Joe Young (21) and the Griffins will have their work cut out for them in round 1 as they face Mid-Carolina for the second time in 2 weeks. (Photo/Joe Seibles)
Class 2A/Division 1 Playoffs
WINNSBORO – For Fairfield Central fans who feel like last week’s 7-0 win over the Mid-Carolina Rebels in the mud and the cold and the rain was difficult to endure, there’s good news and bad news.
The good news: The Griffins got the win, sealing up the top seed in the Upper State bracket in the Class 2A/Division I playoffs. The bad news: In round one Friday night, the Griffins host none other than – you guessed it – the Mid-Carolina Rebels.
The advantage, it would seem, is clearly on the Mid-Carolina sideline. The Rebels came into E.K. McLendon Stadium and held the prolific Fairfield offense to 172 yards rushing, 111 yards passing and just 7 total points. The Rebels’ defensive effort also included a goal-line stand, an interception and a fumble recovery.
“They’ve got to be pumped and excited,” Griffins head coach Demetrius Davis said. “Maybe they didn’t believe they could play with us last Friday. Now they think they’ve got a chance.”
But the Rebels faced their own challenges Friday with the Griffin defense. Corey Stone, Mid-Carolina’s play-caller, had thrown for more than 1,000 yards coming into action last week. The Griffin defense held him to 39. The Rebel rushing game, meanwhile, was held to just 94 yards. And the most important statistic of all was on the scoreboard. While the Griffins managed to break through with Nick Rikard’s 5-yard run midway through the fourth quarter, the Rebels were held to nothing. Mid-Carolina got as close as the Fairfield Central 7 before running into the wall.
“This time of year, it’s all about what your defense does,” Davis said. “If we don’t give up a score, we don’t lose a game. You’re going to have nights when your offense doesn’t click.”
For Friday night’s rematch, Davis said his staff has to refocus the Griffins and “raise their sense of urgency.”
“We didn’t execute good,” Davis said. “We know we can’t play like that again. Hopefully, we can come out and play a little better this Friday than we did last Friday.”
Kickoff is at 7:30 p.m.
