Jacolbi Salley and his Red Bank teammates sent a bold message last Friday in their TSSAA Class 4A second-round playoff football game against Gibbs.
On the first play of the game, Salley followed behind the block of fellow senior Jaeden Espy and showed off his breakaway speed on an 80-yard touchdown burst. That was just the appetizer to what would be a career night for Salley, as the 5-foot-8, 180-pound workhorse rushed for 285 yards on 22 carries with three scores in a 34-7 runaway victory.
That effort has earned Salley Times Free Press player of the week honors.
“Jaeden came around and set a great block and put the defender on the ground, and I was able to see open grass,” Salley said. “We wanted to send a message that this is our field and we are not going home anytime soon. We want our team to go all the way, so I treat every run like it could be my last of the season.”
Finding success in the open grass has been a common trend for Salley, who has put on a marvelous showcase this postseason with 45 rushes for 525 yards and seven scores through the first two rounds, which included a 240-yard, four-touchdown performance in the first round to knock off defending state champion Macon County.