The ECI Bulldogs punched their ticket to the second round of the state playoffs Friday with a win against the GMC Bulldogs from Milledgeville.
They take the 2 ½ hour bus ride to Homerville Friday to take on Clinch Co. in the second round of the Class A Division II state playoffs.
Both ECI and Clinch easily won their first-round games to set up the match-up.
ECI defeated GMC Friday 63-7 while Clinch sent Chattahoochee Co. back to Cusseta with a 48-20 loss.
Both teams are currently ranked in the top 10 in Class A Division II. The Bulldogs are sitting at number 10 while the Panthers are ranked second behind number one Lincoln Co.
ECI and Clinch are no strangers to each other in the state playoffs having faced each other 3 consecutive years from 2007-2009.
The Bulldogs defeated the Panthers at the Dome in the semis in 2007, 35-13. They saw each other again the following year at Rountree Stadium when ECI won the physical game against Clinch 33-21. The third time was the charm for the Panthers in 2009, defeating the Bulldogs at Donald Tison Field in Homerville, 37-28.
The Panthers play out of region 2 as the region champions. The Bulldogs play in region three and are the number two seed. Both regions still have 3 teams playing in the 8 games scheduled Friday.
Along with Clinch, Charlton Co. and Brooks Co. from region 2 will be playing Friday.
Region 3 will have ECI, Jenkins Co. and Screven Co., the 1-3 seeds, seeing action in the second round. ECI and Jenkins will be on the road while region champion, Screven Co. will be home.
To advance, the Bulldogs easily defeated the overmatched 4-6 GMC Bulldogs Friday 63-7. Leading 49-0 at the half, the Bulldogs gave their starters a rest in the second half and watched the JV tack on 7 points in the third and fourth quarters.
The offense put up 28 points in the first quarter and put the second half into a running clock by scoring 21 in the second quarter to lead 49-0.
The Bulldogs scored nine touchdowns against the visiting third seed from Milledgeville.
Tyler Foreman got the scoring fest started with an 18-yard run for a touchdown. AB Marsh put the second touchdown on the board with a 3-yard run. Foreman once again found paydirt from 18 yards out for his second score. A Jackson Kennedy to Chase Johnson pass put the 28th point on the board in the first quarter.
The second quarter was same as the first with the Bulldogs scoring on every possession.
It was a Foreman two-yard run for TD to begin the second quarter. Daon Bethea scored on a 10-yard pass from Kennedy. Tyler Foreman scored his fourth touchdown of the first half from 14 yards out to put the Bulldogs up 49-0 at the break.
Brayden Rich scored his touchdown in the third quarter from 8 yards out to make the score 56-0 at the end of the third quarter.
GMC got on the board in the fourth on a two-yard run by Matthew Webster to make the score 56-7.
William Cooper ended the scoring for the game on a 13-yard run for a 63-7 win, putting the Bulldogs into the second round.
The Bulldogs used 6 running backs and 3 quarterbacks to rush for 273 yards Chase Johnson led the ground attack with 155 yards and 4 touchdowns.
Jackson Kennedy was 6-8 passing for 73 yards to 5 different receivers with two touchdowns.
Along with the ECI vs Clinch match-up, 2 other region teams will see action this Friday. Jenkins County will face Schley Co. on the road while Charlton Co. will get to hear the screeching chicken when they travel to Sylvania to take on Screven Co.
