ATLANTA -- Media, coaches and fans packed into the Georgia Dome to get a glimpse of what all the hype was about. It wasn't Trevor Lawrence's best game, but his team certainly put on a show.
Lawrence threw for 196 yards and two touchdowns in the Cartersville Purple Hurricane's 58-7 win over Thomson (14-1) in the 4A state championship, Lawrence's second-consecutive state title. The Hurricanes are 30-0 in the last two seasons.
The nation's No. 1 junior recruit in the country, according to Rivals.com, faced a tough Thomson front seven that continued to get in his face and force rushed throws.
Lawrence's first pass of the day was incomplete, but he would go on to complete three passes on five attempts in the first drive, two of which were good throws to guys on quick comeback routes to successfully convert on two third downs and extend the drive. Lawrence handed the ball off to Trey Creamer on third-and-goal, who scored the Hurricane's opening touchdown.
Lawrence struggled for the next couple of drives. The pass rush caused him to throw a few deep passes just off the mark, including one in the end zone that was too high for Trase Fezzia. Several of Lawrence's deep passes were either just off the mark or dropped by his receivers because of Thomson's coverage.
Thomson's defense allowed an average of 9.7 points per game going into the game.
Lawrence threw what would have been a 73-touchdown pass in the second quarter, but it was called back because of holding. It happened again in the third quarter when he heaved a 63-yard pass to the end zone, but another holding was called. Three would-be touchdowns were called back because of holding penaltys.
But between Thomson shooting itself in the foot and a beautiful pass by the kicker Jonathan Cruz on a fake punt to extend a drive early in the second quarter, Lawrence got a lot of opportunities, and he started to get consistent and complete several screen passes. Most of his passing yards came from his receivers getting good yardage after catches.
He threw his first touchdown pass while he was getting hit. He found Creamer, who turned around and ran 20 yards into the end zone. Lawrence then went 3-for-3 on the next drive, which ended on a screen pass to Avery Showell, who ran 18 yards for the score.
Lawrence was pretty quiet in the second half, letting Creamer do most of the work, who had four touchdowns in the game. Lawrence left the game in the fourth quarter, and the backup got playing time.
Lawrence still has his senior season ahead of him, then he'll play college football. He's narrowed his 24 offers down to Georgia and Clemson, according to UGASports.com.
Lawrence finished the season with 3,904 passing yards and 51 touchdowns passes. He moved up to third on Georgia's ranking of touchdown passes in a single season. He moved past former Gainesville quarterback Deshaun Watson.
