Live score updates: Buford vs. Milton in Georgia high school football opener (8/16/2024)

No. 1 and No. 2 in the state of Georgia collide for an opening night high school football spectacular

Milton quarterback Luke Nickel leads his Eagles into a season-opening clash with fellow Georgia power Buford as the 2024 Georgia high school football season gets underway. / Cecil Copeland

Is it mid-December or late August?

A game you might expect to take place late in the 2024 GHSA Class 7A football state playoffs is being served up to us right off the bat as reigning Georgia Class 7A state champion Milton, led by its 4-star quarterback Luke Nickel, hosts fellow 7A state power Buford for on this first Friday night of the 2024 Georgia high school football season.

Milton, the No. 1 team in the SBLive 2024 Georgia High School Football Top 25 Rankings stumbled just twice last season - early to Florida power Western and to North Cobb in late September. The Eagles then went on a 10-game winning streak to close the season, including a 31-21 win over Walton in the Class 7A state championship game. The Eagles enter the season ranked No. 6 nationally by SBLive Sports.

SBLive has Buford No. 2 in Georgia and No. 13 nationally. If any high school defense is built to stop Nickel and the Eagles is Buford's. The Wolves have several defenders already committed to Power 4 programs. Buford posted an 11-2 record in 2023. It was eliminated from the state playoffs by Grayson.

Stay with SBLive Georgia throughout the night and refresh this post repeatedly for constant live updates as the game progresses. Also, for all of tonight's scores, check out our Georgia High School Football Scoreboard. You will get in-progress scores and all of the finals.

Below is our Live Update Feed created and updated as the contest progresses. Read from the bottom up to follow the action chronologically from beginning to end.

	1	2	3	4	T
Buford	0	0	2	8	10
Milton	7	0	6	0	13

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Live Updates

FINAL: MILTON EAGLES 13, BUFORD WOLVES 10

4TH Q: MILTON EAGLES 13, BUFORD WOLVES 10

• Buford pulls a little razzle dazzle to get a nice gainer on the final play but Milton makes the tackle and clinches the win, 13-10.
• Raiola completes a shuffle pass, but the receiver is tackled with four seconds left.
• Raiola throws incomplete over the middle. The clock is down to 14 seconds.

• Milton punts and Buford calls for a fair catch at the 11. The Wolves has 19 seconds to work with.
• Milton uses its final timeout with 24 seconds to play. It's fourth down.
• Lester runs for eight down to the 40. It's fourth down with less than a minute to go. The Eagles can take it down to 24 seconds.
• Lester is stopped athe 48 and Buford uses its final timeout. With 1:22 to go, Milton is into clock management mode as the Eagles face a third and 18.
• We have 1:37 left on the clock as Lester runs to the Buford 48. The Wolves burn their second timeout with 1:31 remaining.
• TJ Lester strikes for a 40-yard touchdown run, but a holding call negates it. The ball is moved back to midfield.
• Nickel throws a deep ball to Barbour who gets tangled up with a defender. Pass interference is called and that should seal the win for Milton, which has the ball at the Buford 40. The Wolves do have two timeouts.
• Nickel completes a pass to Payne at the Buford 45 and the clock runs down to the 1:58. Another Buford player is down with cramps. It's third and 13 as Buford burns its first timeout.
• Lester gains four. The clock is stopped at 2:40 with an injury. Second and 22 upcoming.
• The Eagles are now called for a false start. They are headed back again.
• The drive starts with a holding call. The Eagles are pushed backwards 10 yards.
• Milton will get the ball near midfield after a short return. The Eagles are protecting a three-point lead with 3:53 remaining.

• Milton drops the Wolves for a loss and Buford will punt from its own 12. The clock is winding down to the four minutes.
• Raiola's second down throw is incomplete down field. It's third and nine.
• Buford is down three as it starts this posses with 5:30 to play.

• Nickel is stopped short of a first down on the Buford 19. It's fourth and four. Nickel scrambles and finds Lester but he slides down at the 16, just shy for the first down. Buford takes over on downs.
• Milton calls time out to talk over a third and three situation with 6:24 left in the fourth quarter.
• Nickel finds Wiley in the right flat for an 8-yard gain.
• Big play by CJ Wiley. On an under-thrown ball he goes into a baseball slide and reaches back to make a 36-yard reception. Milton is at the Buford 35.
• Nickel throws for Barbour and in the flat and is nearly picked off again. The ball falls incomplete.
• TJ Lester navigates out of the backfield for a short gain.
• Milton needs to restart is offense. Tristen Payne returns a pooch kick out to the 40 with 9:01 left in the contest.

• TOUCHDOWN! On second down, Ethan Ervin races around the left side and gets inside the pylon. Milton goes for two and Raiola connects with Sam Harkness and the Wolves are suddenly back within three points. It's 13-10.

• INTERCEPTION! Chris Garland grabs a topped pass and Buford has possession at the Milton 15.
• Milton is pinned deep again and Lester loses a yard back to the two.

• Payne fields the punt at the two and gets back to the three.
• Tristen Lester sacks Raiola for a 10-yard loss. It's four and 14 from the Milton 40. The Wolves are in punt formation.
• The rain is heavy once again, but we're playing on.

3RD Q: MILTON EAGLES 13, BUFORD WOLVES 2

• The Wolves are at the 30-yard after a short shuffle pass from Raiola. That brings us to the end of the third quarter with Milton still in front, 13-2.
• Raioloa stays on his feet after a hit and stumbles out to his left to find Carpenter of a 26-yard first down reception. Buford is at the Milton 35.
• Raiola lofts a pass up the left sideline. Kyle Carpenter came down with it, but out of bounds. It's third and eight.
• Ervin is tripped up after a two-yard gain.
• After a nice return past midfield, a personal foul call pushes Buford back to its own 36.

• SAFETY! Buford is on the board as Bryce Perry-Wright tackles TJ Lester in the end zone. It's now 13-2 in favor of Milton, which must kick it back to Buford.
• Nickel goes for the knockout shot, throwing from deep in his end zone. Wiley had a step on the outside, but the ball was over-thrown. It's second and 10 from the one.

• Ervin runs for short yardage and Buford punts it away. The ball is downed at the one by the Wolves.
• Now, Buford is hit with a personal foul penalty and things start to get chippy. The Wolves are push back 15 yards to midfield.
• Raiola looks for Jordan Allen in the end zone, but does not connect.
• Ervin runs for four as the third quarter clock is down to 4:42. An unsportsmanlike conduct penalty against Milton is added on and Buford has a first down at the Milton 37.
• Raiola loses a yard on a rollout run.
• McCoy gets the edge for a 7-yard run and a first down.
• Dylan McCoy gets out to the 35 with a run. It's third and six.
• Raiola fumbles the snap, but falls on it for a one-yard loss.
• Justin Baker runs for 12 on first down. The Wolves are out to the 32.
• The kickoff goes for a touchback. Milton will begin at its own 20 with 7:52 remaining in the third quarter.

• TOUCHDOWN! CJ Wiley defeats a defender down the right sideline and Nickel hits him in stride for the score. The snap on the PAT attempt is botched, so the Eagles settle for six and lead 13-0.
• Nickel pulls the ball down and runs eight yards for a touchdown only to be foiled by another holding call.
• Barbour gains 22 on a throw to the right flat. Ball is on the 11.
• Lester with another nifty move as runs to the 11, but a holding call brings the ball back out to the Buford 30.
• Lester goes off the left side and gains 15. The Eagles are marching at the Buford 30.
• Tristen Payne makes a great leaping catch for an 11-yard gain. Tack on five more encroachment and Milton has a 1st and five from the Buford 40.
• Luke Nickel throws dart to Ethan Barbour on a slant pattern that goes for a big gain. The Eagles have a first down near midfield.
• Buford strikes with a run blitz and drops TJ Lester for a five-yard loss.
• Before the first snap from scrimmage, Milton is forced to call a timeout to avoid a delay of game penalty.
• We're back underway as Buford kicks it deep to CJ Wiley who scrambles out to the 20.

HALF: MILTON EAGLES 7, BUFORD WOLVES 0

• 11 minutes until a 10:47 expected second half kickoff.
• Milton out-gained Buford 109-81 in the first half as both teams relied heavily on their ground games. Both had six first downs and neither club had a turnover.
• Milton has also now returned to the field. Both teams are warming up in rainy but lightning free conditions. When we resume, Milton will receive as they won the coin toss and deferred at the start of the second half.
• The Buford players have re-entered the field and begun their warmups.
• At 10:20 it was reported that the players will be returning to the field five minutes and will have a 20-minute warmup prior to resuming the game. Looks like we will try to finish tonight.
• The weather delay has now lasted one hour and 10 minutes. Lightning continues to flash and the completion of the game tonight is in jeopardy.
• The rain is lightened slightly and its been about 10 minutes since the last weather siren. The area must be clear of lightning for at least 20 minutes before any activity can take place.
• The stands are completely empty after starting with an overflow crowd of 3,000 plus.
• The weather sirens have gone off and we are officially in a weather delay and the stands have been cleared.
• Light rain has begun to fall at Milton. Heavier weather is a possibility for the second half.

2ND Q: MILTON EAGLES 7, BUFORD WOLVES 0

• The Eagles hand the ball off to Lester for five yards and the first half clock is going to run out with Milton holding a 7-0 lead.

• Raiola's fourth down throw is incomplete. Milton takes over on downs.
• Dylan McCoy is hit after a short gain by Lawson Estes. Fourth down and five. We have another timeout with 35 seconds left in the quarter.
• Ervin scoots down to the 23. It's third and six. Buford calls timeout with 1:21 remaining.
• On first and 15, Baker gets seven yards back.
• Ervin runs for another five but a flag is down and the Wolves are marching backwards.
• Ethan Ervin breaks off a first down run to the Milton 26.
• The Wolves have a golden opportunity to try to get this even before the half. A penalty on Milton moves the ball to the Eagle 40.

• Nickel lines up in the shotgun and is stopped short of the first down. Buford gets the turnover on downs.
• Facing a fourth and one, from the Buford 45, Milton calls timeout with 3:22 to play in the first half.
• Ethan Barbour takes a direct snap, but the Buford defense stops him short on a third and one.
• Lester runs for six to open the drive.
• Milton is winning the field possession battle, but its still a tight contest.

• The punt goes out of bounds at the Milton 45. The Eagles will start there.
• On third down, the Milton defense buries Raiola inside the Buford 10. The Wolves have to kick it away with five minutes to play in the half.
• Baker runs again and the Wolves have a first down and some breathing room.
• Justin Baker gains four to setup second and one.
• Milton helps out the Wolves with an encroachment penalty. The ball is moved to the six.
• Buford is in a tough spot in the shadow of the goal post with 8:08 to play in the first half.

• Now it's fourth down and nine and the Eagles do kick it away this time. Ciaran Meenan's kick rolls dead at the Buford one where the Wolves will begin.
• Nickel throws it down the field for Wiley. He got his hands on it in the end zone but could not bring in the catch.
• Milton fakes the punt and AJ Benton converts it with a short run. Milton has it first and 10 at the Buford 45.
• After huddling for several minutes, the officials call Buford for having too many men on the field. It's a 5 yard penalty but it appears Milton will still punt.
• Nickel is pressured again and his pass falls incomplete. The Eagles will kick it away.
• Nickel avoids a heavy rush and throws it away. Milton faces 3rd and 7 from the 46.
• Wiley comes up with his third catch for a 3-yard gain.
• TJ Lester busts outside for a 23 yard run. He now has 54 in the game.
• Luke Nickel and Milton set up shop at their 20 to start the second quarter.

1ST Q: MILTON EAGLES 7, BUFORD WOLVES 0

• Billy Weivoda makes another big hit for Milton and Buford has to punt it away. The punt bounds into the end zone for a touchback as the first quarter clock expires.
• Hayden Tumminia makes a tackle behind the line of scrimmage. 1:20 left in the opening quarter.
• Raiola takes a deep shot and an underthrown ball results in a pass interference call against Milton. The Wolves now have a first down at their own 43.
• Buford faces third and two after an injury timeout
• It's a touchback and Buford gets its second crack on offense. Dayton Raioloa, one of two Buford QBs who will see action, is the brother of recently graduated All-American and Nebraska standout Dylan Raiola.

• TOUCHDOWN! Lester appeared to be halted at the line, but keeps his legs driving and breaks loose for a 21-yard TD run. The PAT is good and the Eagles lead 7-0.
• TJ Lester makes a first down run to the 21.
• Nickel takes a deep shot for Wiley but its a bit overthrown.
• CJ Wiley grabs his second catch and dances all the way down to Buford 45. First down.
• Luke Nickel completes his first two passes and the Eagles have a first down at the 35.
• With 6:11 remaining in the opening quarter, Milton will take its first snap from its own 27.

• Buford gets a few first downs but the drive stalls and JD Gregory misses a 45 yard field goal attempt.
• Justin Baker is stopped for two short runs, but Dayton Raiola completes first pass for a first down.
• We're underway. Buford receives the opening kick and returns it to its own 34.

PREGAME: BUFORD WOLVES AT MILTON EAGLES

• Buford is dressed in white uniforms with green numbers and trim as well as gold helmets.
• The state champion Milton Eagles are dressed in all black with white helmets and their traditional red wings on the side.
• We're just about 30 minutes away from kickoff for one of the biggest game's of the year in the Georgia high school football regular season - Milton vs. Buford. Let's go!
• Kickoff is scheduled for 7:30 p.m.