All Buzz
By: Mike Anthony
TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services
The 1973 season holds a special place in the hearts of Southeast Bulloch fans as it was the second of consecutive state championships for the Yellow Jackets.
But in modern times, the year has become a spectre. While the Jackets walked of the field as the best in Georgia in 1973, that title game also marks the last time SEB won a state playoff contest.
Unfortunately, for Southeast Bulloch, that winless streak has now reached a full 45 years. The Yellow Jackets mounted an impressive 9-1 mark in the regular season and earned a No. 2 seed and a home game to begin the Class AAA playoffs, but Liberty County wrecked the party, managing a slim lead after one half of play and shutting out the Jackets in the second half en route to a 38-14 triumph.
The first half was a seesaw battle as the Jackets threw the first punch.
With leading running back Jamari Daniel hampered by an ankle injury, SEB was still able to drive down the field and C.J. Coney punched in a 3-yard run to give the Jackets an early lead.
Liberty answered with a 3-yard touchdown run of their own as Kris Coleman scored the first of his four touchdowns on his way to 15 carries for 143 yards on the evening.
In what became a running gag, Liberty missed the ensuing extra point and SEB still led. But the Panthers answered with another touchdown on a 26-yard Coleman run and another missed conversion gave Liberty County a 12-7 advantage.
The teams traded scores over the final minutes of the half to send the Panthers into the locker room with an 18-14 lead.
On the first drive of the second half, SEB appeared to stop Liberty, only to have Coleman strike again. The Panthers’ star running back took a short snap on a fake punt and danced through a pair of tackles on his way to a 44-yard touchdown to extend the Liberty lead.
The Jackets couldn’t answer on their next offensive possession and, following a punt, Liberty began to sink the knife into the Jackets.
Liberty County quarterback Dionte Bowens led his offense on a 12-play, 79-yard drive and Bowens capped off the long trek with a 5-yard touchdown plunge.
A last-gasp from the Jackets’ offense took them all the way to the Liberty County 1, but that’s where the Panther defense made its stand. To add insult to injury, the Panthers drove the length of the field to add on their final score of the night and put the game out of reach.
With the win, Liberty County moves on to the second round of the state playoffs for a fourth consecutive season. The Panthers will travel to Peach County next week.
Meanwhile, another year can be added onto the Jackets’ postseason victory drought.
Chief Of The Year?
By: TJ Hartnett
TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services
The offseason has already seen the 2018 Atlanta Braves start to rack up big time hardware, with several Gold Gloves and Silver Sluggers being handed out to the National League East Division Champions.
All-Star Nick Markakis, put a nice cap on his Cinderella season by winning both a Gold Glove and Silver Slugger.
This upcoming week could (and should) see even more trophies dished out to members of the Braves; with the Rookie of the Year award and the Manager of the Year award being handed out on Monday and Tuesday, respectively.
Ronald Acuna Jr. has stiff competition in the form of Washington Nationals’ stud outfielder Juan Soto, but he has a very good shot of coming home with the award. His case has already been made here in the pages of the Georgia Sports Edition.
Instead, it’s time to advocate for an award for the Braves’ skipper, Brian Snitker.
To me, this seems like a no-brainer. Snit lead the Braves to a nearly double-digit division win, besting the heavily favored Nats, as well as a stacked New York Mets pitching rotation and a young and hungry Philadelphia Phillies team that was in contention until the very end of the season.
The Braves were not picked to be in the playoff hunt at all, let alone topping the other teams in the NL East. In fact, the Braves probably should have finished in third place.
Instead, Atlanta kicked off the 2018 season with a comeback, walk-off victory against the rival Phillies and took control of the East before the month was out.
Teams with those kinds of low expectations and surprising performances will often get a good amount of love for their manager for leading them to play above their level. It stands to reason that Snitker should receive votes for just that very reason.
Comparing his team’s success with that of the other two MOTY finalists’ successes, the same argument holds up.
Bud Black’s Colorado Rockies may have also surprised some folks in the National League West, but they were not expected to win a division with the Los Angeles Dodgers in the mix. While they made it exciting by forcing a game 163, they settled for a Wild Card slot.
Craig Counsell’s Milwaukee Brewers did manage to win their division in yet another thrilling game 163, expectations for the Brew Crew were high. The acquisitions of Lorenzo Cain and Christian Yelich signaled to the world that Milwaukee was going for it; playoffs or bust.
So, while they were somewhat of an underdog squad to the Chicago Cubs, the Brewers had set their sights on making a postseason run.
Despite what anyone from the Braves’ front office might have you believe, the success Atlanta enjoyed was not expected.
Snit’s deservedness goes behind his team’s record (which, admittedly, is barely in his hands anyway). The old cliché about “player’s managers” is that players are always talking about how they love playing for their guy. It’s believable with Snit. Freddie Freeman was more than vocal about keeping Snitker on as manager after he took over for Fredi Gonzalez.
More recently, watch Snitker’s postgame interview after Miami Marlins’ pitcher Jose Urena blatantly went after Acuna’s hand with a fastball.
The words and fervor were that of a man that any baseball player would go into battle for. Watch Snitker speak of his pride for his guys after they clinched the division in September. Of course, they want to play for him.
Following the Braves season, the MOTY choice is clear and on Tuesday we’ll find out if the BBWAA has been paying attention.
Playoff Terrors
By: Jason Bishop
TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services
The GHSA playoffs kicked off on Friday night.
The Glynn Academy Red Terrors were matched up with the #4 seed from the Augusta Region, the Evan Knights.
Glynn earned home field for at least the first two rounds of the playoffs and hosted Evans at Glynn County Stadium.
Glynn finished up the regular season with a 7-3 mark, region champs and a #1 seed in the playoffs.
Evans came in with a 3-7 record and earned the #4 seed from the Augusta Region.
Both teams got off to slow starts. However, Evans would put a TD on the board midway through the 1st quarter for a 7-0 lead. The touchdown came on 3 plays that covered 95 yards.
They would not score again. The Evans 7-0 lead would through the remainder of the 1st quarter.
The Red Terrors would respond with a touchdown early in the second quarter going 80 yards to tie the game at 7-7. The score coming on a Nolan Grant 6-yard TD run.
The Terrors would take the lead on a 51-yard TD run by Quany Bostick midway through the 2nd quarter, 14-7. Glynn would add another TD from TJ Lewis, scoring on a 1-yard TD run. That would be good for a 21-7 Red Terror lead in the 2nd quarter. Glynn scored on 11 plays for 78 yards. That score would hold to halftime.
The Terrors defense would stop Evan offense on their first drive of the second half to get the ball back. Glynn would march the ball downfield to put the game away, scoring another touchdown for a 28-7 lead.
With about 5 minutes left in the game the Red Terrors would pour it on, running the ball down the throat of Evans for another touchdown for a 35-7 lead. With a minute and change Caden Hutchinson would push the ball into the endzone for another TD. Glynn would now lead 42-7 and that would be the final. The Red Terrors scored the final 42 points of the game.
With the win the Terrors improve their record to 8-3 for 2018.
The Red Terrors will host the Valdosta Wildcats in the second round of the playoffs at Glynn County Stadium. The Wildcats, a first round winner over Lovejoy, 63-21.
Glynn played Valdosta in the preseason scrimmage in which the Wildcats beat the Terrors handily.
The Red Terrors have advanced to at least the Elite 8 in every year Coach Rocky Hidalgo has been at the helm.
The Pirates Next Voyage
By: Kipp Branch
TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services
The 2018 season ended for the Brunswick High Pirates before Halloween. No playoffs, and a final won loss record of 3-7.
The key factors for the disappointing season were youth and inexperience, and a defense that could stop opposing teams this fall.
Even the most optimistic Pirates like myself saw back before the season started that the season may be a struggle.
The Pirates opened with Coffee, Bartram Trail (Florida), and Camden in the first month of the season and got off to an expected 1-3 start after beating MCA 49-7 in Darien.
Brunswick then beat New Hampstead and Monroe in back to back weeks to even the slate at 3-3 going into region play. The Pirates hosted Richmond Hill in the region opener and got drilled 41-7. They never recovered from that loss and went on to drop region games to Effingham, Glynn, and Bradwell to finish out the season.
Pirate Season Report Card.
Offense: C-. The Pirates averaged 18.8 points a game in 2018 which was far below the record setting offense of the previous year.
This offense failed to score over 14 points in any region game and averaged right at 12 points a game against region rivals.
Jaylen Trimmings had a fine season running the football, but inconsistency at the QB position doomed the offense.
BHS turned the ball over too many times at key moments in contests to get any momentum in key region games down the stretch. Brunswick High loses only 4 starters on offense in 2019 so look for this unit to get back on track next season.
A lot of young skilled talent returns in 2019 most of which will be 10th and 11th graders next fall. BHS played a lot of youth at key positions in 2018.
Defense: D-. The Pirate defense gave up 36 points on average in region play and other than the city title game against Glynn, gave up over 40 points against to the rest of the region.
That won’t get it done on Altama Avenue. Look for some changes on that side of the ball for 2019. The good news is BHS returns 8-9 starters in 2019. Look for the unit to be much improved. BHS must find some size on the defensive line, but will be fine at LB and DB in 2019.
Special Teams: C. Special teams were about average in 2018. The unit did some good things and some not so good things. Consistent kicks into the end zone, which was a luxury every other team in the region had except BHS, are needed.
Coaching: C. With a 3-7 record you can’t give high marks, but game plans and schemes were solid, but execution was not all season.
BHS has a good coaching staff, but things did not go the programs way in 2018. Sean Pender and the BHS offense will be the most productive in Region 2 next fall, you heard it here first.
BHS will have a new attacking style scheme on defense and this season was just a blip on the radar screen.
Overall: D. Brunswick High went 3-7 and the program has not won more than 7 games in a season since 2010 which is also the last time BHS won a playoff game.
Final Thoughts: Sean Pender is building a football program and this was the season to pile it on BHS because roles will start reversing in 2019.
BHS started a freshman at RB, OL, and DB at various times in 2018. The Pirates also started a sophomore QB for most of the season.
The 2019 Pirates will bring back 15-17 kids that started a varsity football game in 2018.
And don’t think for one minute that this group will forget what the Effingham’s of the world did by throwing TD passes with under a minute left in the game up 38-14.
Effingham, Richmond Hill, and Bradwell coaches all know the young talent on the BHS roster, and they better not shed one tear when payback comes their way next fall.
Eagles High And Lows
By: Mike Anthony
TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services
As a lifelong baseball fan, I grew up with the old adage that “a winning streak is only as good as tomorrow’s starting pitcher.”
That sentiment isn’t exclusive to baseball as prolonged success in any sport is only attainable if a team is able to check all of the boxes and do all of the little things correctly from one game to the next.
Simply put, the huge wave of emotion and momentum that swept over the Georgia Southern football team after beating a nationally ranked Appalachian State squad didn’t carry over to the Eagles’ next game.
For every inspired play made against App, the Eagles had a flat-footed look as UL Monroe stormed its way to a victory. For every fortunate bounce Georgia Southern found against its arch rival, it seemed that an equal and opposite disaster was lying in wait against the Warhawks.
This isn’t a calling out or a tsk-tsking of the Eagles or their effort. It takes a nearly perfect team to make it through an entire season without suffering a game where things just don’t work out and – for all their success this season – the Eagles are still far from being perfect.
It is impressive that a team with so many new coaches and so much youth in key roles took so long to get around to such a disastrous game but the timing of everything certainly makes things sting a bit more for the team and fans alike.
For a team that has such high hopes for both the remainder of the season and for the immediate future, Saturday’s loss needs to serve as a lesson that is quickly learned and corrected.
Early in the season, the Eagles found success by doing all of the little things right, even if the big plays weren’t always there. Sheer athleticism powered the winning effort against South Carolina State and an impressive intensity allowed the Eagles to hang with Clemson for four quarters even while dealing with a hostile environment, a truckload of injuries and an impending hurricane.
They rose to the occasion in crunch time against Arkansas State and Texas State and they buried Appalachian State under a sea of turnovers and momentum.
But out in Monroe, all of the little things went lacking just as all of the big things – like blown coverages and an inability to gain first downs – also went wrong.
Georgia Southern proved it could overcome a slow start on the road in a convincing win over New Mexico State last month, but the Eagles were able to do that by going back to basics and playing a disciplined final three quarters.
Against the Warhawks, the penalties and negative first down plays continued throughout the game. And when two huge momentum plays – a pick-six and a blocked punt recovered for a touchdown – went their way, they were unable to capitalize and immediately gave back the points to fall further behind.
So now the Eagles are faced with a task that is unique for this season.
For the first time this week, the Eagles will enter a game coming off of a disappointing performance (it’s hard to count a loss to Clemson as too disappointing).
The last two months have been a steady stream of the Eagles and their fans building up performance and expectations with each passing week.
Now is the time for Georgia Southern to prove that it’s the effort and process of preparing for a big game that matters more than riding a winning streak.
The Georgia Golf Trail
By: Rich Styles
TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services
Many states have golf trails. Which are several courses that join together to promote staying and playing golf all over their states.
And yes, Georgia has a golf trail. It has not been widely publicized. They do have a monthly newsletter which can be sent to you free by emailing them your contact info at www.georgiagolfandtravel.com.
To be part of the trail, courses have to be able to provide accommodations as well as golf.
To tee it up all over Georgia, you can travel from the mountains to the coast. There are 25 top resorts that provide first class golf and accommodations.
Doug Hollandsworth is the Director and an avid golfer. There are golf packages available by calling…855.388.4653.
In the western part of the state, there is Little Ocmulgee, a course surrounded by pines, willows and magnolias. There is also Meadow Links, a links course; Lake Blackshear, Georgia Veterans Memorial Golf Course, designed by Denis Griffiths and listed by Golf Digest as a four (4) star course; Callaway Gardens is next, a course mixed into nature.
In the northern part of the state, Old Tobacco Farm; Brasstown Valley Resort and Spa is a great mountain getaway with something for everyone; Innsbruck Golf Club nestled in the Blue Ridge Mountains in the Alpine Valley of Helen; The Orchard, designed by Don Maples.
Not far from Atlanta, there is Stone Mountain, which offers two championship courses. Chateau Elan has 3 championship layouts nestled thru lush vineyards; Reynolds Lake Oconee has 6 courses with 117 holes designed by some of the most respected architects in the game;
The Creek at Hard Labor, designed in a natural setting; Highland Walk offers 18 holes built on steep rolling hills and bordered by 9 miles of Lake Oconee; Harbor Club is surrounded by 1600 acres of wooded hills and Lake Oconee.
Then towards and on the coast, there are several great courses to play that include Web.com and PGA Tour events each year.
The Landings Club, which hosts the Savannah Golf Championship on the Intercoastal Waterway; The Club at Savannah Harbor offers a Troon managed property with great views of the marshes; Sea Island Resort offers three, two of which host PGA Tour events in November plus spa and an incredible golf performance center; The King and Prince Beach and Golf Resort offers 18 holes, 4 of which are on the salt marsh; Jekyll Island offers 63 holes on four (4) courses; Sapelo Hammock Golf Club is tucked away along the Sapelo River.
Not far from the coast are a few more courses…Brazell’s Creek, an 18-hole layout, par 71; The Lakes has three large lakes near the Okefenokee Swamp; Stone Creek winding through the South Georgia wetlands with an authentic beaver pond and bass lake.
So, there is a quick trip through the Georgia Golf Trail. Fun to travel and play in our state and enjoy all the different climates. Tee it up in Georgia with the vast variety of courses and designers that you will want to play again and again.
Still Buzzing
By: Kenneth Harrison Jr.
TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services
I have to revisit something I said about Georgia Tech and Paul Johnson about one month ago.
After the opening week the Yellow Jackets lost three consecutive games. Then they bounced back and won two in a row, topping 60 points each game in the process. The wins were only against Bowling Green and Louisville but they were still impressive.
That was followed up by a homecoming loss to Duke. Yes, Duke football. The Blue Devils have won four of the last five meetings. At that point, it looked like it was time to get rid of Paul Johnson.
The Ramblin Wreck traveled to Blacksburg for a Thursday night game. This was a real turning point in the season. Starting quarterback TaQuan Marshall was injured so Tobias Oliver made his first career start. Oliver ran for 215 yards and three touchdowns to lead them to a 49-28 win. He only attempted one pass and did not complete it.
Oliver seems like the more explosive player so I thought he would remain the starter. Marshall returned last week and played against North Carolina.
“I feel like it’s pretty evident that I can get in and play,” Oliver said. “But at the same time, we’re at the point in the season where I don’t want to get too much that I should be the starter. As of right now, I just want to win.”
Oliver was inserted in the game on the fourth drive, still in the first quarter. He had another great game on the ground with 120 yards and two touchdowns. He also completed both of his pass attempts for 104 yards and a touchdown.
He threw an 86-yard touchdown pass to Qua Searcy, the team’s longest since 2009.
Georgia Tech, which entered the game averaging a nation-leading 366.5 rushing yards per game, ran for 461 yards against a North Carolina defensive line depleted by injuries and suspensions. It was the Yellow Jackets’ fifth 400-yard rushing performance of the season, a school record.
They got off to a 28-10 lead before holding on to win 38-28.
“It got a little crazy there. I thought maybe when we came out and opened the third quarter and put together a nice, long drive for a touchdown and then we got ’em pinned back inside the 20 on the kickoff that maybe we’d get away from them a little bit. But to their credit, they kept playing and they fought back and we did most everything we could to try to help them,” Johnson said.
Now they have five wins and only need one more win to become bowl eligible. They also still have a shot to win the ACC Coastal division. The next two games are home against Miami and Virginia. I know they can win at least one of those games, more than likely against the Cavaliers.
The Miami game is going to be a rare night game at Bobby Dodd Stadium. CPJ has a losing record against Miami and Mark Richt. The Hurricanes have lost their last three games so they are not playing well. This is a very winnable game for Tech.
It looks like Paul Johnson will do just enough to save his job after getting off to a slow start.
Melting Matty Ice
By: JJ Lanier
TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services
NFL history is peppered with players, particularly from the quarterback position, whose legacies have been hindered because the surrounding talent never quite matched up to their own. Matt Ryan is in danger of adding his name to the list.
You can debate where Ryan ranks within the current crop of quarterbacks, but it’s hard to argue against his being in the upper echelon.
Since arriving in the league, he’s had decent coaching and an array of offensive weapons that have helped him maximize his talents. The issue when it comes to the team’s achievements, and ultimately what Ryan will be judged on after he retires, falls on the defensive side of the ball.
I know this “analysis” isn’t anything new; it’s about as expected as my son going to a Chinese buffet and eating nothing but chicken nuggets and french fries.
The reason I mention it now is Ryan is quietly putting together one of his best seasons, something he seems to be doing quite regularly lately, yet the Falcons are in danger of missing the playoffs because their defense thinks they play in the Big 12.
Currently Atlanta ranks 30th in every major defensive category, except for rushing, where they’re 20th.
One of the reason Dan Quinn was brought in four years ago was to bring some stability to the defensive side of the ball. I like Quinn, and I do think he was good hire, but his lack of influence on the defensive side has been a little disappointing.
Since his arrival the Falcons have yo-yoed back and forth from 14th down to 27th, up 8th, and then back down again to their current ranking, 30th.
Conversely, the offense has been ranked, 21st, 1st, 15th, and 11th over the same span. Actually, looks like part of the problem is they can’t get both sides to function at an acceptable rate at the same time.
But to get back to Ryan, if you’re looking for a recent comparison just go ahead stay in the NFC South and Drew Brees.
Whenever Brees retires, he will do so as the most prolific passer in NFL history, and a fantasy football hero. But, because the Saints defense played like the computer setting at the beginning level on Madden, he’ll have had to put up those numbers in order to get the credit he deserves. And he has Super Bowl ring, unlike Ryan.
There’s still plenty of time left on the season for Atlanta to make a run to the playoffs- stranger things have happened- but it’s going to take a near perfect second half of the year to make it come to fruition.
However, at this point it turning out to be a wasted season in which the franchise quarterback played possibly the best ball of his career.
I have no idea when Matt Ryan is going to retire, or how long he’ll be able to play at the level he’s currently at. But if fans have to go through another season where the blame falls on the offensive coordinator or the defense is having a down year, there won’t be many years left in the Matt Ryan era for them to enjoy.
I feel like with some of the personnel moves management understands their window is now and is trying to do what they can. If they can’t bring it all together soon, their franchise quarterback will just be another great quarterback not significant enough to remember.
A Brave Offseason
By: TJ Hartnett
TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services
The Atlanta Braves officially kicked off their offseason on Thursday with a high-profile trade, acquiring 31-year-old career minor leaguer Rafael Lopez from the Padres in exchange for cash.
Okay, that’s not exactly a big deal. Despite catcher Kurt Suzuki hitting free agency, this was a trade made for organizational depth. Lopez spent less than 40 games on the Padres’ Major League roster in 2018, and it was his longest cup of coffee yet. He also didn’t crack the Mendoza line.
Still, the move signals the opening bell for Atlanta, and now that the flood gates have been opened we can speculate wildly about what big moves Alex Anthopolous may have in store for Braves Country between now and Spring Training.
A primary focus will certainly be filling in the recently-vacated right field and catching positions.
Suzuki is an option for a one-year deal, but it may also be time for the Braves to find a more permanent backstop after two years of backup catchers splitting time behind the plate.
Tyler Flowers will still be around to handle back up duty (after both he and Zuk had stellar years in 2017, the Braves offered just one of them a two-year contract, and unfortunately bet on the wrong horse), but Atlanta needs to find someone to solidify the spot.
It’s no surprise to hear that they will be one of my teams fighting to trade with Miami for JT Realmuto. Realmuto has established himself as one of, if not, the best catchers in the game, and he’s wasted on a Marlins team that is not going to be good any time soon.
The prospect price will be high, but don’t be surprised to see Antholpolous offer up some prized arms for this guy.
Yasmani Grandal is an option as well. While he looked appealing prior to the playoffs due to his impending free agency, his dismal performance behind the dish is going to give a lot of teams pause.
Replacing Nick Markakis will be high on the list as well. Coming off of his first All-Star appearance at the age of 34, the stoic right fielder will likely be looking for a multi-year deal.
The Braves are unlikely to make such an offer, though his presence was invaluable over the past four years, and in 2018 in particular. Replacing Markakis will be difficult, and it also lacks easy solutions.
It also seems probable that Antholpolous will be looking for a front-line starter to join the Braves’ rotation in 2019.
Clayton Kershaw is, unsurprisingly, already off the table, leaving Dallas Keuchel and Patrick Corbin as the biggest-name starters left on the market.
Keuchel showed signs of regression in 2018, though he can still fire away, while Corbin had his best year in the bigs, seeming to fully recover from his Tommy John surgery from two years ago.
Corbin is the more appealing option of the two, being younger and coming off a breakout year, which means he will be highly sought after. The Braves could make a splash by taking him off of the market early and making a statement to the rest of the NL.
The last area the Braves will be looking to improve is the much-maligned bullpen.
Atlanta will need to improve their relief corps in a big way before next season, and while relievers are a dime a dozen in baseball, Atlanta needs to find reliable arms.
They might even need to overpay a closer to shore up the last three outs of the game.
We don’t know what will happen yet, but whatever it is, it has already begun.
Statesboro Buries Phoenix
By: Mike Anthony
TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services
A week ago, there were plenty of nerves at Womack Field as the Statesboro Blue Devils gutted out a win over South Effingham to punch their first ticket to the state playoffs since 2013.
On Friday night, the Devils were able to keep the momentum rolling. Statesboro found itself trailing New Hampstead by a count of 21-7 midway through the second quarter, but rallied to score the final four touchdowns of the contest to claim a 35-21 victory.
Statesboro took an early advantage when leading rusher Jaylen Roberson continued his suburb season with a 21-yard touchdown run.
As the second quarter began, the Phoenix answered with a bang. Deyandre Ruffin found open space for a 65-yard scoring run and Justin Mckithen topped that with a 90-yard touchdown run to put New Hampstead on top.
Things appeared to be heading for disaster when the Phoenix blocked and recovered an SHS punt for a touchdown and a 21-7 lead with just a minute remaining in the half, but the Devils got off the mat.
Statesboro responded with a stellar kick return by Will Yawn, another big run by Roberson and a pitch-and-catch from Drake Horton to Ryan Lindsey to reach the red zone.
Horton completed the textbook two-minute drill by finding Corey Gibson for a 10-yard touchdown strike to cut the Devils’ deficit to 21-14 at halftime.
From there on out, it was all Blue Devils.
Roberson found the end zone again midway through the third quarter and the ensuing extra point tied things up. It was Roberson doing the damage again early in the fourth quarter with a 4-yard run on the first play of the final period putting him in the end zone for the third time on the night.
The big plays that had spurred the Phoenix to their early lead were nowhere to be found in the second half as the SHS defense clamped down. And with 1:54 to play, Devardrion Lipsey plunged in from four yards out to wrap things up.
With the win, the Blue Devils improved to 4-6 on the season. More importantly, the Devils and Phoenix entered Friday’s game with identical 1-2 marks in Region 2-AAAAA competition.
The regular season finale turned into a de facto region playoff for seeding. The big win for Statesboro bumped them into the region’s No. 3 seed while New Hampstead was left with the No. 4 seed and will have to tangle with Region 3-AAAAA champion Starr’s Mill in next week’s first round action.
Statesboro will travel to face Griffin next Friday. Ironically, it was a loss at Griffin in the second round of the 2013 playoffs that marks the last time the Blue Devils made an appearance in a state playoff game.
The Blue Devils’ fourth win of the season equaled the total wins for the program over the last three seasons combined and is the most in a single year since a 9-3 mark in the 2013 playoff season.
The team will be a prohibitive underdog at Griffin next week, but now in the second year of the Jeff Kaiser coaching era and with a handful of junior playmakers who have keyed the improvement, Statesboro could be well on its way to reestablishing itself as a perennial playoff participant.
