The Bowdon High School football team played toe-to-toe with the visiting Randolph-Clay Red Devils in a non-region game for 45 minutes Friday night at Warren P. Sewell Field in Bowdon.

However, it was the final three minutes that turned the Homecoming game from a 14-13 Bowdon advantage into a 25-14 win for Randolph-Clay.



The Bowdon team controlled the first half of the game (121 total yards to Randolph’s 52 yards) while mounting a 14-0 lead. But it was Randolph-Clay that controlled the second half, amassing 223 total yards to Bowdon’s 80 yards while putting 25 unanswered points on the scoreboard.

Bowdon received the opening kickoff but fumbled on the second play from scrimmage, giving Randolph-Clay (4-2) the ball on the Bowdon 36-yard line.

Randolph-Clay moved the ball behind senior Chris Clay to the 24-yard line before Bowdon’s Trevor Pollard intercepted Randolph’s Brandon Small to give Bowdon its second possession at its own 32-yard line.

Bowdon (2-5) put together an impressive scoring drive using six minutes off of the clock. The big play of the drive was an 18-yard scramble by senior quarterback Will Young, rushing the ball down to the 15-yard line of Randolph.



Bowdon’s Ivan Glenn added nine yards, giving Bowdon a first-and-goal from the 4-yard line. Bowdon’s Trevor Pollard went around the right end to give Bowdon the lead 7-0 after the PAT with 2:19 left in the first quarter. Randolph-Clay could do little with its possession and the quarter ended with a punt to Bowdon.

The second quarter belonged to the Red Devil defense, limiting Randolph-Clay to only 10 offensive plays, netting 21 yards while recovering two fumbles and intercepting one pass.

The second Bowdon score of the night was set up by a fumble recovery by senior Steven Strickland who bulled his way down to the Randolph-Clay 12-yard line. Senior De Askew took it in from one yard out to give Bowdon a 14-0 lead after the PAT by Jeremy Herring.

“I think we played as well in the first half as we’ve played all season,” said Bowdon coach Dwight Hochstetler. “We wanted to play with more intensity and come out of the gate fast. We controlled the game offensively in the first half.”

The third quarter belonged to Clay, who after being effectively shut down in the first half exploded for 121 yards. Clay showed why he is considered one of the top running backs in the state on an 85-yard tackle-breaking scramble around the right end for a touchdown to put Randolph on the scoreboard midway through the third quarter.

Late in the quarter, Clay once again squirted loose for a 33-yard gainer during Randolph’s second scoring drive. However, Bowdon stopped the two-point conversion short of the goal line to maintain the Bowdon lead at 14-13.

Late in the fourth quarter, Randolph-Clay, capped by Chris Clay once again, took the lead 19-14 after a second failed two-point conversion attempt with 1:29 left in the game. An interception returned for a touchdown by Randolph-Clay on the following Bowdon possession ended the scoring at 25-14.

Bowdon’s Ivan Glenn led the Bowdon attack with 80 yards on seven carries while Clay led all rushers with 225 yards on 19 carries.

Bowdon is off next week and opens region play at Gordon Lee on Oct. 26.