Evans defensive end Nigel Charles puts little stock into his team's best start in 21 seasons.
"We're still the worst 7-0 team," he said.
The Knights could afford to be self-deprecating after a 17-0 victory over Josey on Friday night. Evans survived a steady rain for its seventh win in a row, its best start since 1987.
That year, the Knights posted a 12-1 record and made their deepest run in the postseason (quarterfinals). Evans now sits alone atop the Region 3-AAAA standings with a 6-0 mark and three regular- season games remaining.
"We still have a long way to go," Evans linebacker Darnell Jackson said. "We have a lot of work to do."
For the second week in a row, the Knights defense stuffed the run. Evans allowed 14 rushing yards on 25 carries. A week earlier, Evans limited Westside to 44 yards rushing.
This is a defense that lost nine starters from the 2007 squad to graduation. Charles, one of two returners, posted three sacks against Josey, giving him five in the past two games.
"The defense is playing well," Evans coach Marty Jackson said, "and we needed them to."
Evans running back Jonathan Finch carried the ball 24 times for 173 yards -- 109 in the second half. His 18-yard touchdown run with less than 4 minutes remaining helped seal the win.
The game was played at Evans, but it was deemed a home game for Josey. The Eagles were forced to move their home game -- thus making it an away game -- because the Richmond County school system didn't have enough security to staff five games Friday. It was a decided disadvantage for the Eagles, who started the game without their band and just 15 fans on their side of the stadium.
Still, Josey had its opportunities. The Eagles twice got inside the 10 and came away empty.
"We had our chances," Josey coach Barney Chavous said. "We just didn't capitalize on them."
The game remained tight until Josey jumped offsides on a third-and-4 play late in the game. Finch followed that by breaking off the left guard, hurdling a defender at the 5 and breaking into the end zone for an 18-yard TD run.
Reach Chris Gay at (706) 823-3645 or chris.gay@augustachronicle.com.
EVANS 17, JOSEY 0
Evans 7 0 3 7 - 17
Josey 0 0 0 0 - 0
First Quarter
E-Hector Mallar 15 run (Jamie Galvin kick), 8:46
Third Quarter
E-Galvin 31 FG, 5:17
Fourth Quarter
E-Jonathan Finch 18 run (Galvin kick), 3:33
E J
First Downs 15 7
Rushes-Yards 41-272 25-14
PASSING Yards 19 109
Comp.-Att.-Int. 1-7-1 4-16-1
Fumbles-Lost 2-0 1-0
Punts-Avg. 0-0 1-33
Penalties-Yards 10-65 5-35
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
RUSHING-Evans: Jonathan Finch 24-173, Jamerson Turner 10-60, Hector Mallar 4-43, Troy Griffith 2-(-11), Glenn Cassidy 1-7. Josey: Tywain Brown 7-25, Charles Hankerson 2-12, Courtney Clark 6-8, Chris Johnson 1-(-5), Darnell Brown 9-(-26).
PASSING-Evans: Troy Griffith 1-7-1 19. Josey: Darnell Brown 4-15-0 109, Brandon Brown 0-1-1 0.
RECEIVING-Evans: Justin Black 1-19. Josey: Travis Crawford 3-99, Noah Ross 1-10.
PLAY OF THE GAME: With Evans up 10-0, Knights linebacker Darnell Jackson chased down kick returner Courtney Clark , stopping him after a 66-yard return on the 3. The defense followed that with its second goal-line stand of the game.
WHY EVANS WON: Run defense. The Knights allowed 14 yards on 25 carries -- the longest a 13-yarder.
WHY JOSEY LOST: Red-zone offense. The Eagles had first downs twice inside the 8-yard line but failed to score on either possession.
STAR OF THE GAME: Jonathan Finch . The Evans running back gained 173 yards on 24 carries, including an 18-yard touchdown run.
NEXT: Evans (7-0) plays host to Hephzibah, 7:30 p.m. Friday. Josey (2-5) plays host to Glenn Hills, 7:30 p.m. Friday.
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