Colquitt wins 7-on-7 at University of Florida

Published 8:33 am Thursday, June 15, 2023

MOULTRIE, Ga. — Despite playing without outstanding tight end Landen Thomas, Colquitt County won eight straight games to win the University of Florida’s Swamp Shootout 7-on-7 on Wednesday in Gainesville.

The Packers defeated Vero Beach, Fla., in double overtime in the championship game when Jaden Fowler, filling for Thomas, made the decisive scoring reception.

“Jaden stepped into the starting role and really played well,” Packers coach Sean Calhoun said of the 6-foot-3 rising senior receiver.

Thomas, the top-ranked tight end in the nation who has committed to Florida State, was in California on Wednesday to take part in the Elite 11 event.

The Packers had to rally from deficits in both the semifinals and in the championship game.

The Swamp Shootout title came after the Packers did not play well in its 7-on-7 opener last week at Florida State, where they were the No. 2 seed after pool play, but did not advance to the championship game.

“I was proud of the way we competed and communicated,” Calhoun said of how his team performed in Gainesville. “We played Packer football.

“Last week was a learning experience. We learned from it and we got better.”

Calhoun said the Packers defense came up with “a bunch” of interceptions and turned in two shutouts among its eight victories.

The 20-team event included four teams from Georgia: Colquitt County, Thomas County Central, LaGrange and Region 1-7A foe Lowndes.

The Packers did not face Lowndes, but did defeat Thomas County Central, under former Packers head coach Justin Rogers, in the semifinal.

The Swamp Shootout was held at Florida’s new football facility.

“It was very well-run,” Calhoun said of the event, adding that he plans to take the Packers to Gainesville again next year.

The Packers 7-on-7 team will travel to Athens next Wednesday and spend the night before trying to defend its championship in the tournament sponsored by the University of Georgia on Thursday.

The 7-on-7 at Georgia will be the team’s final competition of the summer.