Toombs wins battle of Bulldogs

The ECI Middle School team hosted Toombs Co. Thursday in another middle school championship game. This marks the ninth time the Middle School Football Team has played for the championship.

The Bulldogs posted another undefeated season with a 6-0 record. The only close game ECI had during the regular season was against Toombs Co.

The Bulldogs began the season with a 44-0 win against North Tattnall and followed that up with a 52-0 defeat of South Tattnall. In between the two Tattnall County wins, the Bulldogs defeated their eventual championship opponent, Toombs Co. 24-20. They defeated their neighboring city, Metter 50-30 and took care of Bryan Co. 32-14. Their last win of the regular season came as a 1-0 forfeit by Jenkins Co. The Bulldogs defeated Metter in the first round of the playoffs 24-7, setting up a rematch with Toombs Co. ECI came up short against Toombs Co., losing to the Bulldogs from Lyons 47-20.

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“We came up a little short in our goal to win the championship, but our kids fought hard to the end,” commented head coach Greg Kennedy. “Toombs County came in with a very good game plan and executed it very well. We had a few costly turnovers that put us behind early on and we were not able to get some key defensive stops. Toombs was the better team today.”

ECI came into the game with an undefeated 7-0 season, hosting the championship game after defeating the Toombs Bulldogs earlier in the season. Turnovers played a big role in the first half for Toombs Co. They recovered their own squib kick to start the game, eventually scoring to take an early 6-0 lead. With Toombs leading 12-6 late in the second quarter, the Bulldogs had a promising drive, but another turnover put the ball back into the hands of the Toombs offense. They put the last points on the board with 41 seconds left in the half to lead the Bulldogs 19-6. ECI put two more touchdowns on the board in the second half, but it was not enough as Toombs Co. pulled away for a 47-20 win.

When asked about his team and the season Coach Kennedy had this to say, “I’m very proud of the accomplishments of this year’s football team. This group of kids put in a lot of hard work since June, and it was evident throughout the season. I’m excited to see this group of 8th graders develop as they enter high school. They have a bright future if they continue to work hard in the weightroom and play together as a team. They were all a pleasure to coach.”

Along with Coach Kennedy, the middle school team is also led by Coach Chase Ellison and Coach Artie Fields.