Panthers head into playoffs, Tigers season ends

Published 12:37 pm Monday, November 6, 2023

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Butler County teams played their final regular season games Friday. The Georgiana Panthers shutout Pleasant Home 61-0, heading into the playoffs 9-1. The Greenville Tigers fell to Russell County 75-43 ending their season 1-9, and the McKenzie Tigers lost to Elba 56-28 with a 5-5 season. 

Georgiana Panthers

Head coach Berry Bess said he is proud of the Panther team. 

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“We’ve talked about not playing down to competition this year and have done a good job at it,” Bess said.  “We still have some growing to do in situational spots of the game, but that’s what we wanted to work on in the game and we were able to get some practice on things that needed work.”

Quarterback No. 10 Jacobie Morgan got the Panthers on the board with a 16-yard rushing touchdown. Cam Miles, running back No. 2, scored two 33-yard touchdown runs. Running back No. 3 Jaquese Abner extended s the lead with a 10-yard rushing touchdown. Marques Payton, running back No. 1, got in the end zone with 17- and 22-yard touchdown runs. Wide receiver No. 12 Kaveon Miles returned the second half kickoff for 70-yards. Kamari Miles, wide receiver No. 4, scores a touchdown with a 33-yard run.

Georgiana will host Keith High School in the first round of playoffs on Nov. 10. Bess said hosting the game is a huge deal for the team, school and community 

“Keith is a very competitive team that has some athletes that play hard,” Bess said. “We will have to play with high intensity all night. I’m not rushing it, but I am ready to see how we attack the moment come Friday.”

McKenzie Tigers

Head coach Brian Bradford said he really enjoyed his first year coaching at Mckenzie. 

“The community did an outstanding job welcoming me and my wife and making us feel at home,” Bradford said. “I’m so proud of the progress this team has made this season. We didn’t get as many wins as we had hoped for, but to see the culture of the team shift over the course of the season was fun to watch. The shift was mainly because of the leadership of the seniors.”

Bradford said the Tigers will continue to get better this off season and are looking for a great season next year.

The Tigers first scored in Friday’s game with a 24-yard touchdown pass from No. 1 Skylar Sanders to No. 4 Jolson Davis Warren. Sanders completed two more touchdown passes to No. 11 Jay Jackson for 47 and 39-yards. 

Greenville Tigers

The Greenville Tigers got on the board Friday with quarterback No. 7 BJ Dickerson completing a touchdown pass for 31-yards to No. 4 Eric Scott. Dickerson completed two more touchdown passes to No. 1 Bobby Bedgood Jr. for 44 and 69 yards. Bedgood got in the end zone with a 14-yard touchdown run. Running back No. 5 Ty Phillips scored two touchdown runs. 

Head coach Garrick Pimienta said he is looking forward to training during the off season. 

“There were many ups and many downs this season,” Pimienta said. “The most exciting thing we have to look forward to is a full offseason with a consistent message and approach.”