Statesboro High Blue Devils dominated Tucker Tiger on Friday night in Tucker, GA with a 22 point win 49 to 27.
The Statesboro Blue Devils will now advance on to the second round of the Class 5A play taking on Harris County Tigers in Hamilton, GA near Columbus, GA.
Harris County Tigers defeated Ola Mustangs 42 to 20.
The five time state champion Statesboro Blue Devils haven't advanced in the playoffs since 2013.
“The power of belief is an incredible thing.” head coach Matt Dobson said.
That sentiment rang true for the Statesboro Blue Devils as they defeated the Tucker Tigers in a big 49-27 win. No one was going to give the Devils a chance to win the game tonight, but as long as everyone in the locker room believed, they would be fine.
This message they sent wasn’t only meant for them, this was a public service announcement for any opponents the Devils faced.
“It was huge to dominate the game and it started on both lines of scrimmage,” Matt Dobson said. “Our offensive line and defensive line set the tone for the game and we were able to physically impose our will on our opponent.”
The Devils allowed the Tigers to feel safe within the first half of the game by permitting them to score every other time they had the ball. It was a dog fight going back and forth tit for tat.
Huge credit to the defensive players and coaches for making the right adjustments needed in the second half. This helped the Statesboro players to calm down and trust the plan they made to cage the tigers.
Bryan Steele, The Eagle 94.9 radio personality, said on the live broadcast of tonight’s game that he has been covering the Blue Devils since 2018 and has never seen the team get past the first round of the state playoffs.
“The atmosphere post game was great,” Dobson said. “We are so thankful for all the parents, alumni, fellow students, band, cheerleaders and community members who came to support and make it such a great night for our guys.”
Going into next week’s game, Dobson and the Devils plan to focus on preparing the same way they have the last couple of weeks.
“Our boys have been locked in on our game plans and doing all the little things throughout the week to prepare properly.” Dobson stated.
Statesboro will be back in action next week as they travel to Harris County for the Sweet Sixteen in the Class 5A GHSA State Playoffs.
