Piedmont, AL – Bulldogs win two games to defeat Hokes Bluff overtime and their win coupled with an Ohatchee loss propels Piedmont into the playoffs with a region-leading No. 3 seed.
Scoreboard for Friday
Alexandria 50, Talladega 15, FINAL
Anniston 38 Cleburne County 36, FINAL
Central Clay 30, Russell County 14, FINAL
Cherokee County 56, Ashville 7, FINAL
Geraldine 54, Glencoe 7, FINAL
Handley 35. Munford 14. FINAL
Piedmont 22, Hokes Bluff 21, FINAL OT
Jacksonville The score is 62, White Plains 0, FINAL
Tuscaloosa Christian, 56 Jax Christian 48, FINAL
Leeds 30, Lincoln 14, FINAL
Plainview 34. Ohatchee 18 FINAL
Oxford 35 Center Point 14, FINAL
Pleasant Valley 50, Gaston 20, FINAL
Ranburne 64, Central-Coosa 39, FINAL
Randolph County 32, Dadeville 22, FINAL
Wellborn 62, Saks 34, FINAL
Moody 34 Southside 21 FINAL
Spring Garden 41, Ragland 27, FINAL
Wadley 47, Talladega County Central 0, FINAL
Beulah 38, Weaver 31, FINAL
Isabella 55 Woodland 14 FINAL
Open: Donoho.
by East Alabama Sports Today
Piedmont — There was a lot of mishaps for an unproven Piedmont team stricken by injuries and a gruelling schedule however, everything was fine on Friday.
Luke Rhinehart’s effort to reach the goal line to make an overtime two-pointer was the difference and the Bulldogs defeated Hokes Bluff by 22-21 at the Field of Champions.
The Bulldogs (4-5) who were winners in their last four games, make it into the playoffs with their first-year director of football Jonathan Miller. They’ll be seeded as the third. 3 player in the Class 3A region 6. to avoid the three-way tiebreaker.
Piedmont (4-3 Region) achieved that feat by taking Hokes Bluff (5-4 Hokes Bluff (5-4, Hokes Bluff (5-4,) off the 3rd position. Ohatchee who had won the head-to-head tiebreaker as a result of its victory over Piedmont on September. 22nd, fell in the 5-5-3-4 range following defeat at Plainview the following day.
Piedmont will kick off the playoffs on Nov. 10, at J.B. Pennington.
A team that lost nine offensive players which included record-setting quarterback Jack Hayes, and six on defense, who all graduated and lost a key offensive player Rollie Pinto to a knee injury that ended the season and also lost Trevor Pike for a time due to injury.
“Everything was perfectly to us” told Miller Miller, who is the current Saks director of football who assumed the role after the five-time state champion head coach Steve Smith left Piedmont for Westbrook Christian. “After everything we’ve gone through with the ups and lows, the injuries and growing pains that we’ve endured this evening was the best way it could be for us.
“We’ve persevered throughout the year despite the circumstances, and finally were able to get things going the way we wanted them to.”
Cole Wilson completed 14 of 29 passes for 127 yards, including a touchdown and the game-winning two-point conversion and Ishmael Bethel took seven passes for scores and 79 yards.
Hayes Gunn rushed for 97 yards.
Wilson’s touchdown pass of 10 yards to Bethel made the score 14-14 with just 4:31 remaining in the regulation.
Hokes Bluff scored the first goal in overtime, thanks to Anderson Morgan’s 7-yard touchdown pass to Logan Wierman.
Gunn responded by running 10 yards for a touchdown before Miller took the decision to attempt an extra two points. Rhinehart battled off a defender to carry his ball across the goal line.
“We were at a moment where we nearly had two goals at the time we got a goal in regulation.” Miller said. “I believed we had the chance to return the ball and we didn’t take it in that moment.
“It (overtime) occurred at a point in the game that we were exhausted and weren’t sure whether we would be able to be able to get another timeout, which is why I decided to put it in our children’s hands at this point.”
