Class 2A: Thomson 32, Fitzgerald 27

Thomson’s Jontavis Curry had two of his four touchdown runs in the final nine minutes of the game after Fitzgerald had taken its only lead, rallying the Bulldogs to a 32-27 victory in the Class 2A championship game Friday at Georgia State’s Center Parc Stadium.

Thomson’s Jonatvis Curry poses for the cameras during the trophy presentation following his team’s 32-27 victory over Fitzgerald at Center Parc Stadium on Dec. 9, 2022.

The state title was the sixth in school history but first since 2002 for Thomson (14-1), which entered the playoffs ranked fourth. No. 1 Fitzgerald, the defending Class 2A champion, finished with a school-record 14 wins but was denied its first 15-0 season.

Curry, who rushed for 243 yards on 17 carries, gave the Bulldogs the lead for good at 26-21 with a 61-yard run with 8:21 remaining in the game. Fitzgerald had gone ahead 26-21 on a 6-yard run by Ty Solomon about four minutes earlier, the only points in the third quarter.

Curry then put the game out of reach with an 86-yard touchdown run for a 32-21 lead with one minute left. Fitzgerald cut the final margin to five points when Calvin Timmons scored on a 4-yard pass from Sultan Cooper on the final play of the game.

Curry had 57- and 1-yard touchdown runs in the first half, each one breaking a tie. Thomson also scored on a 75-yard kickoff return by Jordan Lane and took a 20-14 lead into halftime.

At the end of the third quarter, Thomson trailed in total offense 225-210, but the Bulldogs finished with a 383-264 edge, largely in part ot the 147 yards on Curry’s two scores.

Game Statistics

Thomson - 7-13-0-12 - 32

Fitzgerald - 7-7-7-6 - 27

First quarter

T - Jontavis Curry 57 run (Tiler Giles kick), 4:24

F - Vic Copeland 58 pass from Sultan Cooper (Erick Trejo kick), 1:51

Second quarter

T - Curry 1 run (Giles kick), 11:53

F - Sylon Davis 2 run (Trejo kick), 4:49

T - Jordan Lane 75 kickoff return (kick failed), 4:36

Third quarter

F - Ty Solomon 6 run (Trejo kick), 0:51

Fourth quarter

T - Curry 61 run (pass failed), 8:21

T - Curry 86 run (kick failed), 1:00

F - Calvin Tillman 4 pass from Cooper, 0:00

Rushing: Thomson - Jontavis Curry 17-243, Jah'Kiaus Jones 7-29, Anthony Jeffery 1-3, Marcellus Brigham 1-2. Fitzgerald - Sylon Davis 16-71, Ty Solomon 9-31, Cam Jackson 7-21, Laphabion Boone 4-19, Tyler Williams 9-15, Diondre Paschal 3-13, Sultan Cooper 5-8, Drew Moore 1-1, Demetrius Brown 1-(-1)

Passing: Thomson - Jah'Kiaus Jones 2-4-0-97, Noah Story 2-2-0-9. Fitzgerald - Sultan Cooper 6-12-0-86.

Receiving: Thomson - Jalik Johnson 2-9, Jaquan Hart 1-80, Jaden Moss 1-17. Fitzgerald - Calvin Tillman 4-32, Vic Copeland 1-58, Khalil Williams 1-(-4).