Football - 2007
Class 5-A Semifinals - N. Gwinnett vs. Walton
By Rod "Kut" Freeman
Dec 8, 2007, 08:07 EST

Class AAAAA Semifinals

North Gwinnett (12-1) vs. Walton (12-1)

Bulldogs take a bite out of the Raiders

Bulldogs beat Raiders for a trip to the state finals

Georgia Dome - Atlanta, GA

Tyler Jarry uses the stiff arm to get to the end zone.

Atlanta, GA – The Bulldogs entered the game off a close victory over Newnan 38-35. The Walton Raiders duplicated their victory over ML King 20-19 with a close one. Would the state semifinals match up between these two teams be a close one as well?

The game would feature the arm of the North Gwinnett Bulldogs Michael Tamburo as he connects with teammate Stephen Cole on a 45 yard pass play in the first quarter. That play would later set up a 14 yard touchdown pass to Cordero Dixon moving the score to 10-0 with 3:22 to go in the 1^st quarter.

The Bulldogs defense would continue to bite the Walton Raiders on consecutive drives, giving the offense the chance to increase the score. Tamburo would hook up with Dixon again on a controversy 25 yard catch that the referee called good (I say Stevie Wonder can see he didn’t catch it) to set up a 4 yard run by Tyler Jarry to move the score to 17-0 with 5:24 left in the half. The Bulldogs would score once again right before half to let the air out of the building 24-0, giving the Raiders a long road back if they wanted a win.

 

Sophomore Cordero Dixon has years to come to impress scouts.

The Bulldogs would receive the kick after the half and drive the ball 77 yards on 5 plays to move the score to 31-0 with 6:56 to go in the 3^rd quarter. Tamburo would hook up with Jarry from 20 yards out on the touchdown pass. The Raiders would finally get on the board on a 31 yard touchdown pass from quarterback Braden Theobald to Dylan Tante moving the score 31-7. Unfortunately it was too little too late!

When it was all said and done. Tamburo went 21 of 29 passing with 235 yards through the air and 2 touchdowns. The Bulldogs will have to take their air attack on the road next week to Lowndes County to face the Vikings in the state Class 5-A championship. Good to both teams.

Final Score:  North Gwinnett 31 - Walton 7

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