Pride was on the line Friday night at Harmon Field for the Georgiana School and Highland Home High School, as both teams’ playoff hopes were dashed earlier in the season.

For Georgiana, that season came to an end on a 55-8 loss to the Flying Squadron.

Highland Home struck first with Lewis Johnson taking the opening kickoff all the way to the house unscathed for a touchdown.

However, the Flying Squadron’s offense would prove just as potent, if not more so, than its special teams.

After a quick three-and-out from Georgiana, Highland Home running back Marquise Randle surged through a pack of Panthers on the first Flying Squadron play from scrimmage, scoring his team’s second touchdown of the night.

This would become a reoccurring theme for much of the night, as Georgiana struggled to find an answer to the Flying Squadron’s explosive backfield.

“The answer is when they’ve got big backs like that, you’ve got to be physical,” said Georgiana head coach David Watts.

“You’ve got to stick your nose in there and be physical, and we’re not there yet.”

However, the Panthers would make a late-game push in a time-consuming and methodical drive that culminated in a 30-yard touchdown bomb to Justin Oikle, but it wasn’t enough to keep up with Highland Home’s high-powered offense.

Despite the loss, Watts is confident that his younger players have gained precious experience during the past 10 weeks.

“We’ve got a lot of young kids playing and we’re not very strong, but the answer is the offseason,” Watts said.

“They aren’t as physically mature as the guys we’re playing against, but the answer is the weight room, offseason conditioning, and getting stronger.

“That’s the only answer I know.”

Georgiana finished its season with a 1-9 mark.