COVINGTON, Ga. — Just 204 days removed from his promotion to Newton’s head football coach, Josh Skelton got the inaugural win of his career.
The Rams went on the road to face the Hapeville Charter Hornets on Aug. 19 at Banneker High School. Newton left Atlanta with a resounding, 50-0 win.
Therefore, the Rams and Skelton begin 1-0. But, for Skelton, it was more about the coaching staff around him.
“It feels good [to get that first win],” Skelton said. “We have an unbelievable staff first and foremost. It is little about me. Our staff puts in so much work seven days a week.”
Multiple players had a hand in the outcome as well.
Junior running back Zion Johnson scored twice along with Kaden Hambright’s fourth quarter touchdown. Sophomore gunslinger Deron Benson tossed three touchdowns — one to Keon Davis and two to Marcus Calwise.
Calwise added a rushing score to his tally, too.
Defensively, Ryshawn Perry had a sack along with three tackles for loss. Newton’s defense also provided points off a 69-yard pick-6 from Zachry Harden.
The Rams forced a safety in the fourth quarter and maintained their shutout.
For Skelton, keeping the opposing team off the scoreboard is just as important as the 50 points scored.
“[Not allowing a point] does a lot for us knowing what we can do if we stay locked in,” Skelton said. “We had a few mistakes and things we needed to clean up but our boys pushed through it and we finished strong.”
The Rams are back in action this Friday night, Aug. 25 at Sharp Stadium. They will face in-county foe the Alcovy Tigers at 7:30 p.m. Newton will be the road team for this year’s matchup.
Correspondent Garrett Pitts contributed to this report.