By: Mike Anthony

TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services

For the first time in five years, the Statesboro Blue Devils will have a spot waiting for them in the GHSA state football playoffs.

Facing a South Effingham squad that eliminated them from postseason contention on the final night of the 2017 regular season, Statesboro ground out an early touchdown and extended its lead with another late score to hang on for a 12-7 victory.

Only five teams compete in Region 2-AAAAA, with four being awarded spots in the state playoffs. That has been the case for the last three seasons, but the Blue Devils ended both 2016 and 2017 in last place and were forced to watch from the sidelines in the postseason.

Heading into Friday night’s game at Womack Field, the stakes were clear. South Effingham was playing its final game of the regular season and had lost its first three region games while Statesboro was 0-2 in region play with another game awaiting next week. A Statesboro win would guarantee a finish ahead of the Mustangs and a playoff berth.

The Blue Devils answered the call as Jaylin Roberson rushed for 218 yards and a pair of touchdowns while the SHS defense held tight throughout the night.

Roberson raced to the left side and turned the corner, stepping through a pair of tackles while tightrope walking the sideline on his way to a 46-yard touchdown to give the Devils an early 6-0 lead following a failed PAT.

Statesboro’s defense stifled South Effingham all night, allowing just 152 total yards. But the biggest defensive stop of the night may have come from the SHS offense.

The Devils drove inside the SEHS red zone late in the second quarter and threatened to extend the lead, only to see Davardrion Lipsey cough up the ball.

The fumble was scooped up by a Mustang defender and SHS linemen weren’t able to keep pace, but Roberson covered both the length and the width of the entire field to make a tackle at the SHS 3 yard line.

A pair of penalties backed the Mustangs farther from the end zone and Michael Dixon stepped in front of a Zach Taylor pass for an interception that maintained the SHS lead into halftime.

While the Devil defense continued to shut down the Mustangs in the second half, the lead remained at a precarious six points well into the final quarter.

Roberson once again rose to the occasion to seal the victory, ripping off a 63-yard run with under five minutes to play and finding the end zone once again three plays later.

South Effingham reached the end zone on its next possession. However, the score came with less than a minute remaining and the ensuing onside kick attempt bounced out of bounds, allowing the Devils to run out the final seconds.

The win guarantees the Devils of at least a fourth place finish in region play, but they could move to third with a win at New Hampstead in next week’s regular season finale.

Depending on their finish, the Devils will head to the South metro-Atlanta area to take on either Riverdale or Starr’s Mill in the first round of the Class AAAAA state playoffs in two weeks.