Chestatee High senior back Ben Souther wasn’t out seeking individual glory against Johnson Friday night at War Eagle Stadium. He just wanted to get past the bad taste left in the team’s mouth from a 34-0 loss to Gainesville in the season opener two weeks ago.

However, one run by the War Eagles’ (1-1) running back put him in the school’s record books for a pair of accomplishments.

With the ball at their own 1, Souther split two defenders at the goal line and scored on a 98-yard run, a new school record for a touchdown run and also made him the school’s career rushing leader. He finished the game with 157 and two touchdowns as the War Eagles won 22-12.

"Everyone had a lot of questions about how we’d respond after the first game against Gainesville," said Souther, who also scored on a run from the 1 late in the fourth quarter. "But we came out and responded tonight.

"Our offensive line does a great job and I’m so proud of all those guys."

Souther’s long touchdown run signified a huge momentum swing in the game. Leading 3-0 early in the second, Johnson (0-3) punter Chris Henry hit a 45-yard punt that rolled dead just shy of the goal line.

On the first play of the drive, War Eagles quarterback Scott Chewning tried a sneak for a minimal gain. However, on the next play Souther split two defenders in the end zone and ran untouched through a gapping hole created by the offensive line that led to the 98-yard score.

"It’s beautiful when you draw it up and works the way you want it to," Chewning said. "The credit goes to our offensive line because they did a tremendous job.

"This was a great team victory."

The War Eagles moved the ball in sizable chunks on the ground all night with 43 carries for 272 yards, and 297 total yards of offense. That offensive output was more than enough to compensate for two turnovers on fumbles and an interception.

Another key for Chestatee was a sound defensive effort that limited Johnson’s offense to 68 yards rushing and hurried the Knights’ quarterback into a pair of interceptions.

"I’ve said all along that I really like our team we have this season," Chestatee coach Stan Luttrell said. "They play with tremendous effort, really care for each other, and that’s what I really like about this team."

Chestatee built its biggest lead in the game with a 17-yard touchdown pass over a defender from Chewning to senior receiver Lamar Brooks. The War Eagles’ touchdown drive was short after the Knights’ punt was fielded and returned to the 26-yard line. Along with the touchdown pass, Chewning made a big impact on the ground with 15 carries for 55 yards, including a 26-yard run in the second quarter.

"It feels so good to get this win and get that monkey off our back," Chewning said. "It’s always nice to get that first win in the books."

Trailing 15-3 early in the third quarter, Johnson had opportunities to mount a comeback. Deep in Chestatee territory, Johnson defensive end Caleb Jackson intercepted a War Eagle pass, setting up first-and-goal at the 5. However, the Knights were forced to settle for a 19-yard field goal from Henry after a run and two pass attempts were unsuccessful.

The Knights’ only touchdown came with 7:56 remaining in the third quarter when Johnson quarterback Anthony Prophet passed to Seth Spivey, who ran 49 yards for the touchdown. He was the team’s leading receiver with four catches for 62 yards.

After narrowing the score to 15-12, the Knights decided to go for it on fourth-and-5 at the Chestatee 42 with 6:52 left in the game. On the play, the pass to Spivey was complete but came up short of the first-down marker.

Chestatee took over possession and scored with 2:40 remaining in the game with Souther’s run from the 1 to make the lead and final score 22-12. The biggest play on the scoring drive was when Souther gained 20 yards on fourth-and-1.

The Knights were playing, once again, without senior linebacker Gilberto Espinoza, who was injured on the first drive of the season-opener against North Hall. Espinoza said he had an MRI last Wednesday but is waiting on results to return to see when he can return to the field.