Milton Rolls To State Playoff Victory Over Collins Hill

By Mike Blum

MILTON, GA -- Jordan Yates’ Friday night did not start very well in Milton High School's state football playoff opener against Collins Hills. The quarterback did not make it past the line of scrimmage on the first plays against the Gwinnett County team, fumbling on the game’s third play with a Collins Hill defender making the recovery and scoring on a 12-yard return.

Barely a minute into the game, Milton trailed 7-0, but things changed for the better for Yates and the Eagles
over the next 30 minutes of action. Milton (9-2) scored 44 unanswered points over that stretch to score a runaway 44-15 victory at home over Collins Hill (6-5), a frequent visitor to North Fulton for playoff games the past decade.

The Milton offense shredded the Collins Hill defense, scoring on its next four series after the early fumble to take a 27-7 halftime lead, with the Eagles’ advantage reaching 44-7 with five minutes left in the third quarter. The Milton defense also had an outstanding night, holding the Collins Hill offense scoreless until allowing a touchdown with nine seconds to play in the game, with the fourth quarter played under a running clock.

Collins Hill running back Evan Anderson, who ran for 1,111 yards during the regular season, rushed for 97 yards on 12 carries, but that did not accurately reflect how well the Eagles defended him. He had two runs for 101 yards, but on his other 10 attempts was held to minus-4 yards by a swarming Milton defense. The Eagles limited Collins Hill to four first downs and 132 yards before taking a 44-7 lead into the final minute of the third period, by which time Milton had already began substituting liberally.

The Milton offense, meanwhile, rolled up 300 yards on the ground, as Collins Hill aligned its defense to stop Milton’s passing game. The visiting Eagles succeeded on that front, limiting Milton to a modest 65 yards through the air. But that had little impact on the game’s final score, as Milton broke a succession of long running plays in the first half to break the game open.

Three plays after Yates’ fumble, the Eagles tied the game 7-7 when running back Solomon Vanhorrse shot through the middle for 70 yards and a touchdown. Vanhorse was largely held in check after that, but the threat of his inside running opened lanes on the outside for Yates. The Milton quarterback carried 15 times for 152 yards, with Vanhorse gaining 113 yards on 18 attempts. Most of Yates’ total came on a pair of pair of long runs in the first period that led to touchdowns and a 20-7 Milton lead.

After Yates was sacked for a 13-yard loss leading to a third-and-20, the Milton quarterback got loose for 46 yards to the Collins Hill 19. He hit Vanhorse for 15 yards to the 2, and after the Collins Hill defense stiffened, Yates connected with Jordan Cox for two yards and a score to put Milton ahead 13-7. On the next Milton offensive play following the second of four straight three-and- outs to start the game by the Eagles’ defense, Yates raced 64 yards to the Collins Hill 6, leading to a scoring run of three yards by Vanhorse.

The Eagles got the ball back at the Collins Hill 39 following a short punt, and Yates directed a short drive that ended on a 1-yard quarterback draw on fourth-and- goal, Milton’s fourth touchdown in a span of 14 minutes. After Collins Hill managed just 12 yards on its first 14 offensive plays, Anderson broke loose for 63 yards to the Milton 18, but the Eagles held after a first-and- goal from the 6. Two running plays lost five yards and the Eagles just missed an interception in the end zone on third down, leading to a missed field goal. The half ended with Milton’s D.J. Albright picking off a pass on an attempted fake field goal from the Milton 30 with the Eagles leading 27-7.

Milton also intercepted Collins Hill’s first pass of the second half, with the Eagles’ Joe Charleston swiping an attempted screen pass and going 23 yards for a score on the opening play of the third period. A 17-yard run by Yates led to a 38-yard field goal by Hayden Hairston, and Yates hit Dash Hairston for 35 yards and a score to make it 44-7 with five minutes remaining in the third period. The Milton defense had as many interceptions as completions allowed (three each), with Jack Rhodes making the third interception in the third period. The Eagles allowed just 32 yards passing until a 38-yard completion led to Collins Hill’s last touchdown.

The Eagles will face another Gwinnett foe next week in the second round, traveling to Region 7-AAAAAAAA champion Brookwood, also 9-2. Milton will need a win against the state-ranked Broncos to match the 2014 team that reached the quarterfinals, the first time in school history Milton won a state playoff game.

Collins Hill is now 2-4 in state playoff games played in North Fulton since 2006, winning one of three
against Roswell and defeating Alpharetta in 2013. Friday’s game was a depressing return to North Fulton
for Collins Hill coach Lenny Gregory, who was the head coach at Centennial the previous two seasons.

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