Columbus High School junior quarterback C.J. Gholar didn’t call the plays Friday night.
However, he had no objection to what was being sent in.
In a season in which Kendre Conner and Kylin Hill have shared the rushing load, Gholar took the spotlight, running for 154 yards and three touchdowns, as Columbus beat Horn Lake 45-13 in a Class 6A, Region 1 matchup on Homecoming night at Falcon Field.
“Playing in that game was a lot of fun,” Gholar said. “Since it was Homecoming week, we had to block out the distractions. We really did a good job of coming out and handling our business.”
Columbus (5-2, 3-0 region) scored on 6 of 7 first-half possessions and led 38-6 at halftime.
In the second half, Mario Bradford returned an interception 29 yards for a touchdown. It was Columbus’ first defensive score of the season.
“Coach told us our only job during Homecoming was to win the game for the community,” Bradford said. “We really didn’t worry about anything else other than what we had to do on the field.”
Gholar scored on a 14-yard run and a pair of 1-yard runs. Patrick Jackson added a 5-yard run. Gholar also hit Kylin Hill on a 68-yard touchdown play. Chris Taylor kicked a 27-yard field goal.
Columbus finished with 407 yards of offense and committed one turnover. Damonta Kidd, Christopher Deloach, Hezekiah Manigo, Kiren Sharp, and Bradford led a defensive effort that kept the running game of Horn Lake (2-6, 0-3) in check. The Eagles rushed for -8 yards.
Quarterback Derrick Pointer II hit Kameron Coleman for scoring plays of 10 and 79 yards for the Eagles.
n Louisville 38, Caledonia 13: At Caledonia, Pervis Frazier ran for two touchdowns and threw for two more Friday night to lead the Wildcats in their Class 4A, Region 4 victory against the Confederates.
Frazier scored on runs of 24 and 6 yards. He connected with Demarcus Frazier on pass plays of 17 and 12 yards to help Louisville improve to 6-2 and 2-0 in the region.
Junior running back Zion Ford rushed for 274 yards on 29 carries. He had a 41-yard touchdown run. Caleb Comer kicked field goals of 33 and 25 yards for Caledonia (4-3, 0-2).
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