Bryan County will say goodbye to 17 seniors Friday night when it takes on Metter in its final game of the season. Game time at Redskins Field is 7:30 p.m. and the only thing at stake for the Redskins is pride.
Coach Cherard Freeman’s team was one of the surprise teams in the state last year when it won its first ever region championship and advanced to the Final Four where it lost to eventual Class A-DI state champion Prince Avenue Christian.
However, there will be no repeat trip to the playoffs this season. Due to reclassification the Redskins found themselves in a nine-team region this year with the top four finishers advancing to the Class A-DII playoffs. Bryan County is going to finish fifth behind Metter, Jenkins County, McIntosh County Academy and Emanuel County Institute.
Bryan County is coming off an open date which gave the Redskins players and coaches what Freeman said was a much needed mental and physical break.
While Bryan County cannot make the playoffs, a win would give it a break-even season and three non-losing seasons for only the second time in school history. It would also give the Redskins rare back-to-back wins over the Tigers who they defeated, 21-20, last year. That victory clinched the school’s first region championship.
The last time Bryan County beat Metter in consecutive seasons was in 2012-2013; Metter holds a 29-7 advantage in the series.
The Redskins will be a heavy underdog against veteran coach Lee Shaw’s team but Freeman is undaunted. He expects his team to play better than it did against Jenkins County in its last game, a 34-0 loss.
“Jenkins County is a good football team, but we couldn’t recover from our mistakes,” Freeman said. “We didn’t have anyone step up and that’s been an issue all year.”
“Metter is going to be a challenge,” Freeman said. “It’s going to be an exciting night though because it’s Senior Night. Our goal is to send these guys out with a win.
The seniors playing their final game are: Mike Smith, Trevor Lanier, Haley Thomas, Kegan Westcott, Jayden Lee, Hayden Williams, Jadon Odum, Elijah Mincey, Gaige Javis, Jacob Joyner, Cooper Ennis, Rylan Hernandez, Chris Winfree, Matthew Huff, Allen Williams, Esavian Rivera and Kenyen Fabin.
Junior Anddreas McKinny leads the Redskins in rushing with 1,214 yards and seven touchdowns. He has eight 100 yard plus games. Ger’bravion Collins has 523 yards and four touchdowns while quarterback Trevor Lanier has completed 27 of 58 passes for 297 yards and three touchdowns.
Mike Smith has seven catches for 111 yards and two touchdowns and has also intercepted four passes. Junior Zane Renteria leads in tackles with 57 and sophomore Corey Collier has 42 stops.
Senior Elijah Mincey, Renteria and Collier each had a defensive touchdown. Mincey had a 65-yard pick six against MCA while Collier had one against Savannah. Renteria also scored against Savannah on a fumble return.