VALDOSTA —
The Valdosta Wildcats know what they have to do to make the playoffs. If they win Friday night, they are in the playoffs. If they lose, they probably won’t make it.
Valdosta will travel to Douglas on Friday to play Coffee at 8 p.m. in a game with huge playoff implications for both teams.
Right now, the Wildcats (6-3, 3-2 in region play) are tied for third in Region 1-6A with Colquitt County, a team they beat 38-36 on Oct. 26. But Coffee is only a game behind the Wildcats and the Packers, and they know they have to win to have a chance to make the playoffs.
“There’s a sense of urgency. There’s no question about that,” Valdosta head coach Rance Gillespie said. “It’s a huge football game for both teams. Our kids understand that.”
If the Wildcats win, they will finish third in Region 1. If they lose and Colquitt upsets No. 1 Camden County, the Packers would finish third, Coffee would be fourth and Valdosta would miss the playoffs.
If Coffee beats Valdosta and Camden beats Colquitt, the Wildcats, the Trojans and the Packers would finish in a three-way tie for third (Camden and Lowndes have already clinched first and second). In that case, the team that had allowed the fewest points in region games against playoff-eligible teams (Camden, Lowndes, Valdosta, Coffee and Colquitt) would get the third seed. The tie between the other two teams would then get broken by the result of their head-to-head meeting. Going into Friday’s games, Colquitt has allowed 64 points in its three games against Valdosta, Lowndes and Coffee (it hasn’t played Camden yet), while Valdosta gave up 96 points to Camden, Lowndes and Colquitt and Coffee allowed 97 points to Camden, Lowndes and Colquitt.
Valdosta’s coach knows the Wildcats have to come ready to play on Friday. But that’s no different than any other region game, in his opinion.
“This region demands that you’re at your best constantly,” Gillespie said.
——
Last Friday, Valdosta’s offense played one of its best games of the season in a 41-24 win over Brunswick. The Wildcats scored five touchdowns, got two field goals and amassed 363 yards of total offense.
Three players in particular stood out to Gillespie.
Tight end Taijuan Smith, who had only caught four passes all season, had four catches for 112 yards and three touchdowns against Brunswick.
“Taijuan went out and had three touchdown catches, and had really a breakout night,” Gillespie said. “I hope Friday night will go a long way in pushing him towards (playing well the rest of the season).”
Right tackle Ronnie Stoney, a third-year starter, led an offensive line that opened up holes for the Wildcats’ running backs all night long.
“Ronnie Stoney has played as consistent as any offensive lineman I’ve probably ever coached. He’s played really well all season,” Gillespie said.
But the player that Gillespie said was the Wildcats’ player of the game on offense was running back Nelson Herring. Herring rushed for 172 yards and two touchdowns on 18 carries in the win.
Herring also had one of the biggest plays of the game. On the first play from scrimmage in the second half, Herring took the handoff, found a hole, sprinted past the defenders and raced 65 yards untouched into the end zone, giving the Wildcats a 17-10 lead. Valdosta would hold the lead the rest of the game.
Herring and Malcolm Joseph usually split time in the Wildcats’ backfield. But Joseph was nursing an injury, so Herring had to take on a bigger load, and he did.
“Nelson knew that he was going to have to shoulder the load and carry it a little bit more,” Gillespie said. “That’s different when you’ve got those two guys. No. 1, they’re like brothers. They’re really close. They get along extremely well. No. 2, they’ve always had the other one to lean on, and they work so perfectly together. ... They enjoy one another, they share the load, they don’t mind (sharing carries). But when you take one out of the equation (it’s) different. I think (Nelson) understood that, and he kind of stepped up.”
Local Sports
Related Photos
-
Nelson Herring (13) ran for 172 yards and two touchdowns in Valdosta’s 41-24 victory over Brunswick last Friday. file photo
-
Valdosta tight end Taijuan Smith (36) caught three touchdown passes in the Wildcats’ 41-24 win over Brunswick last week. Smith and the Wildcats will travel to Coffee on Friday. Chris Walsh | Special to the Times
Discussion
Big game for Wildcats
Valdosta can earn a playoff berth with a win on Friday
- Local Sports
-
-
VSU softball wins South Region, headed to nationals
For the third time in four years, and second in a row, Valdosta State’s softball team will play in the national championship tournament.
The Blazers won their third South Region championship Saturday, beating Alabama-Huntsville 8-3 in game three of the best-of-three series at Steel’s Diamond at Blazer Park. -
VSU baseball season comes to an end
Delta State scored seven unanswered runs to defeat Valdosta State 7-2 in an elimination game of the NCAA South Region Tournament at the UT Baseball Field Saturday afternoon.
-
Blazers take 1-0 series lead
Angela O’Connor launched a pinch-hit two-run home run over the left-field fence, tying the game against Alabama-Huntsville in the bottom of the sixth inning, and sparking the Blazers and their fans along the way.
-
Blazer baseball stays alive, beats Stillman
Valdosta State scored five runs in the first inning to defeat Stillman 6-2 in an elimination game of the NCAA South Region Tournament at UT Baseball Field Friday morning.
-
Lowndes’ Harwell, Wortham sign with Valdosta State
Lowndes’ Ty Harwell and David Wortham won’t have to go far to play college baseball.
-
Blazers host respected rival UAH in Super Regional
One would expect a matchup featuring two of the top softball programs in Division II to come in the national championship game.
Unfortunately for Valdosta State and Alabama-Huntsville, who have combined to appear in four straight national championship games, they won’t be meeting in title game on Memorial Day in Salem, Va. -
Pop Warner Football coming to Valdosta
Pop Warner Football is coming to Valdosta.
The nationally known organization that puts an emphasis on education and developing American youth has been established in the Valdosta area and will begin playing football this August. -
Blazers lose to Delta State, fall to loser’s bracket
If the Valdosta State baseball team is going to win the South Region Tournament, the Blazers going to have to do it from the loser’s bracket.
The Blazers (33-17) dropped their first game of the tournament Thursday, falling to Delta State 4-2 at UT Baseball Stadium.
VSU will face Stillman College, which lost to No. 1 seed and tournament host Tampa Thursday, Friday at 11 a.m. to advance to the weekend portion of the tournament. The loser will be eliminated. -
Lowndes’ Willis, Breit named Region 1 Coaches of the Year
The All-Region 1-AAAAAA soccer teams were announced Wednesday and Lowndes was well represented.
Lowndes coaches Chris Willis (girls) and Jordan Breit (boys) were named the Region Coaches of the Year, after leading the Lowndes teams to region championships and going undefeated in region play. -
Vikings commit 4 errors, fall to Roswell, 5-2
The small things matter in baseball, especially in a winner-take-all game three.
On Wednesday, Lowndes’ baseball team made too many mistakes on the little things. The Vikings committed four errors that led to five Roswell runs and were eliminated in the Class AAAAAA state playoffs with a 5-2 loss to the Hornets. - More Local Sports Headlines
-
