ATLANTA — For the first time in school history, Perry can finally call themselves Georgia state champions. It is a title they’ve chased since 1954.
The Panthers held on for a 38-27 win against the Stockbridge Tigers under the lights at Mercedes-Benz Stadium.
The road to becoming state champions has not been an easy one but after seven years of building a contender, Kevin Smith and Panthers finally broke through with a win.
The Panthers fell behind early as Stockbridge’s Cobey Thompkins found Jayden Howard for a 7-yard score with just under six minutes left in the first quarter.
Perry would answer with a five-play, 70-yard drive as Junior running back Ahmad Gordon would punch it in from the 1-yard line.
Zack Peacock tacked on a 26-yard field goal to push their lead to 10-7 with eight minutes left in the first half.
Thompkins and Howard hooked up again to retake the lead just before the half. It looked as though disaster might strike as on the ensuing kickoff the Panthers would fumble the ball.
But in what will go down as one of the greatest plays in school history, Gesha'nn Heard recovered the ball and took it 54 yards for the score.
It proved to be the turning point in the game as Perry would never trail from that point on.
Coming out of the half, Gordon scored his second touchdown of the day with a 4-yard run. The two teams would trade touchdowns as Perry would head into the 4th quarter with a 31-21 lead.
Gordon’s third score with just over 4 minutes left in the game would put the game away for good.
Stockbridge would add a score late but it would not be enough to stop the Panthers from taking home their first state title in school history.
Three Stars
Head coach Kevin Smith: In 2017, he took over at Perry and went 5-5. It is the last time that the Panthers were at .500 or below since his tenure began. Smith slowly started to build towards this moment. In 2020, they took a big step, winning the region for the first time since 1959. Then they won another and followed it up with a third in 2022. But the playoff success hadn’t been there, but this season they broke through. Congratulations to Coach Smith. What a run.
Ahmad Gordon, Perry running back: The stat line speaks for itself. Gordon rushed for 82 yards on 17 carries and finished with three touchdowns on the night. He burst on the scene this season and helped bring a ton of balance to this offense alongside star quarterback Colter Ginn and Cincinnati commit Dakarai Anderson.
Perry Panthers defense and special teams: This unit was doubted all season long. It seemed to be the weakness that would keep this team from winning the state title. But instead, they were instrumental in the playoffs to keep this team alive. What a run by this team and this defense was a big part in making it happen. Jerrel Pinckney was the leader on Tuesday night with 3.5 tackles for a loss, a force fumble and a pair of sacks.
How did we get here?
The Panthers beat Burke County in the first round at home by a score of 35-14. Then Perry had to go on the road and win three straight games to reach the title game. They knocked Bainbridge, Stephenson and Starr’s Mill.
On the other side, the Stockbridge Tigers had won 12 straight games including back-to-back road wins in the playoffs over Spalding and Benedictine.
Over the past few seasons, the Panthers have been building up to a championship-contending team. Now they can finally claim that title.
Reactions from the Champions:
"I'm still trying to make sure I'm not dreaming," Head Coach Kevin Smith said. "You know, I just want to give the good Lord credit for showing favor on us tonight... it lived up to my expectations. I'm just so proud for these guys."
"We've been running the ball all year, all year. So we knew if we come out slinging it, they'll back up and we'll be able to run it, throw it the whole game," Senior Wide Receiver Dakarai Anderson said. "We just knew that when we got here, we had to play as a team. We knew it was going to be — have to pull it together, and just stay strong... Don't worry about the clock, or score, play the next play, and when we get the triple zeros, we're going to have the outcome we want.
Season Results:
Perry v Houston County: L — 42- 35
Perry v Jones County: W — 54-21
Perry v Veterans: W — 49-41
Perry v Peach County: W — 42-21
Perry v Howard: W — 41 - 0
Perry v Westside: W — 55 -14
Perry v Griffin: W — 41 - 7
Perry v Baldwin: W — 33 - 16
Perry v Spalding: L — 31 - 22
Perry v West Laurens: W — 55 - 7
Perry v Burke County: W — 35 - 14
Perry v Brainbridge: W — 7 -3
Perry v Stephenson: W — 34 - 20
Perry v Starr's Mill: W — 28 -24
Perry v Stockbridge: W — 38 - 27