Pirates one win away from Region Championship

By Cole Gardner | October 24, 2025 |

On Friday, October 24, the Appling County Pirates Football team hosted the Cook County Hornets. The Pirates defeated the Hornets 57-27 in this high-scoring game.

ACHS Chorus singing the National Anthem

Cook scored first on their opening drive, taking the ball from their own 35-yard line down to the Pirate 10-yard line. From there, the Hornets did a direct snap to their running back, who ran the ball in for a 10-yard touchdown. The Hornet kicker made the PAT, making the score 0-7 with 10:07 left in the first quarter.

The Pirates would get the next score not until the beginning of the second quarter. After a big run by Mikel Crayton to get the Pirates to the Hornet 17-yard line, Jaiden Knight would take the ball into the endzone from them for a 17-yard touchdown. Alan Ramirez would come out and make the PAT for the Pirates, tying the game 7-7 with 11:15 left in the second quarter.

The next score would come from the Pirates on a punting situation for the Hornets. Deondre Mims would break through and block the Hornet punt around the Hornets’ 20-yard line. Titus Wallace would pick up around the blocked punt 18-yard line and take it in to the endzone for a touchdown. The Pirates made a two-point conversion with a direct snap run by Jaiden Knight into the endzone. This would make the score 15-7 with 9:21 left in the second quarter.

Pirates wasted no time before their next score. Forcing the Hornets into another punting situation and getting off and punted down to the Pirates’ six-yard line. Jaiden Knight would take a direct snap from their and run the ball all the way back to the other end of the field for a 94-yard touchdown run. Alan Ramirez would make another PAT to increase the Pirates’ score 22-7 with 7:32 left in the first half.

The Hornets would score next after a great kickoff return down to the Pirates’ 24-yard line. They would push down the field to the Pirates’ own four-yard line, and from there the quarterback would take the ball into the endzone on a four-yard quarterback keeper run. The Hornets attempted a fake kick for a two-point conversion, but the Pirate defense would stand strong and stop the conversion. This would make the score 22-13 with 3:34 left in the second quarter.

After the kickoff, the Pirates would drive down to the Hornets’ 31-yard line. From there, a Hornet defender would intercept the ball from Harrison Hickox at the 30-yard line and would take it back to the endzone for a 70-yard pick-six. The Hornet kicker would make the PAT, making the score 22-20 with 1:30 left in the first half.

Devonte Poole would receive the kickoff for the Pirates around the 29-yard line and would return it to the Pirate 39-yard line. On the first play of this drive, Harrison Hickox would step back to pass and find Rett Thomas around the Hornets’ 31-yard line and he would take the ball down to the Hornets 3-yard line for a 58-yard pass. From there, Jaiden Knight would take a direct snap and run the ball into the endzone on a three-yard touchdown run. Alan Ramirez would make his third PAT of the night, making the score 29-20 with 1:06 left in the first half. This would be the score going into halftime.

During halftime, the Pirate Brigade Marching Band would do an excellent job performing their halftime show as always. This game would give them a chance to do their performance one last time before they travelled to Waycross the next day to compete in the Sound of Gold Marching Competition in Waycross. Look for more information on the results of the competition in this week’s edition of the News-Banner. GO PIRATE BRIGADE!

On the opening kickoff of the second half, Jaiden Knight would field the ball at the Pirates’ own one-yard line and would return it all the way down to the endzone for a 99-yard kickoff return touchdown. Alan Ramirez would come out and make another PAT, making the score 36-20 with 11:48 left in the third quarter.

The Pirates would score another touchdown after forcing the Hornets to punt again and taking over at their own 31-yard line. A big 58-yard run by Titus Wallace from the Pirate 33-yard line down to the Hornets’ own nine-yard line would put the Pirates in scoring position. From there, Jaiden Knight would take the ball into the endzone for a nine-yard touchdown run. Alan Ramirez would come out and make his fifth PAT of the night, making the score 43-20 with 10:20 left in the third quarter.

The Hornets’ next score would come late in the third quarter after taking over the ball at their own 20-yard line after a missed field goal. They would score on an 80-yard run to the endzone. The kicker for the Hornets would make the PAT, making the score 43-27 with 1:10 left in the third quarter.

The Pirates would start their next drive at their own 20-yard line after a touchback on the kickoff by the Hornets. The Pirates would drive down the field to the Hornets’ 10-yard line and from there Titus Wallace would take the ball into the endzone for a 10-yard touchdown run. Alan Ramirez would make another PAT, making the score 50-27 with 8:57 left in the game. On Cook’s first play after the kickoff, Bryson Mickens would intercept the ball at the Hornets’ 44-yard line. The Pirates would work their way down to the Hornet 11-yard line, where Jaiden Knight would take the ball into the endzone. Alan Ramirez would make the final PAT of the night making the score 57-27 with 4:30 left in the game. This would be the final score as the last few minutes of the game would run out before either team could score again. The Pirates will be traveling to Pierce County for their final game of the regular season. This game will determine if the Pirates will be region champions or if they will be in a three-way tie for the region championship. Appling is also at 14 in the rankings by GHSA, but would go in at the 12 position after the private schools are taken out since they play in their own playoff system now. Appling beating Pierce this week could be a big boost in their rankings and could help them host more playoff games at home the higher they are ranked. Travel to Pierce County Friday night to cheer on the Pirates in this big game that not only has region championship impact, but can also have a big impact on how the Pirates will be ranked in playoffs. Kickoff is slated for 7:30 Friday night. GO PIRATES!

First Downs – ACHS 19; CCHS 7
Rushing – ACHS 43/432/6; CCHS 26/216/3
Passing – ACHS 2/8/69; CCHS 4/13/14
Total Yards – ACHS 501; CCHS 230
Penalties – ACHS 9/80; CCHS 10/82

Individual Statistics:
Passing – Harrison Hickox was two for seven on passes completed for 69 yards and one touchdown.

Rushing – Jaiden Knight was rushed 13 times for 184 – yards and five touchdowns; Titus Wallace rushed 11 times for 119 – yards and one touchdown; Mikel Crayton rushed eight times for 90 – yards; Javechez Johnson rushed three times for 19 yards; Devonte Poole rushed two times for 11 – yards; Bryson Mickens rushed three times for six – yards; and Demetrius Smith rushed two times for four – yards.

Receiving – Rett Thomas caught one of two passes thrown to him for 58 yards and Devonte Poole caught one of two passes for 11 yards.

Defensive Standouts: Jack Lee Courson had seven tackels with one pass breakup and one forced fumble; Deondre Mims had six tackles and one blocked punt; Titus Wallace had four tackles and two pass breakups; Jaiden Knight and Javechez Johnson both had four tackles each; Devonte Poole and Jaiden Soloman each had three tackles; Cameron George had two tackles and one pass breakup; Jaylin Lee had two tackles; Bryson Mickens had one tackle and one interception; Mikel Crayton, Karson Johnson, and Tommy Beard all had one tackle each.

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