Ted Gatewood was not a math major during his playing days at Memphis University but the erstwhile veteran coach of the Red Bank Lion playoff machine understands simple math. And when Friday began there were 32 teams remaining in contention for the ultimate prize as the first round of the TSSAA 4A state playoffs began and by night's end there would be 16 left.
"It's pretty simple from this point on. Step one gets you into that final 16 and then there are eight left and four and finally just two. The first step was tonight and the goal is to get to that final two. We got the first step tonight and now we get ready for the next step. It's pretty simple," said Gatewood following a 30-0 stepping over of visiting Dekalb County at Tom Weathers Field last night.
And not to be outdone in the math department, the key number for this Lion squad this season has been anything less than seven. In all eight of the Lions' wins this year, Red Bank has held the opposition to seven points or less, and Friday night was the fourth shutout of the season.
Last night's zero earned the Lions an eighth straight second round playoff outing and Red Bank (8-3) will now host Macon County (10-1) next Friday after Macon County dropped Loudon 41-7 last night.
"We have to play defense. That's what we are built on. It's paramount and they know it. They take a lot of pride and it's fun to watch them during the week get ready for a Friday night. It's a weekly mentality that starts on Monday and progresses all week until they get to Friday. They like to be violent out there," Gatewood said of his defense.
And violent they were, especially in the second half.
The Tigers had some early success with some nickel-and-dime stuff and managed to produce a 15-play drive and a 14-play drive, both of which ate up clock, but neither produced points in the first half as Red Bank built a 14-0 lead at the half. And the Tigers of Dekalb County played from behind from the outset thanks to Red Bank's Josiah Featherstone 50-yard burst on the third play of the game which landed at the Tigers' 10 before Featherstone took it in from the one on a fourth down carry for a 7-0 lead.
"We always seem to feed off of big plays and I think I gave us some energy early on with the run. We had a plan all week to run the ball and I planned on doing my part. We wanted to show folks what Red Bank football was," said Featherstone who wound up with 181 rushing yards on 26 carries.
The Lions ran it 41 times for 324 yards on the night and Featherstone got plenty of help from the bullish sophomore Oliver Merritt, who added 131 yards on 14 totes including TD scampers of 25 and 19 yards.
"We cleaned up a lot of things at halftime and made some adjustments. I think our offensive line is really starting to grow up and gel. Featherstone gave us a spark to start the game and again to start the second half and Oliver, man, what can you say. He likes to be physical. He hunts contact out there and he likes it," added Gatewood of his dynamic duo.
The Tigers converted two fourth down plays with their opening drive after falling behind but the drive still stalled at the Red Bank 12 and Kobe Smith blocked the field goal attempt in what was Dekalb County's only serious threat.
"I think we have just flipped a switch of late. We are definitely peaking at the right time, the right moment. Our plan is to ride it on out through the playoffs. We don't like giving up points," said Smith, the senior end and Duke commit.
The Lions made it 14-0 in the second quarter with eight straight runs covering the entire 69 yards and it was Merritt rolling off tackle from 25 yards away with the final carry to close the deal. Dekalb got its last significant drive of the game with a 14 play drive that included three third down conversions, but it only covered 38 yards before punting it away.
In the second half, the Tigers had four straight 3-and-outs and didn't manage a first down. Featherstone broke loose on a 62-yard run on the Lions first play of the third quarter and Merritt did the rest with a 19-yard bolt for a 21-0 lead. Malachi Stephensen booted a 37-yard field goal with 1:25 left in the quarter to extend it to 24-0.
Freshman quarterback Caden Loveless, who wasn't tasked with much as far as passing on the chilly night, added the final score with a perfect pass to Turner Humphrey on a fourth down play from the 31 to close the scoring.
Dekalb County wound up with just 26 total yards in the final half and had to play almost the entire game without starting tailback Malachi Trapp, who hurt his leg on the Tigers first drive. The injury delayed the game for the better part of 40 minutes before an ambulance arrived.
"Hated to see the injury and he's such a good player and a great kid. The delay kinda got everybody out of sync and they kept the ball for most of that first half, but we made some really good adjustments and fixed some things that they were doing which caused problems both offensively and defensively, and that's a credit to coach (Ted) Lockerby and (Brandon) Ursey. We have an opportunity now, but it's one step at a time," added Gatewood.
Gatewood praised the play of his big boys up front as any former offensive lineman should. Ian Rabon, Cruz Miller, Colt Reese, Matt Fowler and Kamin Travis each earned kudos for leading the way.
SUMMARY
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DEKALB CO.
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0
|
0
|
0
|
6
|
-- 0
|
|
RED BANK
|
7
|
7
|
10
|
6
|
-- 30
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RB -- Josiah Featherstone 1 run (Malachi Stephensen kick) (8:54, 1st)
RB -- Oliver Merritt 25 run (Malachi Stephensen kick) (7:53, 2nd)
RB -- Oliver Merritt 25 run (Malachi Stephensen kick) (8:33, 3rd)
RB -- Malachi Stephensen 37 field goal (1:25,3rd)
RB -- Turner Humphrey 31 pass from Caden Loveless (kick blocked) (8:42, 4th)
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STATS
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DC
|
RB
|
|
First Downs
|
8
|
13
|
|
Rushes-Yards
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24-82
|
41-324
|
|
Passing Yards
|
70
|
27
|
|
Total yards
|
152
|
351
|
|
Passing (Comp-Att-Int)
|
14-27-0
|
2-6-0
|
|
Penalties-Yards
|
3-37
|
3-20
|
|
Punts-Average
|
6-32.8
|
2-36.0
|
|
Fumbles-Lost
|
0-0
|
0-0
|
Individual stats
Rushing: Ari White 13-47, Malachi Trapp 4-15, Briz Trapp 6-15, Wil Farris 1-5 (DC); Josiah Featherstone 26-181,Oliver Merritt 14-131,Malachi Stevensen 1-12 (RB).
Passing: Briz Trapp 14-27-0 70 yards (DC): Caden Loveless 2-6-0 27 yards (RB).
Receiving: Ryan Lyons 5-29, Jordan Parker 4-22, Jon Hendrix 3-19, Andrew Dakas 1-2 (DC); Malachi Stephensen 1-(-4), Turner Humphrey 1-31 (RB).
RECORDS: Dekalb County (5-6) Red Bank (8-3).
NEXT UP: Red Bank will host Macon County (10-1) in 4A second round playoff next Friday.
(Contact James Beach at 1134james@gmail.com)