CLASS RURAL STATE CHAMPIONSHIP: Madison County avenges loss to Hawthorne in rematch from 2023 state championship

MIDDLETON, Fla. – It was the rubber match that Madison County wanted since January after the Cowboys returned from Christmas break.

It was the goal they worked on.

The bracket worked out in their favor with the Cowboys getting the No. 2 seed.

Everything fell in place.

And even on a cold winter’s night at The Range at H.G. Morse Stadium at The Villages Charter High School, everything could have gone just as perfectly as head coach Price Harris who is in his third season as the head coach at his alma mater.

Madison County (10-3) came into the matchup against Hawthorne (10-2) and avenged their loss in the 2023 state championship game to the Hornets beating them 21-14 to bring home their seventh state title in program history.

As the close as the final score indicates, the game was not even close.

Here are five takeaways from the Cowboys’ victory over the Hornets.

COWBOYS DEFENSE FLIPS THE FIELD

Hawthorne who started with the ball first found themselves quickly punting after just one first down and having to punt the ball away found themselves quickly in the hole. It came with Octavious Hodge throwing a pass right in the hands of Hornets’ Leland Johnson who returned the ball to the Madison County 21 to give Hawthorne a promising start to a second drive. However, the field flipped pretty quickly as Ryheem Moore who took the snap for the Hornets coughed up the ball thanks to De’Andre Arnold popping the ball out. From there Ryshard Miller recovered the ball and hauled it down the sideline fast putting the Cowboys up 7-0 with 7:40 in the first quarter. From there, there was no looking back for Madison County.

HAWTHORNE RESPONDS BUT MISSED PAT HURTS

Madison County which never trailed in the game, saw Hawthorne respond on their next drive which carried over into the second quarter with Adrian Curtis orchestrating a 15-play, 62-yard drive that was capped off with a six-yard touchdown pass from Curtis to Decarion Debose. However, Sam Carroll’s point-after attempt failed and that kept the Cowboys up 7-6 with 11:34 in the second quarter.

MCDANIEL SHINES BRIGHT

One of the big unsung heroes for Madison County has been Jason McDaniel who has been shining lately. McDaniel who was missed in the state championship game last year and for a portion of this season due to injuries, has shined here in the postseason and he did so in the game on Friday night at The Villages. McDaniel who rushed for 83 yards on 16 touches scored from one-yard out with 3:42 left in the first half. If anything McDaniel’s score put Hawthorne on edge, frustrating the Hornets who saw a variety of things coming at them both on offense and defense all night long from the Cowboys.

FOURTH QUARTER LEAVES FANS ON EDGE

After a scoreless third quarter, it was a different story in the fourth quarter as Hawthorne who had the ball to start the quarter was starting to see it be deja vu all over again as Kennon Johnson fumbled the ball on a forced fumble by Cowboy Johnny Norwood. It was Norwood who would scoop up the ball and return it 31 yards setting up Madison County with great field position at the Hawthorne 12. From there it would only take a few plays as Crumity called his number from 13 yards out to put the Cowboys up 21-6 with 8:02 left in the game with McDaniel converting the two-point conversion after the Hornets had a personal foul on the touchdown. From there the Cowboys did everything to keep Hawthorne out of the end zone, but with less than 20 seconds to go, Hawthorne scored on a Johnson two-yard touchdown with the two-point conversion from Richard Roundtree Jr. to Debose to make it 21-14. However, the fireworks weren’t done as Hawthorne attempted the onside kick – twice – once due to a penalty with the second attempt going the Hornets’ way with just 17 seconds left. In the end, it would not be the storybook finish Hawthorne needed as a bad snap occurred on the final play ending the game once and for all.

SEVENTH STATE TITLE GOING HOME TO MADISON

The Madison County Cowboys are bringing home their seventh state championship in school history and head coach Price Harris is the fourth head coach to win a state championship for the Cowboys. Madison County’s state championship victory puts them among the ranks of teams like Bolles, St. Thomas Aquinas, and Miami Central with the most state championships in program history.  As such Madison County now has won five state titles in their past six appearances in state championship games.

MADISON COUNTY HEAD COACH PRICE HARRIS AFTER THE GAME

SCORING SUMMARY

TEAM	1st Q	2nd Q	3rd Q	4th Q	OT	FINAL
MADISON COUNTY	7	6	0	7	—	21
HAWTHORNE	0	6	0	7	—	14

FIRST QUARTER

MC – Ryshard Miller 60 yard fumble recovery (Sean Williams PAT good), 7:40

SECOND QUARTER

H – Dacarion Debose 6 pass from Adrian Curtis (Sam Carroll PAT no good), 11:34

MC – Jason McDaniel 1 run (Chad Mitchell kick failed), 3:50

FOURTH QUARTER

MC – LJ Crumity 13 run (McDaniel rush), 8:02

MC – Kennon Johnson 2 run (Debose pass from Richard Roundtree), 0:19