PREP FOOTBALL: Frost shines, Aggies down Raiders 27-6
Published 10:36 pm Thursday, September 8, 2022
GOOD HOPE — Eli Frost continued his torrid stretch Thursday night at James W. Shabel Stadium.
The Fairview junior running back racked up 333 yards and four touchdowns on 24 carries, helping the Aggies defeat Good Hope 27-6 to improve to 3-1 this season.
Frost, who scored on runs of 3, 20, 70 and 94 yards, respectively, didn’t bask in his personal accomplishments following the impressive road win — instead, he credited his teammates up front.
“They are the best (offensive) line around,” he said. “In every game, it’s tough yards to start. But I know if we keep banging and banging and banging that it’s going to open up eventually. That’s what showed tonight.”
George Redding, meanwhile, was happy to pick up a quality victory against a quality program.
“It’s unbelievable to come here and get a good, solid county win,” the longtime Purple and Gold coach said. “What coach (Alan) Scott does, and the program that he runs, and what they’ve done over the years is absolutely phenomenal. Without a doubt, it’s an honor to get a win here. They are always physical, and it’s always going to be a hard-nosed football game.”
Frost found the end zone on the second play of the contest (70 yards) to make it 7-0 and added his 3-yard scoring scamper later in the first quarter to put Fairview ahead 14-0. The second drive was set up by a Cade Yeager interception.
The Raiders, though, held Frost on a fourth-and-goal from the 1-yard line just before halftime to keep it a two-score game.
But Fairview wasn’t deterred.
The Aggies came up with a pair of fourth-down stops in the third period, each time cashing in shortly afterward.
Frost punctuated a four-play, 56-yard drive with his 20-yard jaunt before slamming the door shut with a 94-yard TD run a few minutes later.
Good Hope (2-2) avoided the shutout following a 7-yard touchdown dash by Kaleb Jones in the fourth quarter.
Fairview, which rushed for nearly 400 yards, is now averaging 41.75 points per game this season — despite Good Hope providing the best resistance yet.
As for what’s working so well offensively, Frost and Redding offered different takes.
“Our physicality,” Frost said. “We aren’t afraid to hit.”
Added Redding: “We’ve got kids who are playing hard up front. And, without a doubt, we’ve got good backs, and we’ve got good receivers. For me, though, everyone has to do their part on any given play. Right now, we’ve got everyone with hands on deck, whether they’re blocking, catching, whatever they’re doing. They’re trying their best to do their part. And when you have 11 guys who do that at a high level, you’ve got a chance to be successful on one play. Now, can you do it again? We try to find consistency, and that’s what the guys are doing right now.”
The Aggies’ defense — which held the Raiders to 214 yards — also competed well for the second week in a row, something Redding was pleased to see.
“I think they played tremendously,” he said. “We really challenged our defense over the past two weeks. We weren’t happy with how we played against Priceville, but I think the guys have bounced back. Coach (Brian) Simmons does a phenomenal job of putting a plan together and putting kids in the right place. The kids still have to make plays, and they’re doing that.”
Good Hope’s Colten Whatley finished with 82 yards on 16 carries. He added 54 yards through the air.
Jones, meanwhile, claimed 68 yards and the touchdown on 12 carries, while Kmal Bell (34 yards) and Tyler Cone (20) made plays in the passing game.
Fairview hosts West Point next week in a region tilt, while Good Hope travels to Etowah for a region clash as well.