Written by: Danny Talbert
LaGrange, Ga.-- This Saturday (Oct. 14), the LaGrange College Panthers take on the Belhaven Blazers at 1 p.m. The LaGrange College Panthers are 0-5 and are looking to get their first win over a very tough Belhaven squad. The Blazers are 5-0 on the season, and 3-0 in-conference. The game is at Callaway Stadium but can also be streamed on the LaGrange College Athletics page here.
LaGrange College Panthers vs. Belhaven Blazers | Stats | Video |
Location: Callaway Stadium | LaGrange, Ga.
Date: Saturday, Oct. 14, 2023
Time: 1 p.m.
The Series
The Blazers lead 1-0 in the football series. The only time the two teams played, Belhaven won 70-16 (Oct. 28, 2022).
Scouting The Panthers
The Lanier County kid, Rashod Brockington, has taken over as the primary QB for the Panthers this year. In his last game, he threw the ball 21 times and had 11 completions for 134 yards. Even though he did not throw a touchdown in last week's game, he also did not throw any picks. As more time passes, the junior is improving his on the field decision making. In the game against the Bishops (Oct. 7), Brockington spread the love to multiple receivers. Dana Lucas, Ashton Bryant, Devonte Scott and Goldman Butler VI each accounted for two receptions. Malachi Kelley had the most yards with a 43-yard catch on a fantastic pass. Goldman Butler VI again certified himself as the primary Panther running back. In the game against Wesleyan, he ran the ball for 118 yards and two touchdowns. RB Aubrey Carter showed off his elusiveness on a 73-yard run, which set up a Panther touchdown. The Panther defense again caused turnover issues for the opposing offenses. The defense forced three Bishop interceptions, two of which were picked off in the LC endzone. Junior LB JayDon Cooper, junior DB Jasharie Anderson and junior DB Nehemiah Ceasar each had an interception in the game. Freshman Demon Jones led the team in tackles in the game with 14. The linebacker also accounted for one tackle for a loss. The team will have to play great on offense, defense and special teams this week if they want to slow down the powerhouse Belhaven Blazers.
Scouting The Blazers
The man commanding the Blazers in the backfield is graduate student Tim Johnson. On 74 passes, he has thrown 42 completions with two interceptions and eight touchdowns. He was also the starter last year for Belhaven, in which he threw for 1,500 yards and 21 touchdowns, while he led the team to an 8-2 record. The Blazers have used multiple running backs so far this season. Graduate student Kolbe Blunt has been the lead back this year. He has run for 690 yards on 69 attempts and eight touchdowns, which averages out to an incredible 10 yards per carry. Junior Devin Daniels also carries the ball a lot for Belhaven. On 41 attempts, he has 352 yards and four touchdowns. The Blazers offense has been superb this year, as they average over 38 points per game. Their defense has also been great, holding opposing teams to less than eight points on average. Graduate student Carlton Brown leads the defense in tackles with 32 and two forced fumbles. Landry Huddleston leads the team in forced turnovers with two interceptions and one forced fumble. The linebacker also has 25 tackles on the season. The 2023 Belhaven team is both old and really good defensive and offensive, so it will be a very tough matchup for the young Panthers squad this week.
Get ran over or get out of his way
Junior running back Goldman Butler VI again showed his ability to run defenders over in last week's game against N.C. Wesleyan (Oct. 7). In that matchup against the Bishops, he ran the ball 14 times for 118 yards and two touchdowns. This averaged out to an outstanding 8.4 yards per carry. One of the most impressive things about his performance came in the 12th minute of the second quarter. On first in goal from the two-yardline, Butler took a direct snap on a designed QB run. While it looked like he was going to be stopped by a blitzing linebacker, no. 9 continued driving his feet, broke the tackle and ran over another defender on his way to scoring six. Watching linebackers try to stop Butler in the open field is must-watch football. Be sure to pay attention to no. 9 in this weekend's game. Once he gets going, he is hard to stop.
Homecoming
The Panthers official Homecoming game is this weekend against Belhaven. LC welcomes back all alumni and will be inducting seven new members into the LaGrange College Sports Hall of Fame on Sunday (Oct. 15). The Panthers will be celebrating these outstanding former LC student-athletes as well as the men's soccer team for winning the 2022 CCS Championship prior to kickoff.
When and where
Kickoff is at 1 p.m. Oct. 14 in Callaway Stadium, LaGrange, Ga. The game can be streamed here.
