By John Goolsby, Prep Sports Editor
CENTER POINT, Ala.-The Moody Blue Devils (4-2, 3-0) traveled to Center Point on Friday night and defeated the Eagles 36-12.
The win was Moody’s first over Center Point (4-3, 3-1) in nine meetings. The Eagles had outscored the Blue Devils 96-25 the previous two years.
Georgia Southern commit Charlie Johnston threw for 264 yards and four touchdowns on the night.
Johnston’s favorite target of the night was Josiah Dozier. The junior hauled in six passes for 175 yards and two touchdowns.
The game saw the return of Center Point’s Deon Moore, who had missed the two previous games.
The Moody defense limited Moore to 148 yards, in part due to George Bate’s squad’s plethora of injuries.
Moody’s head coach, Jake Ganus, was happy with the win but was not pleased with his team’s errors.
“The turnovers, the penalties, if I’m being honest, that game was really bad, that score was a lot different,” said Ganus. “I know we won by however much, but the standard is the standard.”
“If we are going to play and compete for a state championship, we have to get a lot better, but I am proud of our guys.”
The Johnston to Dozier combination got Moody on the board first with a 43-yard strike with 11:50 in the second quarter.
It didn’t take Moody long to get on the board again. Following a sky kick kickoff recovery by Brody McCutcheon, the Blue Devils scored on a Bravis Cave, Jr. six-yard run. Cave followed up his score with a two-point conversion to make the score 15-0 with 10:36 on the clock.
On Center Point’s ensuing drive, the Eagles moved to the Moody 25-yard line on a 28-yard Moore to Antonio Garfield completion.
The Eagles’ drive ended when Kaleb Goff intercepted a Moore pass on fourth down and returned it to the Center Point 27-yard line.
Three plays later, the Blue Devils were on the board again, courtesy of a 14-yard reception by Braden Wright from Johnston. The PAT attempt failed, and Moody held a 21-0 lead with 4:22 remaining in the half.
Center Point could not move the ball on its next possession and gave it back to Moody.
The Blue Devils, looking to get another score before the half, went to the air, but Mikhi Carson intercepted Johnston’s pass and returned it for a touchdown. The two-point try was no good, and the Eagles cut the lead to 21-6 with 1:36 on the clock before the break.
The Blue Devils weren’t done scoring, though. With 1:02 left, Johnston connected with Jalijah Rutledge for a 45-yard touchdown to put Moody up 29-6 after a successful two-point conversion by Goff.
A 75-yard pass from Johnston to Dozier four minutes into the second half pushed the Moody lead to 36-6.
The Eagles put together a drive and scored on a Moore eight-yard run with 7:12 in the game. The two-point try failed, and Moody returned to St. Clair County with a 36-12 victory.
Center Point head coach George Bates was disappointed with the Eagle’s loss but optimistic about the rest of the season.
“We are working on our team,” he said. “We are trying to see what works. At the end of the day, we have a bye week to work on some things.”
“We will get some kids back and look different in the playoffs.”
Moody hosts Leeds in the “Battle of the Bridge” Friday night. The Greenwave hold a 15-1 on-the-field record against Moody. The last Blue Devil victory came in 2009.
Center Point has a much-needed bye week.
