Sports Editor



Okay, we have good news today (which most of you have probably already heard) and we have better news (which some of you may not have heard yet.) Which would you like first?

Oh, come on. Let's build slowly here and start with the good news.

Sophomore quarterback James Lawson turned in a career night last Friday against Seneca, completing 23 of 30 passes for 436 yards and four touchdowns, and the Blue Flame ran off 19 unanswered points in the second half to earn a 40-21 Western AAA victory over the Bobcats.

Tight end Josh Crumpton put up his own spectacular numbers, snaring nine of those completions for 210 yards and a touchdown, while wide receiver Dante Rice caught only three passes but totaled 100 yards and three touchdowns. And running back C.J. Holley, who could let his one-man wrecking crew act rest for a week because of the success of the passing game, still picked up 105 yards and a touchdown on 21 carries.

Back to the game shortly.

The better news is that with their fifth win of the season in nine tries and third in the region in six tries, the Blue Flame guaranteed themselves a spot in the Class AAA state playoffs, with the only question remaining whether they will be the fourth or the fifth seed from the region.

Blue Flame Coach Brett Turner wasn't quite ready to accept that analysis Monday, saying only, "We feel pretty good about our chances right now."

But Seneca Coach Brian Smith, whose multiple jobs include not only coaching the Bobcat football team but also serving as committee representative for Region 1 and being responsible for figuring out such things, didn't hesitate.

"Pickens is in the playoffs, one way or another," he said. "There is no scenario that we can find where they wouldn't be in."

Without going into the complexities of the tiebreaker system, the bottom line is that if Pickens beats Berea this Friday night at Berea, the Blue Flame will be the fourth-seeded team from Region 1 going into the playoffs and Seneca would be the fifth seed.

If the Blue Flame should happen to lose by less than 10 points, they would still be the fourth seed and Seneca would be fifth. A Pickens loss by 10 points or more would put Berea fourth and Pickens fifth.

Confused now? Repeat the following: Pickens is in the playoffs. Quite probably, with one at-large berth from all three upstate AAA regions, Pickens, Berea and Seneca will make the playoffs as the fourth, fifth, and sixth seeds, but that involves a totally different tiebreaker.

And now, back to the game.

A year ago, the Blue Flame clinched their spot in the playoffs with an impressive 36-7 win over the Bobcats. This time, it wasn't quite that easy.

In fact, Seneca put quite a scare into the home crowd early.

Though he would go on to have that incredible passing night where everything he threw into the air seemed to find the hand of a Pickens receiver, Lawson's first pass of the night was picked off by Bobcat defensive back Adrien Bibb, who raced 42 yards for the touchdown and a 7-0 Seneca lead barely two minutes into the game.

Pickens faltered after taking the ensuing kickoff and punted from the Blue Flame 31. Seneca's C.J. Washington caught the ball in stride at the Bobcats' 36 and raced 63 yards before being run out of bounds by the punter, Crumpton, at the 1.

Quarterback Joel Smith added that final yard on a sneak to make it 14-0, Seneca, with 7:37 left in the first period.

Pickens followed with a 10-play, 65-yard drive that included completions of 12 and 23 yards from Lawson to Crumpton and the clincher - a 20-yard beauty from Lawson to Rice to cut it to 14-7.

Then, after a three-and-out by Seneca, the Blue Flame used just three plays to cover 80 yards, with Lawson hitting. On third and seven from the Pickens 24, Lawson hit Crumpton over the middle and the 6-foot-3, 241-pounder stepped out of a gang tackle by Seneca at the Blue Flame 40 and raced the distance to tie it at 14-all after one quarter of play.

An interception by Kelby Jones put Pickens back in business at the Seneca 20, and Lawson found Rice on first down for a 21-14 Blue Flame lead.

A rare error late in the second period helped Seneca on a 73-yard, eight-play drive. The Bobcats got the benefit of a 32-yard Smith to Bibb pass and an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty tacked on against the Blue Flame, and two plays later Smith went in from one yard out to tie it at 21-all at the half.

But the second half was all Pickens offensively. The Blue Flame opened with a three-play, 65-yard drive that Lawson sealed with a 63-yarder pass and run to Rice to start the second half, then John Anderson capped a long drive with a 37-yard field goal on the first play of the fourth period for a 31-21 Pickens lead.

Justin Isbell's interception with 10:35 left in the game set up another scoring drive, this one an 89-yard, four-play effort capped by a nifty 53-yard run by Holley to make it 37-31. Anderson's 34-yard field goal with 2:23 left in the game provided the final margin.



SCORING SUMMARY

Seneca 14 7 0 0 - 21

Pickens 14 7 7 12 - 40

Seneca - Adrien Bibb 42 interception return (Seth Rothell kick)

Seneca - Joel Smith 1 run (Rothell kick)

Pickens - Dante Rice 20 pass from James Lawson (John Anderson kick)

Pickens - Josh Crumpton 76 pass from Lawson (Anderson kick)

Pickens - Rice 20 pass from Lawson (Anderson kick)

Seneca - Smith 1 run (Rothell kick)

Pickens - Rice 63 pass from Lawson (Anderson kick)

Pickens - Anderson 37 FG

Pickens - C.J. Holley 53 run (kick failed)

Pickens - Anderson 34 FG