TeamFYNSports Writer’s Player of the Week – J. Ben Haynes, no. 8

Player of the Week, Sports, Team FYN Sports

Team FYN Sports is excited to announce the second Player of the Week for the White County Warriors – QB J. Ben Haynes. Haynes led the Warriors on a magnificent comeback against Habersham Central that came up just short.

The Junior QB had arguably his best game yet. After struggling in the first half, Haynes scored 4 touchdowns (2 rushing, 2 passing) in the 2nd half to give the Warriors a new found energy. If Haynes can keep performing like this, he’ll make opposing defenses lose sleep at night.

Congratulations to J. Ben for being selected as the Team FYN Sports player of the week for the White County Warriors!

Team FYN Sports Player of the Week – J. Ben Haynes #8

Player of the Week, Sports, Team FYN Sports

For the third time this season, White County’s quarterback stole the show.

Team FYN Sports is excited to announce the Player of the Week for the White County Warriors – QB J. Ben Haynes. Haynes led the Warriors to a dominant 42-0 victory over the West Hall Spartans.

The Junior QB was in complete control tonight. He was responsible for 5 of the 6 Warrior touchdowns tonight. Haynes rushed for 3 touchdowns, along with passing for two touchdowns. This was his most impressive performance yet, and it came when the Warriors needed it the most.

Congratulations to J. Ben for being selected as the Team FYN Sports player of the week for the White County Warriors!

White County Heads into Bye Week 3-3 after Loss to Flowery Branch

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For the second consecutive week, the White County Warriors suffer a road defeat to a regional opponent. This time out, the Flowery Branch Falcons defeated them 45-20.

The game was under the control of Flowery Branch from the very start.

Their rushing attack was unstoppable throughout the entirety of the game, starting out with their team rushing down the field and scoring on their first drive, with RB Chase Dial-Watson scoring his first of 2 rushing touchdowns. On their next offensive drive, it would be RB Jaizen Ellingham scoring his first of 3 TDs, which gave the Falcons a 14-0 lead to end the first quarter. 

An unwelcome sight for the White County Warriors

Meanwhile, the Warriors struggled. Their defense was almost nonexistent in the first half, especially against the run. On offense, the Warriors couldn’t buy a first down in the first quarter. They finally got to move the chains during the 2nd quarter after faking a punt and passing for a first down. However, it could be argued that the biggest adversary for the Warriors tonight was not wearing pads and dressed in black. Instead, their biggest adversary was a yellow piece of dirty laundry that constantly found its way onto the field. Yes, the penalty flag was constantly setting the Warriors back and killing their momentum all throughout the night. In the first half, the Warriors were called for 4 false start calls, along with being called for holding multiple times.

Eventually, the Warriors gained some steam.

Will Sampson catching the TD pass.

After the Falcons scored another TD and converted a 32 yard field goal, the Warriors finally had a good drive going. J. Ben Haynes led his team downfield with key passes to Will Sampson and Cooper Turner. He would eventually find Will Sampson wide open in the endzone, and the Warriors would go into the half losing 6-24.

The Warriors went into the 2nd half without a key defensive player. Two time player of the week Jesse Moose would not return to the game in the 2nd half as he left with an undisclosed injury. But they started the 2nd half on offense, and Haynes was once again driving the ball downfield, including a 42 yard pass to Jesse Thomas. Eventually, the ball was at the 5 yard line, and on the next play, Haynes would throw an interception, adding on to his unimpressive tally of INTs throughout the season.

J. Ben Haynes moment after his second turnover.

Things would go from bad to worse for J. Ben. After White County forced a 3 and out on defense, he would fumble the ball on the next offensive drive, bringing the morale of the Warriors to an all time low. 

Meanwhile, the Falcons continued to play well on offense. Jaizen Ellingham would score his 2nd TD after the fumble, giving the Falcons a 31-6 lead to end the 3rd quarter.

The Warriors would not lose without a fight.

The Falcons would bring on their 2nd unit on defense, which in return, gave the Warriors a chance to fire on offense. Haynes began to play like the man we had seen earlier in the season. Haynes would score on an 18 yard rushing TD after leading his offense on an impressive and uplifting the drive. Flowery Branch and Ellingham would once again score on the next drive to bring the lead back to 25. 

The next offensive drive for the Warriors was a flashback to the Lumpkin County vs. White County matchup. Zion McMullen absolutely flew past the Falcon defenders, rushing for over 70 yards on the drive, ending the drive on a 3 yard TD. But this effort was too late in the game, as Flowery Branch would drive down the field and kill the clock, before scoring another TD with less than a minute remaining, sealing their victory with the final score of 45-20.

Up next, a much needed break for the Warriors.

For the Warriors, they are now 0-2 in region play this season. On the plus side, they have an off week next week, and now have time to get healthy and recuperate. When they return in two weeks, it will be their homecoming game against West Hall. It is a must win game for the Warriors if they want any chance of making the playoffs. For more updates on the White County Warriors, follow Team FYN Sports on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook.

TeamFYNSports Writer’s Player of the Week – J. Ben Haynes, #8

Player of the Week, Sports, Team FYN Sports

Tonight was the J. Ben Haynes Show; it was spectacular to witness.

Team FYN Sports is excited to announce it’s Player of the Week for the White County Warriors – QB J. Ben Haynes. Haynes led the Warriors to a huge victory over the rival North Hall Trojans.

Haynes was undoubtedly the best player on the field tonight. He was throwing the ball down the middle of the field with pinpoint perfection, including a key 45 yard passing TD. Most of his incompletions were through no fault of his own due to receivers dropping multiple passes. But what was most impressive was his rushing. Last season, Haynes would very rarely run the ball. This season, he has scored rushing touchdowns in all four games so far, including 3 tonight. Every time he was under pressure, he found a way to gain yards and keep the drives alive.

Congratulations to J. Ben for being selected as the Team FYN Sports player of the week for the White County Warriors for the 2nd time this year!

White County Dominates in Season Opener

Sports, Team FYN Sports

For the third year in a row, the Warriors open up their season with a win over Lumpkin County.

Tonight is a great night to be a fan of the White County Warriors. The Warriors defeated their rivals, The Lumpkin County Indians, in a blowout by the score of 49-6.

There was never a moment of doubt that it would be a White County victory. Lumpkin had the ball first, and in what would be a recurring theme for both teams, QB Tucker Kirk would fumble the ball a couple plays in, and White County junior Heaven Gholston recovered. Zion McMullen would score his first of three touchdowns on the drive, giving the Warriors the lead.

Two weeks ago, the Warriors struggled in a scrimmage against Stephens County. Tonight, those struggles were in the rear-view mirror.

Throughout the game, the White County offense was too much for the Indians to handle. QB J. Ben Haynes had two rushing touchdowns to add on to Zion’s three touchdowns. One reason for this was the much improved offensive line. There were very few moments throughout the game in which Haynes was under pressure. His passing was much improved, and Warrior fans got to see his talent on full display.

White County’s Riley Stancil in the end zone after scoring his first touchdown at the varsity level.

Also, White County’s defense completely shut down Lumpkin County’s rushing attack. The defense had multiple tackles for loss throughout the night, along with a couple of forced fumbles. Coming into the season, lots of questions were being asked about the defense. Many of our best players from last year’s defense graduated, and many fans were nervous about what to expect from the defense. Tonight, they were able to completely shut down Lumpkin’s biggest strength, leaving them reeling all game long.

At the end of the first half, White County had a 31-0 lead. Zion would score his final touchdown on the first drive of the half, but the suffering wasn’t over for Lumpkin. On their next offensive, a high snap would result in the Warriors scoring a safety, as they extended their lead to 40-0. At this point, it was smart for Coach Cokely to put in his 2nd string players. They would continue to torture the Lumpkin County defense throughout the 2nd half, including backup QB Riley Stancil scored his first ever touchdown at the varsity level late in the 4th quarter.

There is still room to improve for the Warriors.

There are some slight future concerns for White County. Just like last season, the passing defense left a lot to be desired. Lumpkin County is not historically known as a team to pass the ball for lots of yards every game. However, there was multiple occasions where they gained ten or more yards on pass plays, a couple of those being a third down. As a matter of fact, the one touchdown that Lumpkin scored was through the air, attacking White County’s biggest defensive weakness. A team that specializes in passing the ball could cause real concerns for the Warriors if they don’t fix these issues.  Also, the Warriors had an abundance of penalties called against them, many of them holding calls.

White County coaches, including third year head coach Tim Cokely (Right)

The Warriors are now 1-0 on the season, and they play against another rival next week. They will be on the road to play against the Habersham Central Raiders. Even though White County dominated tonight, they will need to continue to improve if they want to have the same success throughout the season.

White County Wins in a Back and Forth Thriller

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In one of the most amazing games in recent history, White County wins 27-20 against Pickens County.

Last year, the Warriors lost two games against the Pickens County Dragons. The second of those losses eliminated the Warriors from the playoffs. This year, the Warriors were able to get their revenge. But it wasn’t easy.

It only took 15 seconds for Pickens to take an early lead, as Jarod Whitmore returned the opening kickoff for a TD, giving the Dragons a 6-0 lead. However, the Warriors would fire back quickly as J. Ben Haynes would complete his first of two passing TDs of the game, finding Jesse Thomas for a 52 yard receiving TD.

Jesse Thomas (#2) celebrating with OL Cameron Sizemore (#57)

But Pickens County would not die without a fight early on. After J. Ben Haynes threw an interception on his next offensive drive, the Dragons would score again, as Whitmore scored for the second time. Late in the first quarter, Haynes would lead his team downfield and score a passing TD to Cooper Turner, giving the Warriors a 14-13 lead to end the first quarter.

As the second quarter began, Pickens County took control. Whitmore would score his 3rd rushing TD of the game to give the Dragons a 20-14 lead. They were stuffing the Warrior rushing attack while causing Haynes all sorts of problems in the pocket, including another interception. White County began to show one of their biggest flaws as well. They consistently lost yards to penalties in the 1st half, mainly due to small penalties such as false starts and encroachments.

Late in the 2nd quarter, Haynes would give the Warriors the 21-20 lead on a 49 yard rushing TD. The Warriors has struggled throughout most of the 2nd half, but that one play switched the momentum in their favor as the two teams ended the first half.

As the second half began, both teams began to deal with a factor not seen in the first half: Rain.

There was a small chance of rain coming into the game tonight in White County, but many fans at the stadium expected the weather to come afterwards. Although, everyone was in for a big surprise, as midway through the 3rd quarter, a downpour of rain came upon the football field. The fans in the stadium scrambled to get to their cars, yet the players on the field seemed to be fired up over a brand new ball game.

White County head coach Tim Cokely

The on-field product completely changed in the second half. The 2nd half was a showcase of the two defenses. Even before the rainfall came, the Warriors had a chance to score. As a matter of fact, Cooper Turner did score, but had it called back due to a holding penalty. Pickens converted on their second chance, as they would intercept Haynes for the third time tonight. But once the rain came down, both defenses began to dominate. The offenses had no choice but to throw the ball until midway through the 4th quarter when the rain stopped. Meanwhile, the defenses continuously made stops for short yards or for loss, and both teams were punting the ball back and forth.

When the rain stopped, the Warriors had the ball, and continued to run down the clock. With less than 7 minutes remaining, a key play came. 4th and 7 with the Warriors 11 yards away from the end zone. Haynes stepped back and threw a beautiful pass to Turner in the end zone, but the ball was dropped…

Pickens County had a golden opportunity, and they weren’t going to waste it. They spent 5 minutes driving the ball down field consistently with run plays. For the first time since the first half, the Warrior defense was in shambles.

Just when the game was near it’s end, the Warriors had a moment that will forever go down in their history.

Jackson Autry (#13) and Jesse Moose (#24) talking after their big defensive plays.

With 2:01 remaining in the game, Pickens QB C.J. Streicher was running the ball to his right. Multiple Warriors came in for the tackle, and caused the ball to come loose. Junior defender Jesse Moose scooped up the ball and ran it back all the way to the end zone. A stadium that was 25% full of people became 100% full of noise in the matter of seconds. The Warriors extended their lead to 27-20, but there was still under 2 minutes remaining.

Unfortunately for Streicher, he would throw an interception on his first play back on offense. Junior defensive back Jackson Autry was the one to make the interception, and it sealed the Warrior victory.

The White County Warriors are now 2-1 on the season. Next week, they travel on the road to play against their biggest rivals, the North Hall Trojans. To stay up to date with more White County Football updates, follow Team FYN Sports on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.

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