BUFORD, Ga. — Buford’s defense has been dominant all season long. But the Wolves have really turned nasty in the playoffs, allowing just 29 total points (9.6 points/game) in wins over Richmond Hill, Newton, and Douglas County.
The 29 points are the fewest allowed among the four semifinalists left in the Class 6A bracket — Carrollton (37), North Gwinnett (48), and Valdosta (96) being the other three.
The Douglas County win was even more impressive, as the Wolves, who beat the Tigers 34-26 in a regular season showdown in September, gave up just 15 in the rematch last week. But they will get the ultimate test this week.
Buford travels to Titletown on Friday to take on Valdosta with a spot in the Class 6A finals on the line. It is the just the second-ever meeting between the two iconic programs, with Buford winning 45-26 in the 2020 Class 6A semifinals in the only other matchup.
It is the New Guard vs. the Old Guard when it comes to Georgia dominance. Buford has won 14 state titles, all but one coming in the 21st Century. Valdosta has 24 state titles (the most by any program) and 6 national titles, all but one of those coming in the 20th Century. Their last state title came in 2016, which was just the second finals appearance for the state’s winningest program since 1998.
Buford has made the finals across six different classifications 18 times since 2000. But the Wolves have not hoisted a trophy since winning the Class 6A title in 2021.
This one has a classic feel to it. The Wildcats (12-1) have scored the most points in the playoffs (150, 50 points/game) in wins over Dacula, Brookwood, and Walton. Buford (13-0) has not allowed over 26 in any game this season.
Something is definitely going to give in this one.
We caught up with Buford coach Bryant Appling to discuss the Wolves’ showdown with Valdosta at the iconic Cleveland Field at Bazemore-Hyder Stadium.
Coach, let’s start with Douglas County. You’d already played them this year. It’s hard to beat a team twice, and it would have been the third time in a little over a year. I thought last week might have been your best performance against them in the three games. How did you feel like the game went and y’all’s performance overall?
“I’m proud of the kids. Like you said, it’s hard to beat a team twice. And like you said, we played three times in the last year. I think our kids were focused. We expected their best shot, which I believe they did give us. I mean, they had some good things drawn up for us on both sides of the ball. They made some plays and we made some plays. Luckily, we made enough for us to be able to come out on top. But I do think it was probably one of our better performances from beginning to end. I also believe it was one of (Douglas County’s) better performances from beginning to end. We just kept the ball in front of us on defense and turned it out on offense, and then moved the ball, running it really well. And that helped us run that clock down and get out of there with a victory.”
We’ve talked that this might be one of your best defensive groups. You’ve played two pretty good offenses the last two weeks and held them to 29 total points. When you sit down at the end of the year and you look at what they’ve done, who y’all have played, it’s been a pretty solid defensive year. Has this group exceeded expectations or have they not hit their peak yet?
It’s crazy to say but I really don’t think they have hit a peak yet. I think they’re still improving, which is a good thing. It’s hard to have different spikes throughout the year. Usually have one or two early and then try to have another one late. But I’ve seen us get better at various things that we need to get better at throughout the whole season. They take pride in improving those things each and every Friday night. And I think they did a good job of getting another spike last week. But I still think there’s room for us to hit another one this week. And that’s what we’re going for.”
We’ve talked several times over the years just how difficult the largest classification in Georgia is. People have been talking all along it was y’all and Grayson, and then here comes Carrollton and beats Grayson. But not too many people have been talking about Valdosta. It’s Titletown. It’s an iconic stadium. Have you ever been involved in a game down there and what do you expect?
“They’re a good football team, always have been, and they’re a lot like us. The expectations are super high every year, so if you don’t do what some people expect, you know it’s a down year, but it’s never really a down year for either one of us. But I’ve never coached a game in that stadium. I’ve heard about it, obviously, for a long time, and, you know, it’s Titletown. Their fan base is deep and the atmosphere is going to be electric. But we’re going into a hostile environment that’s deep in the playoffs so anything can happen.”
Let’s talk about individual matchups. Their offense is averaging 50 points a game in the playoffs but they’re also giving up a lot of points. You might have to outscore them. Y’all haven’t been in a massive shootout this year. Is that the key matchup, slowing down their offense?
“Every game defensively we have goals, and we feel like we need to do certain things to keep the points low. Offensively, we’re ready to do whatever we need to do to win the game as well. You never never know how it’s going to go. You never want to be in a shootout defensively, you know? And you want to score a lot of points on the offensive side of the ball every night. We’re just gonna go in with the same attitude we do every night. Whatever happens, we’ll adjust how we need to adjust and try to find a way to win the football game.”
They’ve got some guys that are putting up some big numbers. The quarterback has 25 TD passes and just 2 INTs. They’ve got a pair of 1,000 yard rushers. They’ve got three receivers over 500 yards. They’ve got weapons all over the field. Is there a matchup in there that feels like it’s going to give you the most trouble?
“They do have a lot of guys so you can’t just hone in on one guy. They try to spread you thin at spots, and they like to run the ball as well. So they’re balanced. So there’s gonna be some one-on-one matchups we got to win. They got so many guys. We just need to win our battles where we are and play the next down.”
I would call y’all the new title town over Valdosta. They were in the 60s, 70s, 80s, 90s. But you guys have been the standard bearer in Georgia in the 2000s. This is like the new guard against the old guard, which makes it kind of compelling.
“It’s interesting for you guys and everybody across the state, fans and stuff like that. But I’m worried about today. I’m worried about what we’re doing this year. I’m not worried about what happened 50 years ago, what happened two years ago. This is about winning the game that is next. That’s the goal this Friday night.”
The post Football: Buford’s Appling talks defense and Titletown with Wolves looking for finals berth appeared first on AccessWdun.
