Louisburg College (from North Carolina) strutted into Davenport Field Saturday with a 5-2 record and the nations No. 3 ranked defense and dreams of spoiling GMC’s Alumni celebration. The atmosphere was ripe and the Bulldogs knew something special was about to happen — after all, they had a week to think about it.

“We practiced hard this week. We knew we had a chance to come out and make a change. We came out here with our heads up high — we came out here and played ball,” said GMC JC quarterback Chris Hart after his team’s 55-3 victory.

And play ball they did as Hart, almost fully rebounded from an earlier injury, guided his team to a quick score via a mesmerizing keeper in which he avoided multiple defenders. Hart then took off 35 yards to put the Bulldogs up 7-0 with 12:50 to go in the first.

The GMC defense was also ready to strike — and strike they did as they rammed the Hurricanes’ back on their opening possession of the game.

GMC JC defensive end Leroy Vick, who had one of his best game’s of the season, came away with a titanic sack on Louisburg as they attempted to convert on third down early on.

“We just wanted to come out, play hard, play our best, make no mistakes and do what we had to do to win,” said GMC’s D’mario Gunn, who picked off a well-thrown pass Saturday afternoon. “Coming out early it was real important to set the tone. We just wanted to come out, make plays and get our day going good. We don’t like to give teams confidence early — because then it’s usually close games. It was a great win.”

Perhaps one of the most promising things about GMC’s performance Saturday was their play on the offensive line, their ability to move the chains, and the production they got out of their younger players.

GMC’s Quinn Thornton was again strong at returning punts and putting the Bulldogs in good territory. Wideout Marvin Mackey then caught a bullet from Hart before running back Ronnie Smith punched it into the end zone for a quick 14-0 lead with 10:12 to go in the first.

“Offensively, we’ve been practicing all week and getting on each other. The defense has been after the offense and the offense has been after the defense. It looked up today, and we looked good on both sides of the ball,” said GMC JC running back Tobias Palmer Saturday after the game. “We always told each other, coming into this week, to go out and have fun — play with each other and love the game. We’re going to go celebrate now, but not too hard, and get ready to practice for another week.”

GMC’s defense then got after Louisburg’s offense as Frank Demery and Kiece Crite put immediate pressure on the Hurricane’s next possession.

With 2:23 to go in the quarter, Louisburg would sneak into scoring territory after a screen pass, but then the Hurricanes would start throwing to the wrong team. On the very next play GMC linebacker Demery Hawkins would eye the quarterback’s eyes and perfectly time an interception to give his team another shot at increasing their lead.

With an offensive line in full-throttle, Hart then took the ball and threw a perfectly positioned ball into the awaiting hands of star wideout Chris Thomas, who outleapt several Hurricane defenders — bringing out the “oohs” and “ahs” at Davenport Field. With 14:53 to go in the second quarter GMC led 21-0.

With 8:54 to go in the second quarter, more turnovers would rain GMC’s way as All-American free-safety Jakar Hamilton, a Georgia commitment, would leap up and make an acrobatic interception to halt a Louisburg drive. On the Hurricane’s next possession, GMC linebacker Antonio Mitchum would pounce on a fumble to give his team yet another plus-turnover stat.

“To come out here and perform like we did today was a great start to finishing off the season. At the beginning of the year everybody was talking how we were a young team, but now the freshmen are really starting to bond and play the game of football at the junior college level,” said the All-American Hamilton after the game. “It’s starting to come together. To do what we did today, we’re setting standards.”

The Bulldogs continued to set standards as the game wore on — and even the younger players and reserves refused to allow the Hurricanes into the end zone.