When two teams combine for nearly 1,000 yards and put up 69 points, it should be hard to single out three plays that were the difference between winning and losing. But for Lakeview-Fort Oglethorpe coach Todd Windham, who was on the short end of a 36-33 shootout against LaFayette on Friday, it was easy.

His Warriors matched the Ramblers yard for yard in the Region 6-AAA game, but three LFO fumbles led to three LaFayette touchdowns, and two of them stopped long Warriors drives in the second half.

“No doubt, the turnovers were the difference,” Windham said. “We get inside the 20 twice and fumble it away, then LaFayette goes the distance. Those kinds of things are difficult to overcome. But my guys never quit, and I have to give them credit for that.”

The turnovers may have been huge, but so was the Josh Morgan-to-Dimitri Miles combination for the Ramblers (3-1, 1-0). Every time LFO (1-3, 0-1) needed a big defensive stop, LaFayette turned to its recently discovered lethal duo. Miles, a junior transfer, caught six passes for 156 yards and the team’s last three touchdowns.

“Miles has really stepped up his play the past two weeks,” first-year LaFayette coach Perry Swindall said. “He did a lot of good things tonight and made some clutch catches.”

The Ramblers’ spread attack was nearly unstoppable. They ran for 228 yards — getting 106 from Justin Gilbreath and 101 from Dustin Quinn — and passed for 272. They needed all that offense as the scrappy Warriors refused to die, twice falling behind by two touchdowns only to rally.

A Morgan-to-Miles 13-yard pass culminated an 11-play, 87-yard drive that began after LFO’s LaGreg Burns fumbled at the LaFayette 13 after a hard run, making the score 29-20 late in the third quarter.

Two plays later, LFO quarterback Cody Commons, who confounded Rambler defenders all night with his scrambling and passing, hooked up with Desmond Wilson for a 52-yard pass, but Wilson — after securing the ball — fumbled at the LaFayette 19.

Nine plays later Morgan and Miles hooked up again, this time from 18 yards out as the lanky receiver beat a double team. The lead now 36-20 with just 7:49 left, the Ramblers should have felt good. The Warriors, though, had other thoughts.

Commons, who completed 14 of 18 passes for 285 yards, directed a swift seven-play drive covering 71 yards, with Burns getting the touchdown on a 9-yard run with 4:22 left. The Warriors executed a perfect onside kick and needed just five plays to score again, this time when a scrambling Burns hit Logan Fields from 11 yards out to cut the gap to three with 2:23 left.

The ensuing onside kick, though, was recovered by the Ramblers, who marched to the LFO 12 before turning the ball over on downs with 12 seconds left.

Commons also rushed for 99 yards, ran for one touchdown and threw for two. Mason caught four balls for 168 yards.

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