By Kevin Price For GCS Athletics A good thing came to an end late Saturday night for the Brunswick High Pirates. BHS had its 23-game winning streak in the regular-season stopped with a 45-35 loss at Glynn County Stadium to a St. Augustine (Fla.) team featuring a high-powered offense led by major college prospects in the skill-positions. The game was the finale of the second Under Armor Border Classic sponsored by Baker’s Sporting Goods here in Brunswick. The Pirates enjoyed back-to-back perfect seasons each of the last two seasons. They had not lost a regular-season game since Oct. 30, 2020, when they fell at Richmond Hill in the eighth game on their 10-game schedule. “I was pleased with the effort. They fought all four quarters. That’s a heckuva team right there,” said Brunswick second-year head coach Garrett Grady after Saturday’s contest. “They’ve got a chance to go really deep in the playoffs. “I’m proud of our guys. They fought hard. They’ve just gotta come ready to work Monday at practice. We’ve gotta work on two things, blocking and tackling.” Saturday’s game was just the second this season for the Pirates who opened the 2023 campaign on Aug. 25 with a victory at Camden County. Brunswick’s game last week had to be cancelled because of the storm that swept through the Southeast Georgia area . It will not be rescheduled. Brunswick won its Border Classic game last year over Bolles. St. Augustine fell to Coffee in the inaugural Classic that matches teams in this section of the state against teams from North Florida. The Yellow Jackets (2-0), ranked No. 7 in Florida’s Division 3 Suburban rankings by MaxPreps, also were playing just their second game this season. They had beaten Bolles two weeks earlier in their opening game. The Pirates and Yellow Jackets were tied 14-14 at the half, but the Jackets outscored the Pirates by 10 points in the third quarter and that proved to be the difference in the end. The visitors scored to open the second half, getting a field goal from 32 yards just less than three minutes in the third stanza to go in front 17-14. Brunswick would answer quickly when Terry Mitchell, a senior standout for the Pirates, returned the ensuing kick 74 yards to the Jacket 23-yard line to put BHS in business. The Pirates needed only five plays to reach the end zone with William Heck scoring from 3 yards out to move them into the lead at 21-17 following the extra-point kick by McClain Finneran. A third-down pass from J.R. Elkins to Mitchell to the 10 gave Brunswick a fresh set of downs. Heck scored three plays later after consecutive 5-yard runs by sophomore Heze Kent, a tight end who had another big game running the ball for the Pirates. The Jackets displayed their big-play ability the night long, and it was a 77-yard pass from junior quarterback Locklan Hewlett to junior receiver Carl Jenkins that went for a touchdown just two plays into the team’s next offensive series that gave St. Augustine the lead again at 24-21 midway through the third. Hewlett, a Wake Forest commit, threw for 378 yards and two touchdowns while completing 16 of 29 passes. Jenkins, also a junior with scholarship offers from Power 5 schools, finished with seven receptions for a whopping 256 yards and two touchdowns. Brunswick was flagged for a 10-yard penalty on the kickoff that ensued and was forced to start at its own 14. The Pirates couldn’t move and would have to punt from their own 6. A short kick gave the ball back to the Jackets at the BHS 22. The Jackets cashed in on the short field, scoring in only two plays on an 11-yard run by senior Devonte Lyons, another major-college recruit for the Jackets who led their ground game with 89 yards on 12 rushes. Still trailing by the 10 points at the start of the fourth quarter, BHS had the ball at the Jacket 43 and were facing third-and-short. Backup quarterback Grant Moore, a starter at receiver who mostly had been lined up in the shotgun with Kent by his side taking direct snaps when inserted previously at quarterback, took the snap, raised up and hit Waseem Murray with a pass just beyond the line. The freshman running back came out of the backfield wide open and sprinted to the end zone for the 43-yard score that pulled BHS within 31-28 after the point-after. The Pirates just couldn’t keep pace, however, down the stretch. The BHS defense did keep the Pirates in the game until late in the fourth when it stopped a scoring threat by the Jackets following a long run by Lyons to the Brunswick 5. First, senior Tavion Gadson saved a touchdown by tackling Lyons before he could reach the end zone following a gain of 42 yards. Then, it was sophomore Aviyon Addison intercepting a fourth-down pass in the end zone to deny the Jackets. But after the Pirates went three-and-out and gave the ball back to St. Augustine near midfield, it was again a big play by the Jackets that began a late surge that won them the game. They faced second-and 22 at their 43 following a penalty and a lost-yardage play, but Hewlett teamed with Jenkins for a short throw-and-catch that the speedy receiver turned into a 54-yard gain as he broke free from would-be tacklers. A 1-yard scoring run by Jayqoun Lee would give the Jackets a 38-28 cushion with 5:12 to play. The game unraveled on the Pirates from there. Elkins was pressured into an interception on the first play of the Pirates’ next series and St. Augustine would send its offense back onto the field at the BHS 11. The Jackets scored again on another run by Lee from a yard out to pad their lead to 45-28. The Pirates did score again as Moore engineered a late 57-yard drive for a touchdown. He connected with junior Caleb Butler who was wide open in the end zone for a 10-yard scoring pass. The point-after made for the final score. Moore completed 3 of 5 passes for 77 yards and the two scores. Elkins was 10-for-19 on the night for 138 yards and a touchdown with two interceptions. Kent led BHS in rushing with 102 yards on 13 attempts. The Jackets had 441 net yards to 359 by Brunswick. “It comes down to two things, blocking and tackling,” Grady said. “We couldn’t get some things going in the run game. Blocking was difficult for us up front all night. And then, we missed opportunities to make tackles. If we make tackles on some of the quick hitches and those things, that’s a 5-yard play instead of a touchdown or a big play. “Those things are fixable, and our coaches will do that.” The visitors opened the scoring by going 86 yards in 13 plays on their first series after forcing a BHS punt to begin the game. Hewlett scored from 2 yards out, and an extra-point kick made it 7-0. The Pirates scored for the first time just moments into the second quarter on their third possession of the game, going 87 yards in six plays. Kent did serious damage on the ground before Mitchell made an acrobatic catch just inside the right pylon on a 43-yard pass from Elkins that tied the score after the PAT. The Jackets went back in front instantly when Hewlett found his man Jenkins who displayed his dazzling speed for the first time by darting 78 yards to paydirt for a 14-7 lead. BHS drew even again midway through the second quarter when Murray took an inside handoff across the goal line from 5 yards away to close an 11-play, 71 yard march by the Pirates. “Our guys were ready to play. We were focused. We just gotta get better,” Grady said. “Monday’s practice will be pretty good.”