Lions top St. Clair County, advance to state
BIRMINGHAM — During pregame warmups, Briarwood Christian School head coach Fred Yancey stood in the end zone with his hands in his pockets and his shoulders slightly slouched. He barely moved an inch as the Lions ran through their various offensive formations at Lions Pride Stadium.
Yancey’s body language communicated coolness and composure. It transferred to his players.
Down 17 points to St. Clair County at halftime of the Class 5A state semifinals, Briarwood engineered what Yancey called one of the greatest comebacks in school history. The Lions (14-0) reached the end zone on four of their final five possessions, including for the go-ahead score with less than 30 seconds to play, to squeak out a 37-33 victory and advance to their first state final since 2010.
“We were down and out and just had to come back,” Yancey said. “It took a lot of guts, courage on the part of both these teams, and our boys sure did come through in the third and fourth quarter."
Briarwood will face St. Paul’s, which beat Demopolis on Friday, in the state championship game on Thursday, Dec. 7, at Bryant-Denny Stadium in Tuscaloosa. Kickoff is scheduled for 7 p.m.
“It’s a dream come true,” senior defensive back Andrew Sherrod said. “Out of anybody in all classifications, we’ve got a chance.”
Especially if Briarwood demonstrates the gritty resilience it displayed against St. Clair County, a team which it had vanquished in the regular season, 31-6.
But these were not the same Saints.
St. Clair County (10-4) sliced through the Lions’ typically stingy defense in the first half, scoring on three of its four drives. After a pair of rushing touchdowns, Saints quarterback Michael Fisher executed a run-pass option to perfection. He waited patiently in the pocket before delivering a pass across the middle to Ja’Varrius Johnson, who sprinted to the end zone untouched for an 89-yard score.
St. Clair County’s defense also stepped up initially. The Saints pressured Briarwood quarterback Michael Hiers and shut down the rushing game. In the second quarter, they stripped Hiers on third down in the red zone, and Skyler Mizzell returned the fumble more than 75 yards for a touchdown.
The Lions trailed 27-10 at the half.
“This is the first time all year we’ve been pressed like this,” said Yancey, whose team had outscored its first three playoff opponents 128-14. “Give them a lot of credit.”
Then, direct the credit to Briarwood for its play over the final two quarters. After punting on its first possession after the intermission, the Lions flipped a switch.
Carson Eddy, who led the Briarwood receiving corps with 14 receptions for 134 yards, scored on a 3-yard pitch to pull his team within 10, 27-17. The 10-play, 70-yard scoring drive featured a 20-yard completion from Hiers to Hudson Hartsfield on third-and-17.
Hiers capped the next drive by dumping the ball off to Luke Prewett, who dashed down the right sideline for a 26-yard touchdown. Prewett scored on a similar play in the first half that went for 65 yards.
Sherrod’s interception on a deep ball initiated the eight-play, 89-yard scoring drive, which made it 27-24 at the end of the third quarter.
“We weren’t quitting,” he said. “We were going to come back.”
Both teams traded punts to begin the final frame before Briarwood took its first lead of the game with six minutes remaining. Hiers connected with JR Tran-Reno on a 43-yard pass that cut through the dense fog engulfing the stadium, moving the ball to St. Clair’s 25-yard line. Hiers kept it himself on the next play and scurried into the end zone. Noah Nall’s extra point made it 31-27 Briarwood.
In addition to his 47 yards rushing, Hiers completed 32-of-43 passes for more than 390 yards.
“We trained all year for it, all four quarters, even though we hadn’t had to play four quarters like this,” said Hiers, who was told by teammates after the game that he has ice in his veins and should consider a career in the NFL. “We trained for this, so we were ready. All of us players are fighters.”
But St. Clair County and its first-year coach, Matt Glover, didn’t wilt. Fisher threw a screen to Johnson, the wide receiver, who outraced the Briarwood defense for a 60-yard touchdown. St. Clair led 33-31 with a little more than two minutes remaining.
Like its coach, Briarwood kept its cool. Hiers delivered a spot-on 34-yard pass to Eddy on the game-winning drive to push the ball to the Saints 17. Four plays later Tran-Reno plunged into the end zone from 1 yard out with only 23 ticks left on the clock.
The Lions failed to convert a two-point attempt, but it didn’t matter. Tran-Reno intercepted Fisher on St. Clair County’s first — and last — play of its final drive.
Said Yancey: “It doesn’t take experience to want to win bad.”
Click here for a preview of the Lions' state championship matchup against St. Paul's.