Toombs County's new region

Toombs County High School has been reclassified, by the GHSA, to Triple A (from Double A) and placed in Region 1, Sub-region A with Appling County, Brantley County, Dodge County, Pierce County and Tattnall County. Sub-region B consists of Beach, Islands, Jenkins, Johnson-Savannah, Savannah, Savannah Arts and Southeast Bulloch. All new regions will become official on January 14, 2014.   Toombs County goes from being one of the largest Double A schools to being one of the smallest in Triple A with 831 students. Twenty-one Triple A schools have more than 1,000 students including two from the Bulldogs' new region (Pierce and Appling). Dawson tops AAA with 1,087 students. TCHS has been in a AA region with all five of their new sub-region schools in the past. As for competition, four of the five schools had at least two of three teams (football, softball and baseball) make it to the state playoffs in their most recent seasons. Only Brantley County didn't make state competition in those three sports. All five of these former Double A's have played Triple A the past two school years. The travel will be familar and also similar for the Toombs sports teams. In Region 2, Double A TCHS traveled an average of 51.3 miles to play a game. The long trip was to Benedictine (90 miles) and the shortest was to Vidalia (seven miles). In the new sub-region Toombs will travel an average of 52 miles to play a game. The long trip will be to Brantley County (84 miles) and the shortest trip will be to Tattnall County (22 miles).  The Bulldogs moved from Single A to Double A beginning in the 1996-97 school year. Toombs County High School spent 18 consecutive years in Double A.

Region 1 Sub-region A	Enrollment	From TCHS	Football	Softball	Baseball
Appling County	1005	32 miles	9-3 2nd round state	14-14 1st round state	20-9 2nd round state
Brantley County	968	84 miles	1-9	9-18	12-13
Dodge County	872	58 miles	5-6 1st round state	22-11 2nd round state	19-12 3rd round state
Pierce County	1085	64 miles	10-2 2nd round state	25-8 2nd round state	25-8 3rd round state
Tattnall County	945	22 miles	5-6 1st round state	24-8 2nd round state	19-8 1st round state
Toombs County	831		4-6	15-15	18-9  3rd round state

Versprille terminated by BOE

In a special called meeting on December 3, the Toombs County Board of Education voted unanimously to terminate the contract of Toombs County High School athletic director and head football coach Steve Versprille. Versprille, an assistant coach at Dublin High School, was named the Toombs County Bulldogs fifth coach in February of 2013 and he coached the Bulldogs to a 4-6 season.

Lady Dawgs hit the glass

The Toombs County Lady Bulldogs hit the glass and played some very aggressive defense as they opened up a 14-0 lead in a 59-37 victory at Bacon County. Three Lady Dawgs scored in double-digits. Deavia Howard led the 1-1 Lady Bulldogs with 19 points, Breanna Walker scored a career-high 17 points and Diamond Boyd added 15. Megan Meadows scored five points and Demetria Jones chipped in three. TCHS had 53 rebonds with Meadows leading the way with 17, she had 16 against Wayne County. Walker had 16 boards and Howard 11. Watch Highlights You Tube The Lady Bulldogs led 20-4 after the first quarter and 29-18 at half. Bacon made a run at the start of the second half and cut the Toombs lead to 29-23. However, the Lady Dawgs pushed their advantage back to double-digits and they had 41-26 advantage after three quarters. Kara Moore led the Lady Raiders with 24 points.   Boys Game- The Bulldogs played even-steven with Bacon County until late in the second quarter. The Raiders led 12-11 after the first quarter and then pushed their lead to 31-20 at half. Bacon continued the run in the third quarter and won the game 70-49. Carlos Eason scored nine points in the first half and led the 1-3 Bulldogs with 19 points. Quanvonte Kent scored 10, Jordan Usher six, Chris Mobley five, D.R. Meadows three and Kenny Goethe, Andre Clark and Jeremy Beasley each scored two. Vonta O'Neal topped Bacon with 25 points and Jackson Foster scored 17.  Watch Highlights You Tube

In Memory of Brad Bell

Mr. Brad Bell, age 45, of the Johnson Corner Community, died Thursday, November 28, 2013 from injuries received in an automobile accident in Evans County.  He was a native of Savannah, a 1986 graduate of Jenkins High School, and earned a Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration with a minor in accounting.  He was a U.S. Air Force veteran; stationed in Goldsboro, and served in the Persian Gulf War.  He worked with Briggs and Stratton in Statesboro for seventeen years, and presently was the area manager of aluminum machining.   He moved to Toombs County in 1994, and was a member of the Oaks Baptist Church.  He was the statistician for the Toombs County Football Team and the Wrestling Team for ten years.  He was a community football coach and was the kicking coach for the Toombs County Football Team.  He was Past President of both the Redcoat Booster Club and the Toombs County High School Athletic Booster Club.  He was preceded in death by an infant daughter Cynthia Nicole Bell. Brad is survived by his wife of twenty five years, Gina Nasworthy Bell of Johnson Corner; three children, Kristin, Matthew, and Anna Claire ; parents, Lewis and Jane Bell of Savannah; three sisters, Lisa Queen of Jacksonville, Florida, Glenda Miles and husband Ricky of Savannah, and Dee Dee Collins and husband Wes of Reidsville; mother-in-law and father-in-law, Glenda and Gleen Nasworthy of Johnson Corner; sister-in-law and brother-in-law, Gloria Nasworthy Phillips and husband Tyler of Johnson Corner; and nieces and nephews, Erica Atkinson and husband Trey, Amanda Brodmann and husband David, McKenzie, Zach, and Tanner Collins, and T.J. and Avery Phillips.   In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to the Billy Robertson Scholarship Fund, C/O Toombs County High School Athletic Booster Club, P.O. Box 1446, Lyons GA 30436 or the GVF Foundation/Courtney Wilkes Scholarship Fund, C/O Vidalia Onion Business Council, P.O. Box 2611, Vidalia GA 30475.

NOBODY, gave more time to the Toombs County athletic program than Brad Bell. Take his contributions to the wrestling program. When the Bulldogs would host a tournament Brad would be there from start to finish handling all the statistical work and on a Saturday that would be from early morning to late in the afternoon. He traveled with the team to tournaments and would be there at sectionals, in Dublin, and the state tourney whether it was in Macon or way up in Gwinnett. Brad also ran a website which promoted the wrestling team. You could really tell that he was not only in to the sport, but also wanted all Bulldog wrestlers to do their best. He spent many, many hours in the wrestling room during the season. Coaches Kevin Hill and Robbie Rogers said, at the funeral, that Brad kept extensive records on every Bulldog wrestler and every match they competed in. Brad also contributed a lot of his time to the Bulldog football team. This past season he was the kicking coach and what a job his group did. Punter Brandon Dowd was first team Region 2 averaging nearly forty yards a boot. Brad's work really payed off in the victory over Jeff Davis when kickers Oswaldo Guzman and Cole Williamson set up the Bulldog offense with some effective kickoffs that the Yellow Jackets either bobbled or fumbled. Brad would spend practice on a separate field working with his punters and kickers at their makeshift goal post. Question- did he build that goal post? I betcha that Brad really enjoyed being on the coaching staff, especially with his buddy Robbie Rogers. The two started with the Bulldogs as statisticians. For years Brad helped all of us with football stats. Without Brad who would have known that Jamar Smith ran for 2,034 yards in 2013. Brad supplied these stats to the coaching staff, ToombsNow, Y-101 radio and anybody who needed them and for that we are very grateful. Brad also helped get the Pit ready for a Friday night of Bulldog football. As soon as the B-Team game would end on Thursday he would be on the mower cutting the grass and he also helped line off the field. Nobody had to ask Brad to do it. He just did it. Coach Hill said that Brad started off helping him with the grass cutting chores and several years ago expanded that responsibility. Coach Rogers said that Brad mastered painting the "Flying T" at midfield and that he took great pride in how the field looked on Friday nights. For years Brad ran a website which promoted the Bulldog football team. He and his wife Gina took pictures and each week Brad would prepare a preview for the upcoming game.  Brad also spent a lot of his time supporting the Bulldog soccer teams. He helped line the field that his son Matthew and daughter Anna played on. Matthew was a two-sport athlete. He was the football team's place kicker and played soccer. In 2008 Matthew scored the game-winning penalty kick in the Bulldogs 2-1 win at Vidalia. Matthew played on the 2007 team that went to the Elite 8. Anna played on a TCMS team that played for the MGMSAA championship. Brad's oldest daughter, Kristen, was in the Red Coat Marching Band. In her senior season she was the drum major and she also played basketball for the Lady Bulldogs. Brad was also the president of the Red Coat marching band.  Brad helped all the Toombs County sports teams. For four years he was the Booster Club president. He constantly was trying to get Bulldog fans to support the program by attending Booster Club meetings. Brad would send out e-mail reminders. Can you imagine what the TCHS sports program would be like if there were 100 Brad Bells instead of just one. After reading all that Brad contributed to the Toombs County sports program, you might think that this was his full time job, but it wasn't. He already had a fulltime job that required plenty of travel back and forth.  How did Brad Bell do so much in just a 24 hour day?

Tomond will play for NJCAA Championship

On Sunday, December 8 former Toombs County Bulldog Tomond Hampton and his number one ranked Georgia Military Bulldogs will play for the NJCAA Football Championship against number two ranked East Mississippi. The game will be played in Biloxi in the Mississippi Bowl. The internet broadcast will begin at 2:30 p.m. (EST) and can be viewed here "They seem very much like us," Hampton said. "We watch them before we go to practice and they seem like a very good team. But, I think we can beat them. They run a 4-3 and they like to crowd the box and stop us from running. So, our passing game is going to help us a lot." Hampton, who is now starting at tight end, has caught four pass this season including an 83-yard reception in his last game. GMC is averaging 46.5 points per game and yielding 17.5 and has scored 50 or more in it's last three wins. East Mississippi's numbers are 63 and 7.7. "I really don't see this as a high scoring game because both teams have good defenses and defense wins championships," Hampton added. "It would mean a lot to win because this is my first year and I am starting and I have never been on a championship team."

TCHS Basketball looses at Wayne

The Toombs County basketball teams both fell behind in the opening quarter and lost at 4A Wayne County on Saturday night. The Lady Bulldogs lost 61-29 and the Bulldogs 50-45. Girls Game- Wayne County bolted to a 26-7 lead after the opening quarter as Tania Ward scored 12 of her 15 points, Amigh Height eight of her 20 and Tylena Fullmore four of her 14 points in the first period. Wayne led 38-14 at half and 53-18 after three quarters. Diamond Boyd led TCHS with 12 points and the senior point guard made 6-of-9 at the free throw line. Deavia Howard scored 11 and Megan Meadows, on the day before her 18th birthday, scored four and had 16 rebounds. Shantel Taylor added two points. Neither team made a 3-pointer and TCHS was 7-of-16 at the free throw line and Wayne County 3-of-6.    Boys Game- Wayne County opened up a 12-5 lead after a quarter and 28-19 at half. The Bulldogs won the third quarter 15-12 to close the gap to 40-34 going to the fourth quarter and both teams scored 10 points in that period.  Chris Mobley led Toombs with 13 points, the senior scored nine in the second half. Carlos Eason scored nine of his 10 points in the second half including seven in the third quarter. Jordan Usher tossed in seven points and D.R. Meadows and Andre Clark each had five. Meadows, a freshman point guard, scored his first TCHS points in a flurry in the second quarter. He hit a two and then after a Wayne County turnover drilled a 3-pointer. Michael Sulton and Tyrese Kent each scored two points and Kenny Goethe one. The Bullldogs only made 8-of-20 at the free throw line while Wayne County made 11-of-12.

Bulldog wrestlers open season

finishing second at Effingham

Jamar Smith Most Outstanding

The Toombs County wrestling team opened the season by winning four of five dual matches and finishing in second place at the Turkey Duals at Effingham County. The Bulldogs biggest win was over 5A Effingham County 43-26. Toombs also defeated Southeast Bulloch 66-12, Camden Team C 60-9 and South Effingham 45-30. The Dawgs only loss was to 6A Camden Team A 61-15, which finished first. Junior Jamar Smith was voted the outstanding wrestler of the entire one-day tourney. Jamar, who didn't wrestle the second half of last season, proved he wasn't rusty by going 5-0 with victories all recorded in the first period. Seniors J.D. Rogers, Soloman McLeod and Eric Hester each went 4-1.    Listen to Jamar, J.D. and Eric Audio

Dawgs rally in 4th quarter

Carlos Eason, Chris Mobley and Jordan Usher scored 17 of Toombs County's 18 fourth quarter points as the Bulldogs overcame a 48-40 deficit after three quarters and beat Appling County 68-56 in Vidalia's Highway 280 Tournament. Eason score nine of his 13 points in the final quarter and Mobley, who led the team with 14, scored five fourth quarter points. Jordan Usher (13 points) hit three free throws in the final minute made 5-of-7 for the game. Watch Highlights You Tube   The Pirates led the game 20-17 after the first quarter and 30-29 at half. For the second straight game Eason only scored two points in the first half. The 6-5 junior scored two points in the third quarter and then he started attacking the offensive glass. He converted a couple of Dawg misses into points and he was fouled scoring near the hoop and he hit the free throw for a three-point play. For the second straight game Mobley scored 14 points and the senior contributed five points to the fourth quarter comeback. He made two field goals and hit 1-of-2 at the free throw line. Mobley also sank his third 3-pointer of the season. After shooting 68% at the free throw line in their first game, the Bulldogs shot only 47% from the stripe against Appling. However, Usher sank 3-of-5 at the line in the final minute and he hit 5-of-7 for the game.  Andre Clark (five points) scored his first Bulldog varsity points by hitting a three and a two point shot. Quanvonte Kent (eight points) drilled two 3-pointers and has made three 3's in his first two games. Jeremy Beasley scored two points. C.J. Alexander hit two 3-pointers and led Appling with 18 points.

Turnovers plague Bulldogs in opener

A pressing and trapping East Laurens team forced the Toombs County Bulldogs into 28 turnovers and the Falcons hit six 3-pointers and made 17-of-18 of their free throws in a 75-59 victory over TCHS at Vidalia High School's Tournament. Watch Highlights You Tube The Bulldogs opened the season playing a relatively clean first quarter. Jordan Usher (five points) and Chris Mobley (two 3's and 14 points) each hit a 3-point shot as TCHS opened up a 13-9 lead and the Dawgs led 15-13 after a quarter. Mobley made a second 3-ball in the second quarter and Tyrese Kent (two 3's and seven points) and Quanvonte Kent (five points) each sank a 3-pointer as the Bulldogs kept a small lead until the final minutes of the second quarter. The Falcons drilled back-to-back 3's to take the lead for good with 2:15 to play in the half and they were on top 36-31 at half.  Carlos Eason, who came off the bench and scored 17 points in last season's opener at Bryan County, scored only two points in the first half against East Laurens. However, the 6-5 junior scored 11 points in the third quarter and four more in the fourth to give him 17 again. Eason scored two inside buckets and Mobley hit a jumper as TCHS pulled to within two at 41-39 with 5:24 to play in the third quarter. However, the Bulldogs' turnover rate increased in the second half as the Falcons opened up a double-digit lead. Kenny Goethe added seven points and senior Jeremy Beasley, playing basketball for the first time at TCHS, scored his first bucket as did Joey Tarantino. The Bulldogs shot 68% at the free throw line by making 13-of-19. Eason was 3-for-3 and Goethe 5-of-6 at the line. Sequon Wynn led East Laurens with 18 points, Terrell Roberson added 16 and Jaylon Montford 12.

11 Bulldogs honored by Region 2

Eleven Toombs County Bulldog football players were selected by the coaches of Region 2 as either first team, second team or honorable mention for their play in the 2013 season. First Team- Junior running back Jamar Smith- Jamar rushed for 2,034 yards on 293 carries in 10 games. Jamar averaged 6.9 per carry and scored 20 rushing touchdowns. Jamar crossed the 2,000 yard mark by rushing for a career high 345 yards in a season-ending win at Atkinson County. Jamar also ran for 325 yards against Long County and he topped the 200 yard mark against Montgomery County (231), Bryan County (208), Jeff Davis (251) and McIntosh County Academy (208). Smith scored four touchdowns against Bryan County, Jeff Davis, Long County and ATCO and three against Montgomery County and McIntosh County. Jamar had touchdown runs of 53 and 59-yards at McIntosh. Watch Highlights You Tube First Team- Senior tight end Eric Hester- Eric caught five passes for 88 yards with a long catch of 34-yards against Benedictine. He also had a long catch at ATCO. Hester was used as both a full back and a wing to block for Smith. He was inserted into the backfield in the second half of the McIntosh game and opened up some holes for Smith as the Bulldogs scored 21 second half points. Eric scored a touchdown on a one-yard run against Jeff Davis. He was the team's second leading tackler as a defensive end with 15 solo's and 44 assists. He had 7.5 tackles for a loss and 1.5 sacks. Watch Highlights You Tube First Team- Senior cornerback Chris Mobley- Chris lead the Bulldogs with six interceptions. He had two at ATCO and one each against Bacon County, Long County and Vidalia. Mobley was tied for the team lead in solo tackles with 21. He also had 10 assists, three pass break ups and recovered two fumbles. Chris had three big hits against Jeff Davis, McIntosh County Academy and ATCO. On offense he caught six passes for 62 yards. Watch Highlights You Tube First Team- Junior offensive lineman Darius Scott- Darius overcame a preseason back injury and became a starter on the offensive and defensive line. On defense he had six solo tackles and 11 assists and 1.5 tackles for a loss. First Team- Senior punter Brandon Dowd- Brandon continued a recent Bulldog trend. A lineman who averaged around 40-yards per punt. Tomond Hampton did it in 2012 and Dowd in 2013. Brandon averaged 39.6 yards per boot with a long of 67-yards and he kicked nine inside the 20-yard line. Brandon's best punt was one he booted inside the one-yard line at Benedictine. The Cadets fumbled the ball a couple of plays later and the Bulldogs scored to cut the Benedictine lead to 14-7 near halftime. On defense Brandon had five primary tackles and 11 assists and one tackle behind the line of scrimmage. Second Team- Senior offensive lineman Gary Jones, senior cornerback Demetrice Baker (11 solo tackles and 15 assists and two interceptions at Benedictine and ATCO which clinched the win) and junior defensive end Cole Dowd (six solo tackles and 29 assists and he led the team with two sacks for a loss of 17 yards) Honorable Mention- Senior linebacker Cameron Conner (14 solo tackles and 36 assists), senior safety James Ethredge (10 solo's and 17 assists) and sophomore linebacker Landon Cowart, who was TCHS's top tackler with 21 solo's, 51 assists and three stops behind the line of scrimmage.