Green Hope tops Athens Drive in Williams’ Stadium football finale

Tucker Burkinshaw scored three touchdowns to lead Green Hope past host Athens Drive 35-12 in the final football game at Williams Stadium.

The Falcons (7-3 overall, 4-3 SWAC) will play in the postseason for the fourth consecutive year. The Jaguars (0-11, 0-7) showed a lot of heart in finishing out a tough season.

“I’m just happy we got the win,” said Green Hope coach Kwame Dixon. “This senior class has been to the playoffs all four years, and this program has come a long way since the 0-38 streak. I couldn’t be prouder of this group of guys.”

Green Hope never trailed, but Athens did make it interesting when it scored just before the third quarter ended to trim the Falcons lead to 21-12.

Trevor Losito and Burkinshaw put the game away in the final period with short touchdown runs.

They Said It

“There are all kinds of memories here (at Williams Stadium), and we didn’t realize how many people wished we would have been able to stay here,” said Athens coach Jimmy Ray, who played for the 1992 Athens team who reached the playoffs for the first time in school history and has been a Jaguars coach since the 1999 season.

“These kids here fought through a lot of adversity and were just warriors this year.”

Three Who Mattered

Conner Redick, Green Hope: Redick had 5 receptions for 82 yards, but his clutch 29-yard catch early in the fourth quarter led to a touchdown and gave the Falcons a 16-point lead.

Tre Echols, Athens Drive: Echols threw for 220 yards and two touchdowns, including passes to Jordan Johnson and Xzavier McNeil.

Williams Stadium: The 2,500 seat stadium, built in the late 1970’s and named for Peter Hines Williams, had a unique feel to it. One of the most exciting periods took place between 2006-2009, when the Jaguars posted three winning seasons under then head coach Jeff Smouse.

Athens Drive’s best season was in 2007, when the team finished 11-2 and made it to the second round of the playoffs with a high scoring attack.

By the Numbers

81: receiving yards for Athens senior Peyton Smith, who caught two bombs from Echols to set up scores.

5: Combined sacks posted by Jaguars linebackers Teryn Savage and Khalil Khatib.

101: receiving yards by Green Hope senior Jack McCaulay, whose 37-yard TD catch in the second quarter gave the Falcons a two touchdown advantage going into halftime.

This story was originally published November 6, 2015 at 11:43 PM with the headline "Green Hope tops Athens Drive in Williams’ Stadium football finale."