Above is a video of highlights from the game (field goal scored by junior Christian Peterson (4); touchdowns scored by senior Martin Fleming (5), sophomore Caylin Newton (3) and senior Amyr Smith (9); pass caught by junior Ahmad Herron (25)).
By Keegan Hasson and Will Taft
The Knights varsity football team clinched a 29-20 victory against the Redan Raiders on Friday night. In the first quarter, junior kicker Christian Peterson split the uprights to put Grady on the scoreboard. With 10 minutes left in the second quarter, senior running-back Martin Fleming Jr. plunged into the endzone to further the lead. Soon after, however, Redan drove down the field to bring Grady’s momentum to a grinding halt. Before the half, the Raiders scored two touchdowns, now controlling the game with a 13-10 lead.
“We killed ourselves [with] a lot of mental mistakes and penalties,” Knights head coach Earthwind Moreland said. “We [needed] to stop shooting ourselves in the foot.”
Moreland said that he told his seniors at the half to step up and guide the younger guys so that they could understand what it takes to win a varsity football game. Early in the third quarter, Redan increased its lead to 20-10. Soon after, however, Moreland got exactly what he was looking for when senior TJ Briscoe snagged a Raiders pass. Sophomore quarterback Caylin Newton converted the turnover into points with a touchdown run, advancing the score to 20-16.
Grady dominated in the fourth quarter. Early on, Newton connected with senior receiver Amyr Smith for a 60-yard go-ahead touchdown. On the next drive, Newton ran another lengthy touchdown, securing Grady’s lead for the remainder of the game. Both of Grady’s wins this season have embodied second-half comebacks; however, Moreland wants to break that habit as soon as possible.
“We don’t want to play like that night in and night out,” Moreland said. “We have to do a better job of coming out of the gate with [more] effort, so we don’t have to be like the Kardiac Kids.”
The victory advances the Knights’ record to 2-1. Next Friday, they face off against the Lithonia Bulldogs in an away game.
