Colvin’s three touchdowns lead 8th-grade team to title game

Published 10:17 pm Thursday, September 28, 2023

MOULTRIE — Kendall Colvin scored all three touchdowns in the Colquitt County eight-grade football team’s 22-8 victory over Valdosta on Thursday that will send the Packers to the conference championship game.

Colquitt, now 6-0, will return to Tom White Field at Mack Tharpe Stadium at 4:30 p.m. on Thursday, Oct. 5, to play host to Coffee for the title.

The eighth-grade Packers, now 6-0, defeated the Trojans earlier this season.

“But it was a tough game,” Colquitt County eighth-grade coach Nate Madison said of the win over Coffee. “We struggled early. and they are real physical … a real physical team.”

Colquitt County’s Thursday win was its second in as many weeks against Valdosta.

But as they have throughout the season, the eighth-grade Packers played sterling defense, setting up their potent offense put the necessary points on the board.

And Colvin was the catalyst, carrying the football 13 times for 83 yards and two touchdowns and catching two passes for 45 yards and another score.

The first Colquitt County touchdown was set up by an interception by Javian Daniels on the third play of the game that gave the Packers a first down on the Valdosta 35.

Moments later, on a first-and-10 from the Valdosta 24, Colvin took a handoff and appeared to be stopped in the backfield for a loss.

But he shook off the Valdosta tackler and headed to the right sideline, where he picked up a crucial block by quarterback Cohen Lawson that sent him to the end zone.

Lawson then threw to Gavin Henderson for a 2-point conversion that put Colquitt up 8-0 with 5:16 left in the first quarter.

The Packers marched 70 yards in just six plays to extend their lead in the second quarter.

Colvin started the drive with a 29-yard run and Lawson followed with a 17-yard completion to Tristion Walker.

Three plays later, Lawson was chased out of the pocket, but spied Colvin wide open in the end zone for a 24-yard touchdown.

Lawson and Henderson again connected on a 2-point conversion pass to give the Packers a 16-0 lead with 2:03 left in the half.

Colquitt took the second-half kickoff and drove 60 yards to Colvin’s final touchdown, which came on a 2-yard run.

Lawson completed two passes in the drive, a 7-yarder to Quinahri Thornton and a 21-yarder to Colvin.

Although the Packers 2-point conversion run came up short, Colquitt led 22-0 after the drive that ate up just short of four minutes of the third-quarter clock.

Valdosta scored its only touchdown on a 1-yard run with 6:22 left in the game and converted a 2-point conversion pass.

The eighth-grade Wildcats had just one more possession, but were forced to turn the ball over on downs and Colquitt ran out the clock.

Lawson completed 9-of-18 passes for 128 yards and the touchdown throw to Colvin.

The Packers defense held Valdosta to 111 yards on the ground and just 26 through the air.

Of the 136 yards of offense, 60 came on Valdosta’s lone scoring drive.