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The Gordo Green Wave, under new first year head coach Gus Smith, kicked the 2022 season off with a bang, outright dominating the Sipsey Valley Bears in a 50-7 drubbing.

Smith, who served as the defensive coordinator at Mobile Christian last season, was proud of his team's performance in its first game, saying, "They're everything we thought they'd be. I'm just thankful to be here with these guys," the coach continued, "The atmosphere was great. The kids came out and played hard."

The story of the night for Gordo was senior running back Rayshawn "Ray Ray" Williams. Williams got things started for the Green Wave on its first drive, turning what at first looked like a short run into a lengthy touchdown scamper.

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The senior continued to dominate throughout the evening, ultimately finishing with over 200 all-purpose yards and three total touchdowns. He scored on the first two Gordo drives, and later hauled in a screen pass and took it 47 yards for a score halfway through the second quarter.

Former Tuscaloosa County signal caller Brax Garrison, who transferred to Gordo this offseason, got off to a slow start in his first game for the Green Wave, but settled in by the second half, and finished 10-of-16 for 174 yards and three scores.

While Williams was certainly the star on offense, Garrison spread the ball out to his other targets well, finding fellow senior Kohl Summerville for two touchdown passes.

Garrison praised his teammates after the game, highlighting their performances over his own, saying, "[Williams] can literally do anything. He's a force in the backfield, he's hard to stop, he's got a motor, and I'm blessed to be able to hand the ball off to him (...)  Overall, as a team, our defense stood up. [Sipsey Valley] couldn't handle our defense."

Speaking on his own performance, the first year starter said, "I think from my standpoint I've got to settle down, make some throws, but it's the first game. There's a lot of anxiety and build up going into it. I think next week, we'll be good."

Photo courtesy of Mason Woods
Photo courtesy of Mason Woods
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While Williams was the star of the show on offense, the Green Wave defense also staked its claim as the most impressive performance of the night. As a unit, Gordo held Sipsey Valley to just a single first down throughout the entire game.

Senior Max Stephenson was everywhere on the field from start to finish, ending the game with nearly 10 total tackles and two sacks.

Sipsey Valley quarterback L.J. Cormier struggled to find his rhythm as the game went on. Dealing with constant pressure from not only the defensive line, but a plethora of blitzes and stunts by the Gordo coaching staff, Cormier ended the evening 11-of-20 for 117 yards and a score which came towards the end of the third quarter.

He found his sophomore wideout, Wyatt Bailey, on an 86-yard touchdown connection, but the game was well out of hand by that point.

Sipsey Valley first year head coach Joey Milligan when asked what his takeaways were from the game said, "We learned that we'll fight and play very hard, but I think we'll learn more next week," the coach continued, "We knew coming into this game, we're playing a perennial power. Our school has one winning season in school history. We had a lot of high hopes and we still have high hopes."

"I think these kids, if I know them, will come back and really work hard," he said.

The Green Wave (1-0, 0-0) welcomes Bibb County (0-1, 0-0) to Libby Hankins Field next week as they look to improve to 2-0. Sipsey Valley (0-1, 0-0) moves on to face off against Dallas County on the road in its next game on September 2.

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