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Lightning cuts short Tigers' scrimmage
But showing against Windsor Forest gives coach DeShon Brock plenty of talking points
Bradwell scrimmage
Bradwell's Tyon Jones heads to the end zone for the lone score of Friday night's abridged scrimmage with Windsor Forest.

DeShon Brock didn’t get to see all he wanted from Bradwell Institute’s scrimmage Friday night with Windsor Forest. The truncated session gave him plenty of talking points for his team in practice, however.

A lightning delay right after Bradwell Institute scored wound up bringing the Tigers’ preseason scrimmage with Windsor Forest to an end.

But it allowed the Tigers’ score to stand as the scrimmage’s only tally. Sophomore Tyon Jones caught a short pass, eluded a defender at the 5-yard line, and darted in for a 23-yard score midway through the second quarter.

“We definitely wanted to see what we looked like in that second quarter,” Brock said. “We started clicking in the second quarter, and then it all comes to an end. I thought the defense played extremely well. It was too many penalties offensively. That’s definitely something we have to work on.”

What caught Brock’s eye was his defense asserting itself, and the number of penalties on offense. In the shortened scrimmage, Bradwell’s defense held Windsor Forest’s offense in check for the most part. The Knights got as far as the Tigers’ 29-yard line, but Dion Randle-Brown recovered a fumble and ended Windsor Forest’s best possession of the evening.

“I thought our defense rallied to the ball,” he said. “I think Jawel Mobley played lights out. He was the heartbeat and leader of the defense.”

The lightning alert system went off before the Tigers could attempt the extra point, and continued lightning eventually brought the scrimmage to an end.

In spite of the penalties, Bradwell’s offense showed flashes. On an early fourth down conversion attempt, quarterback Christopher Garrett connected with Bryant Thomas on the sideline to pick up the first down. That drive ended when Garrett was sacked and fumbled on an ensuing fourth down.

Garrett connected with Jones down the sideline for a 49-yard pickup, but an unsportsmanlike conduct call shortened that gain. On the next play, Treshuan Peggis had a 22-yard run called back.

“Offensively, we have to catch up,” Brock said. “We have to put more points on the board. Penalties really hurt us. We have to fix that. Just based on the eye test, most of it we can get cleaned up. The bonehead penalties we’ll get cleaned up Monday.”

The result, though not a complete test, was a welcome sight for Brock and his team.

“It was the first time we’ve won a scrimmage in a couple of years,” he said. “A little success means a lot to them.”

Bradwell will open the season August 19 at home against Wayne County. The Yellow Jackets, who also are coming off a winless campaign, hired Jaybo Shaw as their head coach. Shaw, the former Georgia Tech and Georgia Southern quarterback, led the Wildcats to a 35-5 mark in the previous three seasons, including a Class AA state semifinal appearance.

“We saw a lot of good things tonight on both sides of the ball,” Brock said of the scrimmage.

“The defense was playing great. The mistakes we saw were all correctable. We have an opportunity to fix those mistakes and have a better showing against Wayne County.”


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