For those of you who think that Red Bank's offense is centered around running back Keon Williams, you might want to think again.

Please don't misunderstand.

Williams is a very good athlete and he's made life miserable for a lot of teams this fall, but the bullish senior had the evening off on Friday.

Instead, the Lions took advantage of quarterback Andy Christopher's arm as they rallied for a 48-8 victory over the Gibbs Eagles in the first round of the TSSAA football playoffs at Red Bank's Community Stadium.

Williams suffered a shoulder injury last week against Hixson. He was dressed out and even took part in pre-game warmups, but he never left the sideline once the game started.

As it turned out, the Lions got along just fine without him.

"We've been saying all along that we have a multi-dimensional team and we proved it tonight," said Red Bank coach Tim Daniels after the game ended.

"Gibbs was a pretty physical bunch, but I felt like we played well. We've been a lot more focused in recent weeks and it showed tonight.

"Andy Christopher had a fantastic game. He made some great throws, but it was an outstanding job by our receivers as well.

"We were hoping to get one more score at the end of the first half, but he tried to force that last pass and it was picked off. He knew he should have thrown it away, but he tried to force it.

"I'm extremely happy with the way we played. We know we can only take this one game at a time. Next week's game against Fulton will be another physical battle.

"It was good to see our defense get a couple of scores. I've been waiting all season for Jeremy (Jackson)to get a pick and he got one tonight," Daniels added with a smile.

After a scoreless opening quarter, Red Bank got on the board on the second play of the second quarter when Tim Dews zigzagged his way into the end zone from the 5.

Andy Ramirez' PAT made it 7-0 with 11:22 showing.

Gibbs came right back two possessions later to score its only touchdown of the game.

Blake Dalon recovered a Red Bank fumble at their own 49. Nine plays later, Andy Hibbett scored on a sweep from the 6.

He added the conversion run to give his team an 8-7 lead at the 6:17 mark, but the Eagles didn't stay on top for long.

Christopher hooked up with Josh Robinson for a 14-yard scoring pass at the 3:33 mark, ending a six-play, 68-yard drive.

The Lions made it 21-8 at the break when Christopher tossed a short pass to Kelvin Clay, who dodged and darted his way 37 yards into the end zone with 1:49 showing before intermission.

Christopher scored on a keeper from the 14 as Red Bank extended its lead to 27-8 late in the third quarter.

The slender Lion signal caller then added his third TD pass of the game on the first play of the fourth stanza.

Dews had gained 18 yards on the first two plays of the drive before Christopher hit Shawn McClesky in stride for a 43-yard score with 11:50 to play.

That's when the Red Bank defense decided to shine.

Keith Mayes scooped up a fumble and raced 28 yards for the first defensive TD at the 11:31 mark.

Jeremy Jackson then intercepted a Zack Batts pass two plays later and zipped 38 yards untouched down the right sideline just over a minute later for Red Bank's final score of the game.

Gibbs coach Chad Conley was somewhat emotional when the game ended, but he was evermore proud of the effort his team put forth.

"I know those guys over there won't believe this, but our kids came down here tonight to win this football game," he said later.

"I told my kids that I didn't want the result of this game to erase what has been an outstanding season for us. I just know that we played our hind ends off tonight.

"We knew we had to control the ball and we couldn't afford to get in a track meet with them. Red Bank has an outstanding football team and we knew we'd have to play our best game to have a chance.

"Of course, it was an uphill battle the rest of the way when our starting quarterback got hurt. But we'll learn from this game," he concluded.

Chris Legg was the starting quarterback for Gibbs, but he got his bell rung on the second play of the second half and never returned.

Red Bank finished the evening with 381 total yards, including 210 through the air and 171 on the ground.

Dews was the leading rusher with 102 yards on 15 carries while Christopher completed 13 of 16 passes for the 210 yards.

Clay had six receptions for 79 yards while McCleskey gained 83 yards on three grabs.

Robinson also had three catches for 36 yards.

Hibbett was the workhorse for Gibbs as he finished the game with 130 yards on 23 attempts.

Gibbs finished the game with 190 total yards, including 171 on the ground.

Red Bank amassed 16 first downs while Gibbs finished with 11.

The Eagles end the year at 6-5 while Red Bank is now 11-0.

The Lions will be at home again next Friday when they host the Fulton Falcons.

Gibbs 0 8 0 0 -- 8
Red Bank 0 21 6 21 -- 48

RB -- Tim Dews 5 run (Andy Ramirez kick), 11:22 left in second;
G -- Andy Hibbett 6 run (Hibbett run), 6:17 left in second;
RB -- Josh Robinson 14 pass from Andy Christopher (Ramirez kick), 3:33 left in second;
RB -- Kelvin Clay 37 pass from Christopher (Ramirez kick), 1:49 left in second;
RB -- Christopher 14 run (kick blocked), 3:34 left in third;
RB -- Shawn McClesky 43 pass from Christopher (Ramirez kick), 11:50 left in fourth;
RB -- Keith Mayes 28 fumble return (Ramirez kick), 11:31 left in fourth;
RB -- Jeremy Jackson 38 interception return (Ramirez kick), 10:27 left in fourth.

(Email John Hunt at tnmoose2002@aol.com)