Whitefield Academy running back Mason Hollingsworth rushed for a Cobb County record 426 yards last week in a 63-24 victory over St. Anne-Pacelli. On Monday night, he got his first scholarship offer.

It was from Andrew College, a second-year junior college team in Cuthbert. It’s a start for a player who leads the state in rushing with 1,247 yards — an average of 249.4 per game — for a 4-1 team in Class A Division I.

“Recruiting has been slow for him, but it’s starting to pick up, especially after the performance he had Friday night,” Whitefield Academy coach Robert Walsh said. “College coaches are starting to respond and ask more questions about him. This past Friday is definitely going to be good for his recruiting.”

Hollingsworth, a 5-foot-11, 195-pound senior, also rushed for 1,214 yards in 11 games as a junior. His most recent game put him over 3,000 yards for his career. He scored five touchdowns against Pacelli, one on a 25-yard reception.

“I’ve never seen a performance like that before,” Walsh said. “I knew Mason was having a big game, but I didn’t realize he was closing in on 400 yards until the coaches in the press box told me. At that point, as a coach, you’ve got to let the kid try breaking 400 yards rushing. I don’t know how many times that’s going to happen ever. Our offense was super excited about it. He broke a 59-yard touchdown run to get past 400.”

About the Author

Keep Reading

The rushing leaders through six weeks of the regular season include players from Whitefield Academy, Winder-Barrow and Sequoyah. (Jason Getz/AJC)

Credit: Jason Getz / Jason.Getz@ajc.com

Featured

Hundreds of homeowners in Gwinnett County received higher than expected property tax bills after a tax software contractor inadvertently removed an exemption from about 0.1% of bills, the tax commissioner's office said. (Hyosub Shin/AJC).

Credit: HYOSUB SHIN / AJC