Panthers fall at Brookwood

Published 4:00 pm Monday, October 24, 2022

THOMASVILLE — Tiftarea Academy saw a ton of speed Oct. 21 at Brookwood and the host Warriors got show why they were won of the GIAA’s top schools in 2022

Brookwood won a 48-12 battle, though it was not a night devoid of highlights for the Panthers

J.R. Walker continues to grow into the role of quarterback. He ran for one touchdown and threw to John Jackson for another, said head coach Erik Soliday.

He said Walker continues to grow into the quarterback role. “He made some good plays,” said Soliday. Walker continues the Tiftarea line of dual-threat QBs who can pass and run.

Walker has had to learn fast with an injury to Cubbie Crosson limiting what Crosson is able to do on the field.

Soliday said his goal was for the squad to keep growing during the season. He believes they have. “It just takes time,” he said.

Brookwood improved to 3-0 GIAA District 3-AAA. They can clinch the championship this week with a win and a Valwood loss to Deerfield-Windsor.

“We couldn’t get a whole lot going,” Soliday said. “[Brookwood’s] speed had a lot to do with that.” Official teams stats updated on MaxPreps did give Tiftarea 351 total yards, including a season high in rushing at 198.

Walker ran for 99 yards and Lane Cole added 60 on three carries.

The Panthers will play their last home game Oct. 28 against Southland Academy, which lost in overtime last week against Valwood.

Soliday said he only has a handful of seniors, but their are big names in that group.

As of Oct. 23, Tiftarea was still 11th in the MaxPreps Class AAA standings. With their strength of the schedule being the third highest in the classification, a win over Southland might be enough to punch their ticket to the state playoffs.