Starr's Mill eliminates Northside from state playoffs
After his Northside Patriots fell 49-0 to Starr's Mill in the first round of the GHSA Class AAAAA football playoffs at Kinnett Stadium on Friday night, it was hard for head coach Morgan Ingram to look at the big picture of the 2015 season.
His players had come within three points of beating Carver for the region title, they finished with a 6-3 regular-season record, and they hosted a playoff game for only the second time in school history and the first time in 10 years.
But after taking pause to think back, Ingram was able to reflect on a great season, one of the best in the history of the school.
"I can't say enough about this senior class and what they've done for our school and for our football program," said Ingram. "I love those guys to death. I'm very proud of them for the season they had."
The Patriots finished this season with an overall record of 6-4, only the second season in school history with a winning record and the first since Dwight Jones coached Northside to a 9-3 record in 2005 prior to leaving to take the helm at McIntosh High School in Peachtree City.
But on Friday night, it was another Fayette County school, the Starr's Mill Panthers, who would end Northside's season.
The Panthers improved to 10-1 on the season as they racked up 535 yards of total offense - 449 of those on the ground -- en route to the 49-0 victory.
Sophomore Rico Frye, who led the team with over 1,400 yards of rushing and 13 touchdowns in the regular season, led the way again for Starr's Mill Friday night with 185 rushing yards and three touchdowns.
The game started with promise for Northside but quickly turned in the Panthers' favor.
After Starr's Mill opened the game with three big gains that put them into Northside territory, Caleb Johnson came up with a huge fumble recovery. The Patriots couldn't cash in, however, going three and out and punting the ball back to the Panthers.
It only took five plays for Dion Munerlyn to find the end zone, giving the Panthers a 7-0 lead midway through the first quarter. After another Northside three and out offensively, Frye scored his first touchdown of the night for Starr's Mill, giving them a 14-0 lead heading into the second quarter.
The first half of the second quarter went the same way as the first quarter, with two Frye touchdowns sandwiched between two drives for Northside that failed to pick up a first down. After a late touchdown with 27 seconds to go in the half, Starr's Mill carried a 35-0 lead into the locker room. They outgained Northside 449 yards to 16 in the first half alone.
With the outcome of the game not in doubt and the second half played with a running clock, the Panthers only picked up 86 yards of offense in the second half but found the end zone twice more.
Northside quarterback Levi Dunn finished 7 of 17 passing for 45 yards. Four of those passes went to junior Cordale Scott, who led all Patriots with 43 yards of offense.
Ingram pointed to Scott and others who are returning to Northside next year to try and leverage this season's success into 2016.
"We've got several guys coming back. We've got some holes to fill, particularly on the offensive line, quarterback, and running back, but we'll worry about that in a few weeks," said Ingram.
"This one stings a little bit," Ingram continued. "But I'm proud of my guys and proud of the way they fought all year long."Friday at KinnettStarr's Mill 14 21 14 0--49
Northside 0 0 0 0--0First Quarter
SM--Dion Munerlyn 12 run (Whitaker Chu kick), 6:25
SM--Rico Frye 7 run (Chu kick), 0:29Second QuarterSM--Frye 6 run (Chu kick), 8:47
SM--Frye 1 run (Chu kick), 6:00
SM--Mitchell Provant 1 run (Chu kick), 0:27Third QuarterSM--Nick Brown 15 run (Michael Lance kick), 11:10
SM--Connor Morgan 1 run (Lance kick), 2:41
Team records: Starr's Mill 10-1, Northside 6-4. Next: Starr's Mill, vs. Winder-Barrow or Allatoona. Northside, season over.
This story was originally published November 13, 2015 at 11:44 PM with the headline "Starr's Mill eliminates Northside from state playoffs ."