The Treutlen Vikings kicked off their 2020 season on the road in Lakeland, GA Friday night against Lanier County and came away with a 30 – 6 loss to the Bulldogs. Inconsistency and mistakes on offense made scoring difficult for the Vikings on their opening night.
Treutlen’s first drive ended with an interception on their own 32 yard line. It was the first of 2 picks on the night along with a fumble giving the Viking offense 3 turnovers in their season opener. Lanier County took advantage of the first quarter gift, scoring 5 plays later on a Jaylan Calhoun 1 yard run. The PAT was perfect by Kicker Daniel Cruz, giving the Bulldogs a 7 – 0 lead with 7:08 remaining in the first quarter.
After trading fumbles with Lanier County and punting on their following possession, Lanier County got great field position once again. Bulldog QB Rashad Brockington hit Kish Wright on a 15 yard fade route for a touchdown. The Cruz PAT was good once again and Lanier County led 14 – 0 with 10:42 left in the first half. The Viking defense began to stiffen and trailed going into halftime down 14 – 0.
The Bulldogs took the second half kickoff and drove deep into Viking territory before Kicker Daniel Cruz nailed a 29 yard field goal that would’ve been good from 49 yards to extend the Bulldog lead to 17 – 0 with 9:31 left in the third quarter. After another Treutlen turnover, less than three minutes later, Lanier County struck again on a busted play when Brockington recovered a bad snap and found Isaiah Alexander 20 yards behind Viking defenders for an easy 37 yard touchdown pass. Cruz was accurate once again giving Lanier County the 24 – 0 lead with 6:42 remaining in the third quarter.
After a nice 40 yard kickoff return by the speedy Tim Blair, the Viking offense got on the board for the only time of the night when RB Qamar Jordan barreled his way across the goal line from 5 yards out cutting the lead to 24 – 6 for the Bulldogs with 7:31 left in the contest. The Vikings would get no closer as the 2 point conversion attempt was stuffed by the Bulldog defense.
Lanier County tacked on another late touchdown on a 42 yard strike from Brockington to Alexander with 4:33 left in the game. The PAT was partially blocked and the final was 30 – 6 for the home Bulldogs of Lanier County.
Treutlen managed just 71 yards of offense on the night while Lanier County totaled 283 yards, 202 in the air. The Vikings are off next Friday and will have their home opener on September 18th versus the rival Montgomery County Eagles at Bobby Driggers Stadium with kickoff at 7:30. Catch all the action on Sweet Onion Country 101.7 FM and online at www.southeastgeorgiatoday.com.
