TIFTON — It took a half, but the Tift County Blue Devils were finally able to overcome a stubborn East Coweta Indian team, 22-7, Friday night in the first round of the state Class AAAAA playoffs.

Tift will now get set to play the Union Grove Wolverines, a 10-0 first-round winner over the Windsor Forest Knights.

That game will be next Friday at 8 p.m. at Brodie Field. Union Grove is the No. 3 team from Region 2-AAAAA.

East Coweta fumbled six times and lost three in the first half, but still outgained the Devils by a 170-to-118 margin in total yardage. That yardage advantage kept the game close as Tift only led 10-7 at the half.

However, it was a complete turnaround in the second half as Tift put up 172 yards of offense compared to only 40 for East Coweta.

“We have been in that situation before this season. We would either be just behind or just ahead at the half,” said Tift head coach Jay Walls. “I told them at the half to just go out and play and they would be fine, and they did a great job. We had a great second half.”

With only a three-point lead at the half, Tift scored nine points in the third quarter.

Charlie Edwards kicked a 41-yard field goal with 5:08 left in the third quarter and Kaream Hess burst up the middle on an 11-yard touchdown run with 3:27 left in the period. Edwards missed the point after on that touchdown, his first missed point after on the year.

The Edwards’ field goal came on Tift’s opening drive of the half, while Hess’ touchdown was set up by a Jarvis Watts interception.

On the next kickoff, East Coweta had its only drive of the second half. The Indians went from their 46 to the Tift four.

With 10:12 left in the game, the Indians went for it on fourth-and-goal from the four. Doug Saylor’s pass was knocked away by Larry Bryant to end the threat.

Tift took over and ran some clock on a short drive. East Coweta held and forced a punt. A bad snap on that punt attempt gave the Indians the ball on Tift’s 38. But on the next play, Randy Parker intercepted a Saylor pass to end that threat.

“Our defense pitched a shut-out in the second half and did a great job,” said Walls.

Tift would later end the game’s scoring when Edwards hit a 34-yard field goal with 1:32 left in the contest.

Tift appeared to get off to a quick start when the Devils’ Blake Reddick recovered a Tim McGill fumble early in the first quarter. Five plays later, Edwards got Tift on the scoreboard first with a 48-yard field goal with 8:36 left in the first quarter.

Later in the first quarter, an Edwards punt touched East Coweta’s Shane Pollard and Marvin Chaney recovered on the Indian 27.

Six plays later, Sean Baxley hit Anthony Holloway on a three-yard touchdown pass. Edwards’ point after made the score 10-0 with 11:35 left in the first half.

On East Coweta’s ensuing drive, the Indians faced a fourth-and-two from the Tift 42. McGill burst up the middle on the play and ran the distance for the touchdown. Ryan Gates kicked the point after and the score was 10-7 with 9:02 left in the second quarter.

McGill had 127 yards rushing on 13 carries in the first half, however Tift held the junior to only 25 yards on 11 carries in the second half as he ended up with 152 yards on 24 carries.

For Tift, Baxley was 22-for-38 passing for 203 yards and one touchdown.

Hess had 23 carries for 95 yards rushing and caught six passes for 36 yards. Israel Troupe also had five catches for 68 yards and Marqus King added two catches for 40 yards.