JASPER, Ga. - It was not the fanciest of game plans, but in the eyes of Pickens High School football coach Chris Parker, Friday night's ground-and-pound approach was a thing of beauty.
The Dragons improved to 9-0 and, more importantly, clinched the Region 6-AAAA championship - the first region title in program history - with a 31-21 win over Ridgeland.
Parker's offense, usually full of misdirection and big plays, ran the ball 59 times and completed just three passes. Quarterback C.J. Streicher was the hammer, keeping for 30 runs and 135 yards, while six other players carried at least once for the Dragons, who earned their fifth region win and will close their regular-season schedule next week at LaFayette.
"Streicher was really good managing the game, and our offensive line did a great job," Parker said. "We held the ball a really long time. They are so good and quick on offense that the key was just to hold it as long as we could."
While the Dragons only had the three completions, they went for 132 yards, including a 30-yard touchdown pass from flanker Michael Burrell to Brady Moore on the team's first play after a short Ridgeland punt from the 2.
The Panthers (5-3, 3-1), though, scored a pair of touchdowns in two minutes to take a 14-7 lead. Jordan Blackwell carried four times for 53 yards on the first drive, scoring from the 3. After a failed Pickens fake-punt pass, Ridgeland quarterback Tanner Hill hit a streaking Torrance Roberts for a 47-yard touchdown pass.
Ridgeland's advantage was 14-10 early in the second quarter when Streicher hit Robert Davis for 30 yards to get to the Ridgeland 17. Davis then converted on third-and-10 with a 10-yard run, and one play later he scored from the 7 to give the Dragons a lead they would not relinquish.
"That drive was huge because Ridgeland is so dangerous and can score in a hurry," Parker said.
The game turned for good later in the quarter when, after the Panthers drove to the 18, Kaleb Ray blocked Conner Middleton's field goal attempt. On the next play, Streicher rewarded Ray's big play with an even bigger one, a 72-yard touchdown on a perfect play-action pass to help set up a 24-14 lead the Dragons took into halftime.
The second half was all Streicher and company. Pickens ran 35 plays, 33 of them runs. Streicher carried 23 times for 70 yards in the half, but several of his runs came on third or fourth downs to keep long drives alive.
A 12-play, 67-yard series to start the second half broke the game open. Streicher converted on fourth-down keepers twice, setting up a 13-yard touchdown run by Davis on which he fumbled the ball into the air as he broke the line of scrimmage, caught it in stride and powered his way into the end zone to set up a 31-14 lead.
"I thought we were a little better than they were in the box, but they were better on the edge," Parker said. "We usually do a good job of running on the edge, but they did a great job on that. We knew we were going to have to go 4 or 5 yards a play and earn it, but we did."
Ridgeland's Hill was just 9-of-24 passing, including three late completions to Stephon Walker that accounted for 127 of Hill's 196 passing yards.
The Panthers' Jordan Blackwell had 125 yards on 19 carries, but he was limited to 12 yards in the second half. Walker totaled 139 yards on four catches.
Contact Lindsey Young at lyoung@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6296. Follow him on Twitter @youngsports22.