Grayson defeated Valdosta 18-17 and 31-9 in consecutive championship games to win the 32-team National Select 7-on-7 Georgia Invitational on Saturday. The victory earned Grayson a spot in the National Tournament slated for next weekend at Hoover High School (Ala.).
The odds only appeared to be stacked against the Rams this weekend. The offense was being directed by a sophomore quarterback, their head coach Mickey Conn had to leave for his son’s baseball game and they were sent to the loser’s bracket after the first game of the tournament play, which ended in a 22-21 heartbreaking defeat to Lovejoy. None of that mattered. Instead, their tournament title run was defined by team speed, a wealth of playmakers and a high energy echoing from the Grayson sideline every snap. They also walked away as the first team to ever win the tournament while battling entirely through the loser’s bracket.
“Our kids wanted this so bad and I’m so happy for us,” said defensive coordinator Lenny Gregory.
Offensively, you have to have great quarterback play to win a passing tournament and Chase Brice was Grayson’s star underclassman. The 6-foot-3 pro-style passer was mature beyond his years and made big throws to keep the defense off the field as much as possible.
“Chase is an incredible quarterback and I don’t think you can win championships without that ingredient,” said Gregory. “We have a championship quarterback [with Chase] so we’re real excited about him and his supporting cast and we’ve just got a great chemistry on this football team.”
Brison opened the first championship game with a quick four-play touchdown drive to give Grayson the 7-0 lead. The Rams extended the lead to 9-0, but Valdosta forced an interception and tied it at 9-9 after a Wildcat touchdown and failed conversion. The teams traded touchdowns again and Grayson’s stopped the point after attempt to cling to a 16-15 lead. Grayson’s one-point lead was brief and Valdosta took over the lead with a defensive stop and held the 17-16 edge with the football. Grayson’s only chance was another two-points that is rewarded for a defense stop and the unit came through. On third down, Valdosta came up just short with :55 left and Grayson was able to run the clock out with their 18-17 advantage.
The defense made plays all day for the Rams and played at a high speed even into what was the group’s 11th 21-minute game of the day.
“We face a lot of teams and you don’t want confuse your players [on defense],” explained Gregory. “Keep it real simple and let your kids make plays. We walk all summer on alignment and assignments so they can just go out there and make plays.”
In the championship rematch, Grayson burst to a 15-0 lead before putting it away with a touchdown with 2:25 left that made it 23-9. Grayson was able to burn clock after jumping to the early lead through the reliable hands of Hunter Schuessler. The possession receiver converted from a quarterback to the slot and this gave the younger Brice a playmaker familiar with the quarterback position and the offense to throw to on big downs.
“Hunter has been doing great,” said Brice, “He caught just about every ball thrown his way in this tournament and made plays throughout it. I have so much trust and faith in him when we call his number.”
On the game-clinching drive, Brice connected with Schuessler on four straight pass attempts, despite the swarm of Valdosta defenders trying to disrupt the connection.
The passes to Schuessler and armory of weapons in the perimeter opened up more opportunities and Brice cashed in on them. After another Grayson defensive stand increased the Rams’ lead to 25-9 with 24 seconds left, Brice got the ball back and dumped it off to Cedric Asseh, who sprinted in for a 40-yard touchdown to make it 31-9.
Grayson built momentum throughout the tournament and it will be the same drill in Hoover this weekend with a day of pool play on Friday for tournament seeding before the main event on Saturday.
“Our expectations this weekend were to come in and win it,” said Gregory, “It’s what we preach at Grayson. We preach being champions and we didn’t come here for an experience. We came here to compete against the nations best teams and showcase our kids. It’s nice to have the opportunity. We’re blessed again to be invited to another weekend in this environment.”
Grayson’s Gwinnett neighbor North Gwinnett will also be making the trip to Hoover next weekend and will look to bring the national title to Georgia for the first time.
Visit select7on7.com for more tournament information
Loading ...
