Devils cage Tigers, will play for title Sat.
By TYLER HINSON

DARELL NORMAN WAS FIRST TO SCORE FOR LINCOLN This touchdown run capped the Devils’ opening drive.

Red Devil fans filled the cavernous expanse of Atlanta’s famous Georgia Dome with noise Saturday as they awaited the arrival of their favorite football team to the turf. They hopped to their feet as the boys in red stormed the field with helmets held high to take on the then-11-2 Commerce Tigers.

The Tigers, who won the 2000 Class A state championship and have had a fantastic season under head coach Steve Savage, beat the Devils 17-14 the last time the two went head to head under the bright lights of the Dome. Before Saturday, the Lincoln-Commerce Dome rivalry stood at 1-1. The Tigers, hoping to tip the scales in their favor, held on for most of the first half, but were blasted by the Devils during the second, with Lincoln putting up two touchdowns and shutting down the Commerce offense. Lincoln now advances to the 2006 Class A state finals after beating Commerce 21- 3.

Lincoln won the toss and capitalized on senior running back Ricardo Norman’s return with a 57-yard scoring drive lasting just over five minutes, during which Darrell Norman scooted across the goal for the Devils’ first touchdown.

JATHEUS JONES HAULS DOWN A COMMERCE BALL CARRIER This Saturday, the Red Devils will play Clinch County for the Georgia Class A State Championship.

Commerce was unable to reciprocate, struggling for each yard against Lincoln’s Jatheus Jones and Tyler Beale and completing just one full set of downs before being forced to punt. Lincoln’s next possession was also abbreviated, the Devils never making it into Tiger territory.

Senior Tiger quarterback Reuben Haynes struggled during his team’s next possession, throwing two incompletions and fumbling. Haynes saved the possession with a recovery.

The Devils saw similar action on their next ownership during an impressive run by Darrell Norman that ended abruptly when Tiger senior Dusty Black forced a fumble and teammate Josh Hill recovered for Commerce.

A long Commerce possession all but ended after a massive sack on Haynes by senior Devil linebacker Kiece Crite. Soon thereafter, Black, who doubles as place-kicker for Commerce, was brought out to attempt a field goal. The short kick was ruled good and the Tigers were handed their first and only points of the contest.

RONTAE NORMAN SEES DAYLIGHT THROUGH A WHOLE IN THE COMMERCE LINE The Red Devils running game ran all over the Tigers in the Georgia Dome last weekend.

Lincoln’s next possession was also lengthy. Led by senior quarterback Brandon Barden, the Devils drove quickly down the field, but were choked up inside the red zone. Commerce repeatedly committed offensive pass interference, but the Red Devils were unable to capitalize on the seemingly free-flowing first downs they were given. According to Lincoln County head coach Larry Campbell, the struggle was due primarily to poor play calling.

And so ended the first half, with Lincoln leading Commerce by a slim margin, 7-3, as some of the littlest Red Devil fans could be heard repeatedly chanting “Lincoln County, mighty Devils!” again and again.

Commerce’s Marching Tiger Band played a hard-rocking set at halftime in an attempt to fire up its somewhat disappointed fans. Songs performed included Steppenwolf’s “Born to be Wild” and Lynyrd Skynyrd’s “Freebird,” among others.

TYLER BEALE SACKS THE COMMERCE QUARTERBACK The Devil Defense kept the Tigers in check throughout the game.

Crite continued to punish the Tigers on their opening possession of the second half, and quickly forced a turnover. Commerce’s Dante Martin and Morgan Adams returned the favor, making for a slow drive for the Devils, who fell apart after a fourth down conversion attempt failed.

Devil defender DeTravis Hearst sacked Haynes on first down to open the Tigers’ next drive, and Commerce was speedily slammed into a turnover as each runner was handily picked off by the rest of the stillhot Lincoln defense.

Darrell Norman fought for precious yardage through a messy down to begin Lincoln’s next possession, and the Devils sideline collectively breathed a sigh of relief as the chain gang confirmed Norman’s achievement of the first down. The Devils then proceeded to gain two more consecutive first downs before a long bomb by Barden was picked off by Tiger Tony Crawford.

The Tigers next possession was slovenly, and spilled over into the fourth quarter before being cut short by another Devil sack, this time by defensive end Tyler Beale.

BRANDON BARDEN FIGHTS TOWARD THE GOAL LINE He scored two touchdowns in the Dome win last Saturday.

The Red Devils were flagged for a false start early in their next ownership, but one play later, Devil running back Ricardo Norman exploded out of the pack, and flew down the sideline towards the goal line, grounding the left pylon. Norman’s effort was initially ruled a touchdown run, but the call was later rescinded, as officials cited that Norman had stepped out of bounds at the three yard line. Then, Barden, always smooth and professional, picked up the slack, putting up the Devils’ first points in more than two quarters.

Defensive linemen Jeffrey Porter and Tony Wells pushed back a discouraged Tiger offense when Commerce next regained possession, and the Tigers came up empty handed after a pass from Haynes to Crawford was called incomplete.

The Devils used up most of the rest of the fourth quarter with a slow but steady drive back down the field that ended with Barden walking in his team’s third and final touchdown of the game.

Commerce was desperate as they worked through one more set. The short drive finally ended with a delay of game penalty on fourth down.

Devils and Devil fans alike became overzealous nearing the end of the game, and rushed the field too early. After everyone was herded back across the sideline by officials, the Red Devil offense retook possession of the ball one last time, took a knee, and finally insured their second straight trip to the Class A state championship game.

It was “de’ja vu all over again” for a crushed Tiger team, as Commerce had also given the Devils a win – only the Devils’ second – after a dismal start to the 2005 regular season.

A relieved and emotional Lincoln team left the sideline waving towels as fans screamed with pride and Lincoln County High School principal Becky Barden met the boys with tears of joy and warm hugs.

The Lincoln County Red Devils and the Clinch County Panthers now will face each other at Buddy Bufford Field to battle for the state title. Kickoff is at 6 p.m. Saturday, December 16, with gates opening at 4 p.m. Tickets will be on sale through Friday at LCHS.

The Devils are close enough to victory to taste it, but a difficult road lies ahead. Lincoln still stands on the losing side of their all-time series with the Homerville team, which

“Clinched” a win over the previously undefeated Athens Academy Spartans Saturday.