STILLMORE — Bulloch Academy rolled up over 400 yards of total offense as the Gators demolished David Emanuel Academy 40-6 Thursday night to give Ronnie Hodges his first win as a head coach in 34 years.
    But the Legend, as they call him at Gator Alley, was very quick to duck out of the spotlight.
    “It feels great,” he said. “But I am excited and happy for the kids, not for me. We had a chance to get almost everyone in the game to see some action. I had my concerns earlier in the week because we weren’t focused at practice. But when the guys came out for pregame warm-ups, I could tell they were ready.”
    The tandem of senior Chris Young and junior Harrison Averitt rushed for 288 yards and scored five touchdowns. Averitt galloped for 176 yards on just 11 carries, including a 75-yard touchdown dash in the second quarter. Young had 112 yards on nine totes and crossed the goal line four times, including a 48-yard, second-quarter scamper.
    “The offensive line did a great job of making holes as wide as any running back could ever want,” said Hodges. “Coach (Jimmy) Barnett told me after the game that hadn’t counted on number 20 (Averitt). Harrison, Chris and (quarterback) Loy Waters were a great combination tonight.”
    Bulloch (1-0) rolled up a 20-0 lead in the opening quarter, scoring on the first three possessions. Waters hooked up with junior Bailey Smith on a beautifully-thrown pass that accounted for a 68-yard score to open the game. Averitt and Young then took turns ripping off huge chunks of yardage as the BA offensive line blasted big holes in the Eagle front.
    “I thought the offensive line did a great job,” said Hodges. “We had to do some major adjustments early in the week but the kids responded well and did their jobs.”
    The Gator defense, led by Waters, Dillon Finch, Codi Johnson and Reed Salter, stymied DEA (0-1) as the Eagles couldn’t get anything going offensively.
    “We ran a sort of unorthodox defense,” said Hodges. “We wanted to out-muscle them up front and stop their very-talented skill people before they got a chance to get started.”
In the second quarter, Bulloch tacked on 14 more points for a 34-0 halftime lead.