HIRAM, Ga. — The Eastside Eagles got it done in all facets of the game Friday night as they cruised to a 48-21 win over the Hiram Hornets.
Coming off an upset win over the county-rival Newton Rams last week, the Eagles made the road trip to the opposite side of Atlanta to face the Hornets.
By the game’s end, each unit for the Eagles — offense, defense and special teams — had a touchdown in the win.
On the first drive of the game, the Eagles leaned on the run game to move down into the red zone. When they made it to the goal line, senior Jayden Barr had his number called.
Barr took the direct snap through the middle of the line for the touchdown to put Eastside ahead 7-0.
Following a Hiram three-and-out, it was Payton Shaw’s turn.
Shaw went for a deep shot and found junior Chase Jordan across the middle of the field. Jordan caught the ball, made his man miss and raced down the field for the touchdown.
With a passing and rushing touchdown on the board for Eastside, it was the Eagles’ defense that made the next play.
Hiram quarterback Ethan Latimore went for a pass to his wide receiver, but the pass ended in the hands of Marion Eubanks Jr. for an Eastside interception.
After a year in which Eubanks broke out with numerous interceptions, the senior claimed his first in week two against the Hornets.
With the Eagles forced to punt, the Hornets gained momentum of their own offensively.
Latimore went for a pass into the end zone and connected with Chris Anderson for a Hiram touchdown.
The Latimore-Anderson connection trimmed Eastside’s lead to 13-7.
Before Eastside’s offense could get back on the field to answer, the Eagles’ special teams beat them to it.
The Hornets’ kickoff landed in the hands of Barr, who bobbled the catch at first. But, the Georgia Tech-commit picked it back up and raced down the sideline for a touchdown.
On the next offensive play, Eastside’s defense wanted a touchdown, too.
Multiple Eagles met Latimore on the very next play in the backfield following the snap.
This resulted in a fumble that was picked up by senior Bailey Benson, who ran the 10-yards into the endzone for a scoop-n-score touchdown.
Benson’s score completed the trifecta for the Eagles.
With a 34-7 lead, Hiram put together a scoring drive before halftime.
The Hornets first forced a fumble when they knocked the ball out of Tyler Solomon’s hands. This game Hiram the ball deep into Eastside territory.
A few plays later, Kaden Hamilton juked multiple Eagles on his way to a 18-yard touchdown run to give Eastside a 34-14 lead going into halftime.
After an action packed opening half, the third quarter started off slow for both squads.
Following 10 minutes of scoreless ball, Shaw found Barr on a screen pass, who took it the rest of the way for a 44-yard touchdown — Barr’s third of the day.
Before the game could come to a close, Barr made it four touchdowns — showing shades of former Eastside backs such as Kenai Grier and Dallas Johnson.
Through two games, Barr is responsible for six of Eastside’s touchdowns as the senior has done it all — rushing, receiving, defense and returning kicks.
The Eastside defense stifled Hiram in the final minutes to put a close on the team’s 48-21 road win.
After moving to 2-0, the Eagles will head back to Sharp Stadium next week for a chance to claim the Newton Cup when they play the Alcovy Tigers (0-2,0-0) Friday, Aug. 30.