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AHSAA 3A playoffs round 1: Abbeville at T.R. Miller
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| Photo courtesy of Foto Stop T.R. Miller’s Nick Etheridge, left, works with fellow teammate Johntae Brown, right, to bring down W.S. Neal Eagle player Jeremy Nicholson Friday night in East Brewton during the Battle of Murder Creek game at W.S. Neal Stadium. T.R. Miller won 34-0 and will play in the first round of the AHSAA class 3A state playoffs this week at home against Abbeville. Game time is set for 7 p.m. in Brewton. |
TRM Tigers welcome Abbeville Yellow Jackets to Brewton for round one
By Adam Robinson
Sports Editor
After their second straight shutout of archrival W.S. Neal in the Battle of Murder Creek, the T.R. Miller Tiger football will now look to the class 3A state playoffs this week against the Abbeville Yellow Jackets.
Abbeville finished its season with a 5-5 record after losing against Carroll Friday night 47-28.
T.R. Miller finished its regular season with a 9-1 record after defeating the Eagles of East Brewton 34-0.
T.R. Miller Tiger head coach Jamie Riggs said he was pleased to get the win over W.S. Neal.
“W.S. Neal made some mistakes early and we were able to capitalize on some of those,” Riggs said. “We were able to do some things down there in the first quarter and the onside kick was a big play for us as we were able to get the ball back. After they turned the ball over, we got the ball in really good field position about three times in a row and that was huge factor in making things happen.
“When we played Straughn, we kept giving them the ball in good field position and that was huge part of the game.”
With the first round playoff game against Abbeville this week, this marks the 26th straight season the Tigers of Brewton have made the playoffs.
The Tigers have made the playoffs every year since 1984 and made it four times before that for 30 overall trips.
Overall, T.R. Miller is 19-0 in home first round games and 26-3 overall in first round game. This is the second time the Tigers have faced Abbeville with the first time coming during the 1969 season as T.R. Miller won 41-14.
T.R. Miller’s 1969 team won the state championship for the Tigers, their first in school history, and that team was honored this season for their 40th anniversary.
“That is pretty amazing,” Riggs said of the accomplishment. “I have never really thought about that. You would have thought some point in time, even a few years ago we hung in there and made the playoffs, that that would had not occurred. Especially after we went to regions because in the area format sometimes all you had to do was lose one game or a tiebreaker there because only two teams from the area went and if you lost, you were out of there.
“So, there are some good teams that are out of the playoffs before they start so I guess that is a pretty amazing thing and says something about the players we have had here in the past. That is pretty neat.”
This season, Abbeville is 3-3 in home games and 2-2 in away games and is averaging 21.5 points scoring and giving up 24.4. T.R. Miller is averaging 37.5 points while giving up 16.3.
“Abbeville really has a very good team,” Riggs said. “They have lost some games around midseason when some of their better folks were injured. They had some injuries particularly to their number one player who is No. 6 Quentin Newman. He is really an outstanding player. He was injured midseason and did not play and then came back and really was not well then. We saw him on film and he still did not look too well.”
Riggs said Abbeville has lost some close games this season and he thinks that they are not a typical third place region team.
“They are much, much improved over the Abbeville team we played when we were in the same region,” Riggs said. “They probably have as much team speed this year and they remind me of Luverne with their size, speed, and athletic ability. Like Luverne, they had they big play potential, especially with Newman. So, it is going to be a battle for us to win this game.
The Yellow Jackets are 6-14 overall in the playoffs with 16 appearances, their last coming in 2006. Abbeville is 5-10 in first round games.
During the 2004 and 2005 seasons, the two teams were in the same region and T.R. Miller won 42-6 and 38-14 respectively and is 5-0 all-time against Abbeville.
“As we tell our players all the time that in the playoffs, there are teams that are 10-0 that are going down and then there are teams that are 5-5 or 6-4 that are going up,” Riggs said. “And when 5-5 meets 10-0, it is usually a pretty good game as people don’t look at the records. We have had some teams that have lost two or three games and got hot in the playoffs and went all the way to the end.
“What matters is who has the will to prepare and practice and to play this week and how well you play on Friday night. Next week does not matter. You have to do that and if you can’t do that, you won’t last long. Every team can do something in the playoffs or they would not be there. They had to beat out four other teams to get that spot.”
Riggs has always said he wants his team to be good heading into the final weeks of the season—the late games in October and against W.S. Neal.
This season, he is really proud of his team considering they are now in their ‘third season.’
“We had the preseason game and I thought we did a really good job with that,” Riggs said. “And then we had the regular season where we won nine of ten games. Some weeks we played really good and felt really good and other weeks we thought we did not play well and some of those games we still won. I am really proud of them for that as they have tried hard and had good practices and it has been a good season. This is third season, the playoffs.
“It is a brand new season and it is kind of like you are in an eight-team tournament trying to get to the semifinals. I think certainly there are some teams that we can play with and they certainly can play with us. It is up for grabs. Who is going to be hot and who is going to make the plays and do what they need to do?”
T.R. Miller will take on Abbeville Friday night at Brewton Municipal Stadium.
Abbeville finished its season with a 5-5 record after losing against Carroll Friday night 47-28.
T.R. Miller finished its regular season with a 9-1 record after defeating the Eagles of East Brewton 34-0.
T.R. Miller Tiger head coach Jamie Riggs said he was pleased to get the win over W.S. Neal.
“W.S. Neal made some mistakes early and we were able to capitalize on some of those,” Riggs said. “We were able to do some things down there in the first quarter and the onside kick was a big play for us as we were able to get the ball back. After they turned the ball over, we got the ball in really good field position about three times in a row and that was huge factor in making things happen.
“When we played Straughn, we kept giving them the ball in good field position and that was huge part of the game.”
With the first round playoff game against Abbeville this week, this marks the 26th straight season the Tigers of Brewton have made the playoffs.
The Tigers have made the playoffs every year since 1984 and made it four times before that for 30 overall trips.
Overall, T.R. Miller is 19-0 in home first round games and 26-3 overall in first round game. This is the second time the Tigers have faced Abbeville with the first time coming during the 1969 season as T.R. Miller won 41-14.
T.R. Miller’s 1969 team won the state championship for the Tigers, their first in school history, and that team was honored this season for their 40th anniversary.
“That is pretty amazing,” Riggs said of the accomplishment. “I have never really thought about that. You would have thought some point in time, even a few years ago we hung in there and made the playoffs, that that would had not occurred. Especially after we went to regions because in the area format sometimes all you had to do was lose one game or a tiebreaker there because only two teams from the area went and if you lost, you were out of there.
“So, there are some good teams that are out of the playoffs before they start so I guess that is a pretty amazing thing and says something about the players we have had here in the past. That is pretty neat.”
This season, Abbeville is 3-3 in home games and 2-2 in away games and is averaging 21.5 points scoring and giving up 24.4. T.R. Miller is averaging 37.5 points while giving up 16.3.
“Abbeville really has a very good team,” Riggs said. “They have lost some games around midseason when some of their better folks were injured. They had some injuries particularly to their number one player who is No. 6 Quentin Newman. He is really an outstanding player. He was injured midseason and did not play and then came back and really was not well then. We saw him on film and he still did not look too well.”
Riggs said Abbeville has lost some close games this season and he thinks that they are not a typical third place region team.
“They are much, much improved over the Abbeville team we played when we were in the same region,” Riggs said. “They probably have as much team speed this year and they remind me of Luverne with their size, speed, and athletic ability. Like Luverne, they had they big play potential, especially with Newman. So, it is going to be a battle for us to win this game.
The Yellow Jackets are 6-14 overall in the playoffs with 16 appearances, their last coming in 2006. Abbeville is 5-10 in first round games.
During the 2004 and 2005 seasons, the two teams were in the same region and T.R. Miller won 42-6 and 38-14 respectively and is 5-0 all-time against Abbeville.
“As we tell our players all the time that in the playoffs, there are teams that are 10-0 that are going down and then there are teams that are 5-5 or 6-4 that are going up,” Riggs said. “And when 5-5 meets 10-0, it is usually a pretty good game as people don’t look at the records. We have had some teams that have lost two or three games and got hot in the playoffs and went all the way to the end.
“What matters is who has the will to prepare and practice and to play this week and how well you play on Friday night. Next week does not matter. You have to do that and if you can’t do that, you won’t last long. Every team can do something in the playoffs or they would not be there. They had to beat out four other teams to get that spot.”
Riggs has always said he wants his team to be good heading into the final weeks of the season—the late games in October and against W.S. Neal.
This season, he is really proud of his team considering they are now in their ‘third season.’
“We had the preseason game and I thought we did a really good job with that,” Riggs said. “And then we had the regular season where we won nine of ten games. Some weeks we played really good and felt really good and other weeks we thought we did not play well and some of those games we still won. I am really proud of them for that as they have tried hard and had good practices and it has been a good season. This is third season, the playoffs.
“It is a brand new season and it is kind of like you are in an eight-team tournament trying to get to the semifinals. I think certainly there are some teams that we can play with and they certainly can play with us. It is up for grabs. Who is going to be hot and who is going to make the plays and do what they need to do?”
T.R. Miller will take on Abbeville Friday night at Brewton Municipal Stadium.
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