Curtis made up 14 of those yards on first down. Williams then faked a dive to Brown and strode to the end zone at 1:29.

Colquitt still clasped on to the lead 21-19 as its pass rush prevented a two-point completion.

The offense remained stagnant, though, not just with no first downs in three drives but also just a net of 13 yards. The third punt of the period only went 27, so as the game was moving to the fourth Parkview was seeking that elusive lead in Packer ground.

Daniels added two more catches for 22 yards at the end of the third, and on the first snap of the fourth Brown burst off right tackle, spun and dove to the pylon for his second touchdown, a 21-yarder. Williams got his team two more on the run for 27-21 Panthers.

And just like what Colquitt did in the first half, Parkview used a quick after-TD takeaway to add more points. Quincy Bryant intercepted the second pass of the ensuing drive and returned it 21 yards to the CC 16. Curtis, in two carries, covered those yards, 10 on his first touchdown at 10:29.

Up 33-21, one more turnover – Patterson causing and recovering a fumble on his 48 – led to Brown’s third touchdown run. He had five totes after the takeaway, scoring from 24 out at 4:34.