Messenger file photo by Chris McCarthy
Sparked by a pair of touchdowns by senior halfback T.J. Worthy, Gadsden City built a 28-0 halftime lead on the way to a 40-7 win over Buckhorn in the Titans’ Class 6A Region 8 opener on Friday, Sept. 6 in New Market.
Worthy’s 70-yard TD run at 9:09 of the first quarter and Alex Swafford’s PAT gave GCHS (2-1) the lead for good. Worthy and quarterback Kai Franklin later connected on a 73-yard TD pass, while Franklin and Zyan Gibson teamed up for a 33-yard scoring strike at 3:06 of the second quarter. Franklin’s 28-yard touchdown run provided Gadsden City with a 28-point cushion at intermission.
The Totals pushed their advantage to 42-0 in the third quarter by way of Ty Sims’ 68-yard kickoff return for a touchdown and a 13-yard TD run courtesy of Kaedin Ray.
“I thought it was a great team effort tonight and that we played a really solid game,” said GCHS head coach Ali Smith. “The defense had a couple of turnovers, we scored on offense and we scored on special teams.”
Worth (pictured above) rushed three times for 80 yards. Franklin was 6 of 18 in passing for 152 yards. He also gained 65 yards on three carries. Keyshawn Curry caught three passes for 33 yards.
Leading the way defensively for GCHS was Jy’Zeric Wynn with 13 tackles and Taylor Barber with four sacks. Nemo Samples finished with seven tackles.
Gadsden City visits McAdory on Friday, Sept. 13 in a non-region game.
