The Brantley High School Bulldogs are now the No. 2 seed in the Class 2A Region 2 after clobbering the McKenzie Tigers 63-7. With the playoff situation set in stone, the Bulldogs have secured a No. 2 seed, meaning they will play at home for their first round against the Marengo Panthers next Friday.

“We were excited, of course. I thought we played really well. The games we’ve lost, we haven’t been ready to play, and I think that’s a big difference in where we are now versus where we were at the first of the year,” said BHS head coach Ashley Kilcrease.

“I think we’re doing a better job of being ready to play at the beginning of the game, and that’s been a big, big difference in where we are now.”

Starting off the first quarter with a 19-yard run touchdown was junior running back Mack Wise; an extra point was earned with a kick by senior defensive end Tucker Owens.

A 23-yard pass from senior quarterback Jacob Free to junior wide receiver Adrian Person, Jr., brought the score to 13-7, and an extra point earned with a kick by Owens bumped it up to 14-7.

Wrapping up the first with a 37-yard run touchdown was Free, and an extra point earned with a kick by Owens ended the quarter at 21-7 in favor of the Bulldogs.

The second quarter saw three touchdowns for the Bulldogs, starting with a 13-yard pass from Free to junior wide receiver D’Andre Sinclair with an extra point earned with a kick by Owens; a 67-yard pass from Free to Person, Jr., with an extra point earned with a kick by Owens; and a 69-yard pass from Free to senior wide receiver Tommy Spivey with an extra point earned with a kick by Owens. The Bulldogs headed into the third quarter with the scoreboard reading 42-7.

“I knew we were going to be young on defense, and we’ve really matured throughout the season,” Kilcrease said.

“One thing good defenses do is cause turnovers. They turned the ball over a lot on Friday, and that played to our advantage.”

The last two touchdowns of the game were scored in the third quarter by sophomore wide receiver Parker Driggers. Driggers started the quarter with a 13-yard touchdown pass from Free and an extra point earned by Owens, and took the final touchdown with a 63-yard punt return and an extra point earned with a kick by Owens.

With the final score reading 63-7, the Bulldogs knew they had earned the No. 2 seed.

This week, the Bulldogs will face off against the Goshen Eagles away.

“Goshen’s like a secondary rival. They’re not in the county, but it’s almost like they are because they are so close,” Kilcrease said.

“We know that Goshen will be a formidable challenge. They are very athletic, so we’ll have to play well to win. It should be a game that helps get us ready for playoffs, for sure.”