PREP FOOTBALL: Goldsboro runs past Hobbton

By Rudy Coggins
Published in Sports on August 19, 2018 3:05 AM

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By RUDY COGGINS

rcoggins@newsargus.com

Fans had little time to find a seat on the hot aluminum bleachers and dive into their bags of popcorn before Goldsboro's football team staged its own sequel to the "Fast and the Furious" on a humid Friday evening.

The plot unfolded in just four minutes.

JB Rhodes stole the opening credits with a 50-yard touchdown run on the fourth play from scrimmage.

Teammate Xzavior Bowden appeared on screen and added the next two TDs on runs of 1 and 19 yards, after the Cougars' defense coaxed Hobbton into back-to-back turnovers.

The ending?

Obvious.

Goldsboro burned rubber and smoked Hobbton, 56-0.

"We wanted to play fast, we ran pretty well," said Timothy Ray, who became the fourth GHS coach emerge victorious in his debut since 1960.

"We caught the ball very well. Everybody thinks we're a running team, but like I've said, we've got some athletes out here."

Senior quarterback Brody Morton achieved perfection -- 10-for-10 passing for 252 yards and three touchdowns. Terrell Valentine, an all-East Central 2-A performer last season, hauled in TD receptions of 67 and 38 yards.

Jykeis McLean snagged a highlight-reel 76-yard scoring pass in the opening quarter.

The little-known wide receiver found himself in one-on-one coverage with Hobbton free safety Brayden Herring down the left sideline. Morton threw a perfect spiral over the top and the 5-foot-9 McLean caught it in stride.

"I had seen it with my own eyes and the coach kept calling it," McLean said. "I was just born with the hands. I can catch, run and score."

Goldsboro led 27-0 after one quarter.

Rhodes and Valentine combined for three offensive touchdowns in the second period.

Morton and his stable of stars accumulated 563 yards of total offense, including a 138-yard rushing performance from Bowden. Rhodes had 81 on the ground, followed by Isaiah Gray with 73.

The Cougar defense finished off the scoring.

A tipped pass on the line bounced into the outstretched arms of Rhodes, who returned it 40 yards to the house. McLean converted his sixth PAT of the first half, which boosted the advantage to 54-0.

Hobbton forced a third-quarter turnover and started a possession in the shadow of its own end zone. Four plays later, the Cougars blocked a punt for the eventual 56-0 finale.

"We played well [defensively]," Ray said. "We want to move fast because we want to play fast. When that happens, turnovers happen. All of that is the result of hard work these guys put in during the offseason."

Goldsboro recorded seven tackles for loss, filed three QB sacks and held Hobbton to 63 yards of total offense.