Lincoln County leaned on explosive runs, relentless defense, and timely takeaways to overwhelm Brooks County 52–16 on Friday night at Buddy Bufford Field.
Early burst puts Red Devils in control
The Red Devils set the tone immediately. After Brooks County went three-and-out on its opening drive, Lincoln County needed just two plays to score. Capitalizing on the short field, Lincoln County running back Jonathan Norman would break off a 34-yard run quickly putting up the Red Devils 7-0.
Brooks County answered on its next drive with a 41-yard run and then a 30-yard pass to Brooks County wide receiver Anton Graham. However, the Trojans would stall and would have to settle for a 32-yard field goal by kicker Rafael Mojica. From there, Lincoln County’s rushing attack took over.
On the next series, Kelby Glaze burst free for a 45-yard touchdown, pushing the lead to 14–3. Moments later, the Red Devils recovered a fumble at the Brooks County 12-yard line. Lincoln County quarterback Mekhi Wade scored on the next play with a 12-yard run to make it 21–3 with 3:19 left in the first quarter.
Brooks County briefly gained momentum on the following series with a 50-yard completion on 3rd-and-29 from its own one-yard line. However, the drive would stall a few plays later, and a Lincoln County sack on fourth and seven would result in a turnover on downs.
The Red Devils wasted no time taking advantage of the defensive stop. Running back Aiden Jones broke a 70-yard touchdown run two plays into the drive. His score would stretch the lead to 28–3 with 8:35 left in the half. Brooks County responded with an explosive drive of their own. They would get to the Red Devil 4-yard line in two plays. The Trojans capped off their explosive drive with a 3-yard score from wide receiver Trae Stevenson, cutting the lead to 18. After both teams traded punts, the Red Devils took a 28–10 lead into halftime.
Back-to-back LC touchdowns put the game away
Lincoln County opened the third quarter with a long statement drive ending in a 1-yard touchdown run by Wade on 4th-and-goal, and on Brooks County’s very next snap, Glaze scooped up a fumble and returned it for a touchdown to make it 42–10 with five minutes left in the third quarter.
Brooks County added a late highlight with a 34-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Junior Burrus to wide receiver George Lamons Jr., but it wasn’t enough to slow Lincoln County’s momentum.
Glaze added his second rushing score early in the fourth quarter, a 35-yard touchdown that pushed the lead to 49–16. Fortson Partridge later knocked in a short field goal to close out the night and seal a 52–16 victory.
Lincoln County’s offense finished with six rushing touchdowns, while the defense forced multiple turnovers and scored once.
The Red Devils now advance with significant momentum and seem to be near unbeatable. They will need every bit of that momentum to carry over as they take on a 10-3 Early County team next Friday. A win against Early County will send the Red Devils to the state championship game.
