It would be difficult to search all the records, but if last week’s comeback win over Cairo from 21-points down wasn’t the largest comeback in Jefferson history to win a playoff game (47-28), it’s got to be in the top two for sure.
Now, the Class 3A top-seeded Dragons (12-1) will get ready for what will be an even bigger test this week, playing host to No. 4-seed West Laurens (13-0) in the semifinals on Friday at Memorial Stadium.
The Raiders have the state’s leading rusher in Ty Cummings (213-2,557 yards, 12.0 ypc, 196.7 ypg, 30 TD, 10 100-yard games) but the Dragons are yielding just 12.23 points/game, which is 2nd in Class 3A behind Sandy Creek.
After the initial blitz in the opening minutes of the game, Jefferson exploded for 30 consecutive points and outscored Cairo 47-7 after the final three-plus quarters.
It will be a battle of titans. However, the Dragons will have the playoff experience on their side.
Jefferson is into its third consecutive semifinal while this is the first-ever semifinal appearance for West Laurens. The Dragons, who are looking for their second straight championship game appearance, also have won 9 straight playoff games at Memorial Stadium going back to 2023.
But this Raiders squad has been built for this season. The quarterback, Cason Pollack, is a senior and their top five rushers and top four receivers all are seniors. Seven of their top 10 defenders are seniors as well.
We caught up with Jefferson coach Travis Noland to discuss the Dragons’ upcoming showdown with West Laurens.
Coach, everyone left in the playoffs at this point is pretty good. West Laurens is the No. 4 seed. What do you know about them as y’all get ready for the semifinals?
“West Laurens is very talented, very well coached. They’ve got a really good program, a really good team. They have two great running backs. They’re just a solid, solid football team.”
How do you feel your guys are playing right now, especially coming off last week’s wild quarterfinal game?
“I feel like we’re playing good football right now. We’re playing ‘Team’ football, as I said last week. Last week (Cairo) had three big plays early in the game and then after that, we played really, really good football to get back in it and then take control of the game. We’re playing good, complimentary football right now.”
The defense has really figured out how to play at a super high level without (star Max Brown). What has been the key?
“Our defensive coach, Coach Tom Parker, has been here a long time, and he does an unbelievable job as a coordinator, and our defensive coaches do a great job as well. We’re also down a couple other players with injuries that were a big part of the team, so they’ve done a great job of moving people around and just finding ways each week to take away what the other team does best. This has been a very, very good year for us defensively.”
You mentioned they’re running back. I’m looking at Cummings. He led the entire state in rushing, and he’s been adding on in the playoffs. He’s at 2,500 yards, 30 touchdowns, 10 100-yard games. You slow him down, you win this game. Is it that simple?
“I wish it was that simple! But no, because they got a lot of other weapons too. That’s what’s scary, is how productive he’s been. But they’ve got another (running) back that’s phenomenal. And, you know, they got some wideouts that can beat you. So they’re more than a one-man show. They do a lot of things really, really well, and their offensive line is big and athletic. It’ll be the biggest challenge of the year for our defense for sure. Then offensively it’ll be another huge challenge for us. They’re big and fast and run really well and tackle well on defense.”
When you have a running back that’s that good, they’re going to lean on him. Is the temptation to stack the box? Or do you think that that opens you up more against the passing attack?
“That’s what’s so hard about these guys, is they don’t just line up. They probably have more formations than anybody we’ve played all year. They got power sets, they’ve got spread sets, and they got Wildcat sets. And they move that guy out to wide receiver and bring him in motion for jets. I mean, they get him the ball in multiple, multiple ways. So it’s a very difficult offense to defend, and they got the weapons to make it go.”
The Raiders’ defense has forced 26 turnovers — 10 fumbles, 16 interceptions. That’s two per game. It looks like they probably win most every turnover battle. And you’ve said before ‘you win the turnover battle, you typically can win the game.’ Everyone knows y’all like to run the ball first. But you also like to be balanced when necessary. What will be y’alls plan of attack?
“At this point in time, you don’t try to reinvent the wheel. We’ll just try to do things that we do well. It usually comes down to blocking and tackling and ball security, so hopefully we can do all three of those things. I think the weather is going to play a big factor in the game but shoot, you’re in the semifinals. Everybody still playing is going to be really good and really well coached. So hopefully we can be solid and play good football and give ourselves a chance.”
Last Friday was not a typical game for y’all. Cairo jumps out to a 21-0 lead and most teams probably never recover from that, especially in the playoffs. But you guys never seemed to waver.
“We talk all the time about being able to play through adversity, and in playoff football, there’s a lot of ebbs and flows to a game. You can’t get too high or too emotional. You just got to keep playing through it, whether it’s good or bad. Our players never panicked, and our coaches never panicked. We just kept playing and you know, we were able to turn the tide and get some breaks to go our way. (Cairo) had a bunch of breaks go their way early, and so it just balanced itself out in the end. Once we got it close, we felt like we had a great chance to win, and we did.”
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