Giving the Devils their due

I’ve got to admit, I doubted the Tift County Blue Devils all season.

I thought they were a good football team, maybe even a playoff team, but I thought they would be lucky to win six or seven games. Eleven games and 10 wins later, I see that I was wrong.

I thought there was no way the Blue Devils could win Region 1-AAAAA and survive against such tough teams as the two-time defending state champions at Lowndes, the up-and-coming power at Coffee, the newcomers at Warner Robins, the ever-dangerous Wildcats in Valdosta or the Colquitt County team that beat Tift last year. With Lowndes, Colquitt and Valdosta all watching the playoffs from afar and the Blue Devils hoisting a region title for the first time in over 20 years, I see that I was wrong again.

I thought that Charlie Edwards, as talented as he is, would lose his nerve and miss some tough kicks that would cost Tift a few games. After “the man, who, you know the man, who, Charlie Edwards” kicked several game-winning kicks including a couple in overtime under all the pressure in the world, it became apparent that I was again wrong.

I thought that Tift’s offensive line was too undersized to push around the vicious defenses in Region 1-AAAAA and that the Blue Devils would not have a running game. Then Kaream Hess ran for over 1,000 yards behind bulls like Zach Allen and Mark Buhler, and again I looked like a fool.

I thought that Israel Troupe would prove to be more flash than substance. Although Troupe did not set records as a receiver this year, he seemed to always step up for the Devils and make the big touchdown catches they needed to win despite constant double teams against him. Guess I was wrong there too.

I thought that Tift would have a hard time because of their new starting quarterback, but all Sean Baxley did was throw for over 1,400 yards and complete over 60 percent of his passes. I’ve heard some talk of him being one of the better quarterbacks in Tift County history, and without a doubt, no quarterback in the past 23 years has accomplished what he has with a region title under his belt. Again, I was wrong.

For what it’s worth, I never doubted Tift’s defense. Everybody knew that the Devils defense was going to be as dominant as it has been each of the past three years.

And I love “The Devil Walk.” Do it; do it.

But even when Tift won the region title and advanced to the postseason, I wondered if maybe the Devils were just the best team in a mediocre region. I thought maybe Region 1-AAAAA was down with teams like Lowndes and Valdosta falling out of contention. Well, after four blowout wins by Region 1-AAAAA teams in the first round, it appears I was, you guessed it, wrong again.

So now, finally, I believe in the Devils completely. I believe that all the teams in the region could reach the final four and that Tift, when all but the shouting is over, could be hauling home a state title.

Let’s hope I’m not wrong again.

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