VALDOSTA Junior running back Marquis Fennell scored five touchdowns as the Valdosta Wildcats dismissed the Brookwood Broncos 49-26 in the second round of the GHSA Class 6A playoffs Friday night. Fennell rolled up 239 offensive yards 196 yards and three touchdowns rushing, along with 43 yards and two touchdowns receiving to lead the ‘Cats to their fifth straight win. Despite singlehandedly outscoring the Broncos in a playoff game, the Region 1-6A Player of the Year insisted that Friday’s victory was a team effort. “I wouldn’t say I put the team on my back,” Fennell said of his performance. “It’s an 11-man sport. Everybody has a role to play, and they did their jobs, and I did mine.” Valdosta (11-1) finished with 481 total yards, earning 24 first downs in the contest. Led by Fennell, the ‘Cats rushed for 286 yards while senior quarterback Tyrieke Wade went 17 of 24 for 195 yards and three touchdowns on the night. The Broncos, who came into Friday’s game on a seven-game winning streak, fell down by 20 points in the second quarter. Running back Brayden Tyson’s 4-yard touchdown run made it a 26-13 deficit with 5: 30 left in the third quarter, which would be the closest the Broncos would get the rest of the night. The ‘Cats answered Tyson’s touchdown with two explosive runs by Fennell, who scored from 21 and 43 yards to give Valdosta a 40-13 lead with 11: 44 left in the fourth quarter. Broncos quarterback Gary Chatman did his part to try to keep his team alive, throwing a 31-yard dart to receiver Will Hagelgan to make it 40-20 midway through the fourth. Then, with a host of ‘Cats hanging all over him, Chatman looked to be surely sacked before getting the ball away to a wide open Tyson at the last minute. Tyson rolled 79 yards to paydirt to draw the Broncos within two scores at 40-26 with 4: 56 to play. The Broncos’ two-point conversion attempt was unsuccessful. “They’re a good team,” Valdosta head coach Shelton Felton said after the game, “There’s a reason they were 10-2. We made some careless mistakes on defense that we don’t usually make 24 (Tyson) is a good back, and the quarterback did a good job. We had him sacked, and he just threw it over our heads going to the ground, and he made some plays. But overall, we won. That’s all that matters.” After the ‘Cats successfully recovered the ensuing onside kick, the ‘Cats wasted no time delivering the dagger as Fennell scampered 31 yards for his third rushing touchdown of the night to run the lead to 47-26 with 3: 07 remaining. On the ensuing possession, the Broncos failed to get the ball out of their own territory as Chatman was called for intentional grounding in his own end zone for a safety with 2: 10 left for the final margin. Despite giving up some explosive plays and two fourth-quarter touchdowns, the Valdosta defense held Brookwood to 269 total yards and 13 first downs on Friday. The defense was particularly good on third down as the Broncos finished a woeful 1 of 11 on third down. Facing a vaunted rushing attack, the ‘Cats held Tyson to 79 yards on 17 carries and stifled the Brookwood rushing attack as the Broncos finished with just 45 yards on 29 carries. The ‘Cats also came away with two fumble recoveries in the win. Chatman finished 14 of 27 for 224 yards and two touchdowns for the Broncos, while Tyson finished with two total touchdowns and 100 yards receiving in the loss. Friday’s game was another flag fest as both teams combined for 19 penalties for 162 yards with Valdosta being flagged nine times and Brookwood flagged 10 times. The ‘Cats came out fast, using their tempo to move quickly down the field to score as Wade went deep and found Prince Jean for a 38-yard scoring connection to score in just 59 seconds. Wade threw a second touchdown pass to Fennell for 15 yards to put Valdosta in fron 13-3 with 3: 35 remaining in the first quarter. Jean came down with a game-high eight catches for 108 yards and the first-quarter touchdown compiling another strong game in the postseason after three total touchdowns in Valdosta’s first-round win over Dacula. Freshman kicker Alans Garcia went 2 for 2 on field goal tries, scoring from 32 and 34 yards respectively as Valdosta punched its ticket to the state quarterfinals against Walton next Friday night. With the loss, Brookwood finishes its season 9-3 under first-year coach Chad Nighbert. “First of all, I’m glad to be in Round 3,” a relieved Felton said. “Thanksgiving and football go together, and I’m proud of my kids and my coaches for getting there. We’re gonna face a good Walton team, but we’re gonna enjoy this moment, and we’re gonna get on Walton first thing in the morning, and we look for another good battle.”.
https://valdostadailytimes.com/2025/11/22/cats-buck-broncos-to-advance-to-state-quarterfinals/
