It’s 165 miles, mainly on rural two-lane roads, from Douglas to Evans, the site of Friday night’s second-round playoff game between the Coffee Trojans and the Evans Knights. That kind of drive after a loss is a miserable experience. Thankfully, neither the Trojans nor their fans had to endure such this weekend; the Trojans defeated the Knights 55-21 to advance to the third round next weekend.
Running back Jameon Gaskin, who rushed for 210 yards in the first half alone, scored four touchdowns and receiver Milton Jackson added two more in what may be the Trojans’ most impressive post-season offensive performance to date. Coffee scored on its first seven possessions and had the game in hand well before halftime. The defense played lights out once again and for the most part kept the Knights out of the end zone – only two of their three scores were on offense (Evans ran a kick-off 100 yards for a touchdown early in the game).
Even when the Knights backed up the Trojans against their own goal line, such as what happened when they downed a punt at the Coffee one-yard line early in the second quarter, they couldn’t stop the Trojan offense. After a play or two, Gaskin ripped off a 91-yard run that ended when he ran out of gas and got caught at the Evans three-yard line. Two plays later, Marquavious Jefferson punched it in from the one. The score and eventual extra point put Coffee up 28-14 with 10:06 left in the first half – already more than enough to win after barely a quarter of play.
Evans took the opening kick and, with the help of a couple of costly Coffee penalties, quickly moved downfield and scored first. The Trojans answered with an 80-yard drive that ended with a 28-yard touchdown pass from Wade Sumner to Milton Jackson. With 7:07 left in the first quarter, the score was tied at seven apiece. Coffee held the Knights on their ensuing possession then went 48 yards to take the lead on a 15-yard run by Gaskin.
The Trojans had a rare miscue on the kick and allowed Evans to return the kick 100 yards for a touchdown. Near the end of the first quarter, the score was once again tied, this time at 14. From that point on, Coffee took control. Gaskin scored his second touchdown of the night on a 57-yard run. Then Jefferson found the end zone on the aforementioned 99-yard drive. To finish off the half, Sumner tossed a 42-yard TD to Dalrone Donaldson and a 20-yard pass to Jackson. At halftime, the Trojans held a comfortable 42-14 lead. Gaskin rushed for 210 yards on 10 carries and two scores in the first half. Jackson added two touchdown receptions of his own.
Coffee opened the third quarter with an 80-yard drive that chewed nearly four minutes off the clock. Gaskin finished things off with a four-yard run to increase the Trojans’ advantage to 49-14. As the third quarter drew to a close, Evans scored its third and final touchdown of the night. Midway through the fourth, Gaskin added his fourth TD of the night. An errant extra point left the score at 55-21 Coffee.
While the Trojans were cruising through their second-round match-up, Alpharetta and Douglas County were locked in a slugfest over in the metro area that finally ended with a 24-21 Alpharetta win. Coffee will travel up I-75 next Friday night and face Alpharetta in the third round of the playoffs. This will be the second straight trip to the quarterfinal for Coffee.