Southwest loses dreary home game against Bleckley County 52-16

Running into Joe Dupree Jr. usually means running into a smile.

The Southwest head football coach, even when things in general aren’t necessarily rosy, always seems to be optimistic and give off a positive vibe.

Then came Thursday night.

Dupree didn’t have much to say and even less to smile about after the Patriots were thumped 52-16 by Bleckley County in a GHSA Region 2-A Division I game at Thompson Stadium.

“Undisciplined, not physical, not being coachable,” he said after an exasperated chuckle. “Everything for an unsuccessful team.

“Bleckley County is a great football team. They were physical, did everything they were coached to do. They made the plays when they had the opportunity, and we didn’t.”

Dupree, not anxious to leave for the locker room, leaned on the gate at the end of the field as Bleckley County fans filed out to the parking lot.

Bleckley County head coach Von Lassiter praised Southwest, but was mighty happy with the Royals’ performance.

“We dominated the game in all aspects,” he said. “We had a few mistakes early on with some special teams things, but our defense dominated the game.

“We want to run the football, and tonight, we were able to establish that and do that, really, really well at times.”

Oddly, it was a good start for Southwest.

Bleckley County got a 28-yard run from quarterback Brody Fleming — the bright spot in his otherwise so-so night — but stalled, and then missed a 43-yard field goal.

Southwest went three-and-out and gave Bleckley County the ball on the Patriots’ 33. Five plays and two Southwest penalties later, Isaiah Simeton went in from the 2, the Royals missing the PAT.

Southwest answered when Chauncey Brown took a quick pitch to the right and cut it up field, blasting through the Bleckley County secondary in less than 15 yards for a 68-yard touchdown run.

A missed PAT left it at 6-6 with 4:12 left in the first quarter.

The Patriots got it back on the Royals’ 45-yard line after a fumbled snap, but gave it back three plays later on an interception.

Then Southwest fumbled a punt, which set up a Simeton run up the middle and through defensive backs for a 35-yard touchdown 65 seconds into the second quarter.

The downhill slide was coming.

The Patriots’ fourth possession of three snaps or less followed. Seven plays and two Southwest penalties later, Deondrez Robertson went in fairly unchallenged from 24 yards out for another Royals score.

Bleckley County mixed it up on a seven-play, 34-yard drive that ended with Joshua Stanley bouncing outside for the 4-yard score with 53 seconds left in the half for a 26-6 lead.

Jamarian Leghorn by then had succeeded JJ Wilson at quarterback — Chase Dupree remained out with a high ankle sprain — for Southwest and showed some spark, but the 5-foot-6, 165-pound senior was, like Wilson, under plenty of pressure.

He managed to complete half of 22 passes for 94 yards with an interception, but lost 23 yards on the ground.

The Patriots went for it on fourth down at their 49 to open the second half, but the pass batted down. Robertson went the distance on the second play of the ensuing Bleckley drive for a 33-6 lead.

Southwest showed some fight, as Leghorn connected with Rinaldo Callaway 76 seconds later for a 13-yard score. Then the Patriots forced a safety, and it was 33-16 with 7:37 left in the third, but Southwest again went three and out.

Bleckley County turned a third-and-17 into a 51-yard touchdown pass to Octavius Tate, who initially appeared to be stopped short of the first down only to break free and sprint to the end zone.

Rain picked up as the lead grew to 40-16 with three minutes left in the third. Bleckley County added a 31-yard field goal at the 7:35 mark of the fourth and a safety on a punt snap that rolled through legs and out of the end zone barely two minutes later.

Southwest had 10 penalties for 84 yards — three of which gave Bleckley County first downs — not counting a few declined or offsetting.

The Patriots finished with 186 yards on 57 snaps to 359 yards on 53 for Bleckley County, which had 20 first downs to eight for Southwest.

The trip down Memory Lane was unpleasant for Dupree, in his 13^th year at the helm of his alma mater.

“It’s the worst game in a long while,” he said. “Like, my first year, 0-10.”

Southwest lost Dupree’s first game as head coach 38-0 to Dodge County back in 2013, starting a winless season in which the Patriots scored only 94 points and gave up 377.

The Patriots have been on the receiving end of some staggering scores, like in consecutive first-round playoff meetings in 2023 and 2024 against Toombs County, losing 64-6 and 62-8.

Bleckley County wasn’t ranked first or fourth, as Toombs County was.

“I didn’t know who this team was,” Dupree said. “I don’t know what it is. I got to figure it out. Very unpredictable. I have no clue.”