By Kevin Price For GCS Athletics The Glynn Academy Red Terrors came from behind Friday night to knock off Statesboro 43-42 in overtime to get the 2022 season off to an exciting start. Playing at Womack Field in Statesboro, the Terrors went for two points instead of kicking a game-tying extra point when they scored in the extra period to pull out the thrilling victory over the Blue Devils. Kody Arnold, a college prospect for Glynn as a kicker and punter, took an over-the-shoulder toss from his holder, and ran into the end zone for the two-points to send the Terrors to victory and the Glynn sideline into a frenzy. “I’m super proud of our kids,” said GA coach Rocky Hidalgo, talking by cell phone from the team bus on the ride back home. “I strained by hamstring, jumping up and celebrating. I’ll probably be laid up at home for the next three or four days.” The Terrors never led on the scoreboard until the final score was posted. They trailed 21-7 before halftime and also 28-14 in the third quarter. Glynn rallied to tie the score at 28-all with a 2-yard touchdown run by sophomore running back Greg Peacock in the closing minute of the third quarter and another 2-yard run by Peacock with 5:36 left in the fourth quarter. Statesboro looked like it might hold off the Terrors, though, when senior running back Jordan Lovett scored from 2 yards with only 1:37 left to put the home team back in front at 35-28. Of course, the game was far from finished, we now know. Glynn used up the remaining time in regulation as it drove 60 yards and scored a touchdown as time expired with David Prince jumping to snag a 4-yard pass out of the air from Ty Devlin. Arnold still had to make the extra-point kick to tie the game and he did to create the 35-35 deadlock with no time left in regulation. You might remember that Glynn’s opening game last year against McIntosh County Academy ended in a 14-14 tie when the Terrors mishandled a snap on a field-goal try to win the game at the bitter end. The game officials allowed the contest to end in a tie score though the Georgia High School Association rule book mandates all games go into overtime which wasn’t always the case. On Friday, the Terrors and Blue Devils did play OT, and Statesboro went on offense first after Glynn won the coin toss and elected to play defense first Starting from the 15-yard line going in, the Blue Devils scored and kicked an extra-point for a 42-35 lead. When the Terrors got the ball, they put Peacock in the shotgun and snapped him the ball. He gained 7 yards on first down. After a Statesboro timeout, the Terrors were called for illegal procedure and were backed up 5 yards to the 13. The Terrors kept Peacock in the gun and snapped it to him again. This time, he picked up 9 yards to the 4. Peacock took the snap on the next play as well and scored the Glynn touchdown. Hidalgo called for a two-point play that he has used several times in the past. A Louisiana native, Hidalgo borrowed it from his beloved LSU Tigers. The Glynn coach said he contemplated calling it when the Terrors scored at the end of regulation. “But, I felt good about us scoring, too, even if they did in overtime,” he said. Friday’s game was a non-region game. Statesboro had been in Region 2-AAAAAA with the Terrors, but dropped down a class in the latest round of reclassification by the GHSA. Glynn defeated the Blue Devils in the final game of the regular season last year to secure a playoff berth while the loss spelled the end of the season for Statesboro which also needed to win to land a playoff spot. Hidalgo is now 5-0 as Glynn’s coach against Statesboro. “We’ve got a bunch of gritty kids, and before the season’s over, we’re gonna be a pretty good football team,” the GA coach said. Glynn went to Statesboro Friday with a young and inexperienced team. The Terrors fell behind 7-0 before a lightning delay forced the teams to leave the field. When play resumed, Peacock evened the score with a 9-yard run. In the second quarter, Bruce Young and James Flagg hooked up for a 35-yard TD pass just seconds into the stanza to give Statesboro the lead again. This same combo hooked up for the Blue Devils’ opening score. The Blue Devils went ahead 21-7 on an interception return with just over 5 minutes to play in first half. Devlin kept the ball for a 12-yard scoring run late in the opening half to pull Glynn within 21-14 at the break. Late in the third quarter, Lovett broke off a 79-yard scoring run for Statesboro to give them their 28-14 lead. Lovett was a load for the Blue Devils who played without star quarterback Kam Mikell who sat out with an injury. He has Power -5 offers as an athlete. Lovett finished with 277 rushing yards and three scores. “It would’t have mattered if he played,” Hidalgo said of Mikell. “We couldn’t stop the running back, either. He’s really good. It would have been one or the other every time. “There wasn’t a lot of defense out there tonight by us. We’ve got 10 guys really who haven’t played much. We know we have to tackle better. “We also we have to get better at the point of attack. Statesboro came off the ball really well and pushed us around some, so we know we have to do better there. “But some of our kids played better on the offensive line as well. We have some kids who can make plays and have to get them the football. A bunch of kids had to make plays for us to win this game and they did.” Glynn will play at home next Thursday night against McIntosh. The Buccaneers opened their season Friday at home with a win over Johnson-Savannah.