Jacob Joyner runs over a man at the goal line and scores a two-point conversion for Tiftarea on a pass from J.R. Walker. The conversion gave the Panthers a 29-21 lead with 55 seconds remaining.

CHULA — Southland Academy was not the favorite heading into Friday’s meeting with Tiftarea Academy and the Raiders were joyous in the fourth quarter when they worked a tie with the Panthers. But momentum shifted in the middle of that joy and the Panthers scored late for a 29-21 homecoming victory.

Despite their struggles, “We still found a way,” said Tiftarea head coach Erik Soliday.

Soliday confessed the Panthers need the upcoming open week after a tough three-week stretch of games. They will have a rough opponent coming out of it, opening their District 3-3A slate with Valwood Oct. 4.

Southland’s Cade Futch scored a touchdown with 4:50 remaining to pull within 21-19 of the Panthers. Needing to go for two points, the Raiders got it on a pass from Cooper Boren.

But then the ball was spiked in the end zone. That combined with another Southland personal foul and the Raiders were forced to kick off inside their own 15. Though the kick sailed over John Jackson’s head, Jackson returned it to the 36 and Tiftarea had good starting field position on their drive.

Amped up a little more from the flags going their way, the Panthers chewed up 13 yards immediately on a J.R. Walker run.

Staying on the ground to bleed clock, it took four more plays to gain another 23 yards and reach the Raiders’ 37. There, Kaiden Richardson broke off a 22-yard run to make it first-and-goal from the 6.

Time was flying now and Southland had to call time at 1:01 when Caden Grier advanced the ball to the 3.

Out of the timeout, Walker bowled over two men to score with 55 seconds remaining. Instead of the usual one-point try, Soliday elected to go for two. Walker dumped a pass to lineman Jacob Joyner just before the goal line and Joyner ran over a man for the conversion and an eight-point lead.

Soliday said it was a play the Panthers had been working on.

“Thank goodness it worked,” he said. “We needed it right there.”

Before Southland even had time to get a drive going from their starting spot of their own 30, they were whistled for a delay. Bryant Roland picked up 11 on second down, getting out of bounds at the 36 with 41 seconds to go.

The next play saw the Panther Charlie Taylor harry the quarterback, resulting in Jackson Parrish ending Southland’s hopes with an interception. The return went to the 24 and Tiftarea knelt once to end the game.

Southland entered Friday with a 1-4 record to Tiftarea’s 4-1. The game played a lot more evenly. “They’re getting better every week,” Soliday said. He felt his squad did not play with much discipline defensively.

Tiftarea’s opening drive fizzled out on downs at the Raider 8. Southland responded with an 11-play, 43-yard drive that resulted in a punt, but also took up the rest of the opening quarter.

For a minute, it seemed the game would change pace. On the first play after the punt, Grier twisted out of a tackle and galloped 68 yards to the 6. The drive was a short one, two plays, as Walker ran it in from there at 10:48.

The extra point kick was blocked, however, leaving the Panthers up 6-0.

Lacking Tiftarea’s size, Southland’s strategy was to burn clock and keep the hosts guessing on who would be getting the ball out of the Wing T.

The Raiders inched their way along. Turner Simmons had a 14-yard gain, and caught a 13-yard pass on a rare Boren dropback. Finally on Tiftarea’s side of the 50, Jamarcus Walker gained 27 on a run to the 11.

At the 8, Allen Styck found a hole in the right side of the line to score at 4:18. Boren’s kick was good and Southland had a 7-6 lead.

In a rarity, both teams had three-and-outs for punts. Realizing he had a chance at a short-ish drive late in the half, Soliday called all of his timeouts as the Raiders couldn’t move from their own 10. Tiftarea got the ball back with 1:17 left at the 47.

John Jackson picked up an immediate 22 yards on a screen to the 31. Going no-huddle, Walker picked up yards on a run, then passed to the 11 with Jackson on the catch.

Walker clocked the ball at the 11 with 18 seconds left. He wanted to throw on the next play, but not liking his options, sprinted towards the north side of the end zone. Southland caught him, but it was too late and Walker scored with eight seconds to spare.

Walker successfully ran again on a two-point conversion and it was a 14-7 Panthers lead at the break.

Both teams turned the ball over on downs to begin the second half, using up nearly 8:30 in the process. Two shorter possessions ended in punts, using up three minutes more.

As the fourth quarter started, Southland had the ball at the Tiftarea 30. The Wing T was still causing confusion and Styck gave SA first-and-goal at the 9.

Perhaps with their other legs tiring, the Raiders tried a new man, Futch. His 215-pound frame couldn’t be brought down and he scored at 8:58.

Down a point, the Raiders called time and then reentered the field in a different formation to go for a two-point conversion. The Panthers weren’t fooled by this, however, and snowed the runner behind the line of scrimmage.

Up by a point, the Panthers seemed to put the game away quickly after Brody Seagraves caught an onside kick at the 47.

Jackson gained eight on the first play, then Walker squirted through a gap on the second snap, covering 39 yards for a score at 8:12.

With recent troubles covering kickoffs in mind, Tiftarea had kicker Harrison Powell bounce the ball, where it was recovered at the 31.

Aided by a Tiftarea personal foul, the Raiders came flying down the field, Futch running in a 20-yard touchdown. Futch got the two-point conversion, but the penalties helped the Panthers for their game-winning drive.

Walker ran for all four touchdowns and had an official 136 yards in the process. Grier carried eight times for 103 yards, Richardson four times for 48.

Jackson had four receptions for 45 yards. Billy Martin had two, including a sliding catch on a tipped pass. Walker completed 7 of 12 passes for 76 yards.

Defensively, Temond Marcus had eight solo stops and 11 total.