By Kevin Price For GCS Athletics The Brunswick High Pirates saw their two-game winning streak against rival Camden County come to a close Friday night at Glynn County Stadium as the Pirates fell 51-41 in a marathon of an opening game for both teams. Brunswick and Camden battled until right at 11 p.m. on the turf at the local stadium after starting at the usual 7:30 p.m. kickoff time. The game clock was stopped repeatedly by penalties, players cramping, mandatory water breaks, and also of course following all of the touchdowns scored by both teams which kept the stadium scoreboard operator’s fingers busy. There weren’t any signs of him cramping up, however, as the press box high above the home stands got air conditioning several years back. But despite going hard until the final horn, the Pirates weren’t able to overcome a nightmarish second quarter in which execution errors by their punt team gift-wrapped three consecutive touchdowns by the Wildcats who would turn a 14-10 deficit into a 30-14 advantage at halftime. “It’s all three phases for a team. I’m not gonna pinpoint it on one,” said BHS coach Garrett Grady who led the Pirates to victories over the Wildcats in his first two seasons as head coach. “But the turnovers and giving them the ball back with a short field doesn’t help at all. We’ve got to correct those mistakes, or they’re going to come back and haunt us all year long.” The Wildcats scored three touchdowns in the second quarter after getting the ball at the Brunswick 5-yard line twice in a row and then the BHS 2-yard line after punt-team miscues by the Pirates. The first in the series of Camden scores came when the Wildcats got the ball first-and-goal at the Brunswick 5 following a snap over the head of the BHS punter who had to chase down the ball and recover it behind him. Jordan Hardy would score on a 1-yard carry two plays later for Camden to give the Wildcats a 16-14 lead. Two possessions later, Camden again got the ball at the BHS 5 when another errant snap led to a short field for the visitors. This time, Camden quarterback Parks Riendeau sprinted left on third down and tossed a shuffle pass to heralded senior tight end Elyiss Williams for a 3-yard score and a 23-14 lead following the extra-point kick. It got worse for the Pirates before the end of the half. The next time BHS had the ball, another punt attempt was blocked by Camden’s Marcus Bovance and the Wildcats took possession at the Brunswick 2. The Wildcats capitalized again, with Riendeau throwing a 1-yard pass to Williams in the back of the end zone for a third straight score that stretched the lead to 30-14 before the halftime break. Brunswick never went away, but couldn’t overcome that disastrous second quarter. The Pirates actually had 191 yards in the first half to Camden’s 131 and finished outgaining the Wildcats for the game, totaling 417 yards to 311 by the Wildcats. But from the start, the Wildcats took advantage of good field position. They actually returned the opening kick 41 yards to the Brunswick 47 and would take an early 3-0 lead on a 31-yard field goal by Noah McCullars after the BHS defense stiffened inside its 10-yard line. Brunswick showcased a high-powered offense from the get-go, answering the Camden score when sophomore Nigel Gardner broke free for a 65-yard touchdown jaunt on his first carry of the night. The point-after try was blocked, so it remained a 6-3 score. The Pirates went up 14-3 on their second possession when they marched 83 yards in 10 plays. Grant Moore tossed a 15-yard TD pass to running back William Heck and then Heck hooked up with fullback Myles Southall on a pass for a 2-point play and a 14-3 lead going into the second frame. Camden pulled with 16-10 early in the second with a 9-play, 70-yard drive that ended with Hardy scoring from 5 yards out. The Wildcats converted on third down after getting behind the chains due to a holding call, and then Riendeau hit Green on a fly-pattern down the the Camden sideline for a 40-yard gain to the BHS 9 to set up the score. Big plays and fast scores would remain the story of the night after halftime. Brunswick quickly paraded 75 yards in six plays to begin the second half. Heck did the bulk of the work for BHS before a 10-yard TD run around the end by Towns to pull the Pirates within 30-20 just two minutes into the third quarter. But, Camden would answer immediately when Coleman returned the ensuing kick 88 yards to paydirt and a 37-20 lead for the visitors. It looked like it would be a back-and-forth scoring fest when Heck dashed 30 yards for the Pirates to the Camden 24 on the next BHS series before Josiah Gibbons raced to the end zone from there, getting BHS back within 30-20 with less than three minutes expired in the third. Camden would score on its next series, too. Riendeau hit senior receiver Jonathon Stamos across the line with Stamos slipping a tackle and going 65 yards for another TD that made it 44-27. BHS would score right away on its next possession as well. Moore hit Waseem Murray along the Brunswick sideline for a 46-yard gain early in the drive and the junior QB would ultimately score on a keeper from 4 yards to make it 44-34. The Pirates finally got a stop to force a Camden punt, but the Wildcats also finally stopped the Pirates before the end of the third stanza to get the ball again at their own 24. The Wildcats would all but end the game on their next possession when Riendeau threw a ball to Williams who went up and snagged it from the air well over the defender’s head before running the rest of the way into the end zone for a 28-yard score that blinked the scoreboard to 51-34 moments into the fourth quarter. Williams, the No. 1 tight end in the country among this year’s senior class, is committed to the Georgia Bulldogs. He finished the night with six receptions including the three for touchdowns. His longest catch of the night covered 29 yards on Camden’s opening possession. BHS did score one last time to make for the final 51-41 score following a muffed punt by the Wildcats at their 42. Towns would throw a 19-yard pass to Kent just outside the goal-line with the big BHS junior tight end then going across the stripe for the score. The Pirates rushed for 216 yard and threw for 201. Heck, a senior, led all ballcarriers with 118 yards on 15 rushes. He had to be carried off the field on a stretcher with severe cramping in the second half. Hardy led Camden’s ground game with 72 yards on 13 carries. For Brunswick, Moore, starting the opener this year after becoming the first-string quarterback in the middle of last season, was 16-of-22 passing for the game. The explosive plays and quick scoring drives for the offense were certainly highlights for the Pirates. “We had a lot of experience coming back, and the guys battled all night long,” Grady said. “Our defense was put in tough situations all night, but we have to minimize the penalties.” The teams combined for 23 accepted penalties that totaled 204 yards. Camden was flagged 11 times for 104 yards, and the Pirates were penalized 12 times for 100 yards. Friday’s game marked the debut in Georgia for new Camden head coach Travis Roland who took over the team following the retirement of former coach Jeff Herron who served two different stints with the Wildcats. The coaching legend won five state titles over his 32-year career and won well over 300 games. He is the only coach in state history to lead three different teams to state championships. Herron won three of those with the Wildcats. He also won titles at Oconee County and Grayson. Herron was announced as a member of the next Georgia Athletic Coaches Association Hall of Fame this summer. Roland, meantime, won a state title last season with Mainland High school in Daytona Beach, Fla. BHS will look to rebound next Friday when it goes to Wayne County for its second game. The Yellow Jackets lost 16-10 at home Friday to Glynn Academy. “We’ve got a lot of stuff to fix on Monday,” Grady said. “Our guys never gave up. I’ll say that. But our preparation has to be better. We need to get things moving in the right direction.”