More than a decade ago, when Boyd-Buchanan and South Pittsburg were in the same region, huge crowds would gather to watch these two bitter rivals battle it out. Standing room only was the order of the day. Now, with South Pitt playing in Class A and the Buccaneers competing in Class AA, the rivalry may not be quite as intense, but it's still South Pittsburg versus Boyd-Buchanan. The two local powers met again on Friday night at David L.Boyd field, and the Bucs stayed unbeaten
Turnovers proved to be important for both teams in the first half.
Boyd-Buchanan linebacker Jake Hardin stepped in front of a South Pittsburg pass and returned it to the Pirates eleven yard line. Senior quarterback Cooper Hodge scored from seven yards out and the Bucs were out in front 6-0. A few moments later Boyd-Buchanan;s Jeremy Borders returned a Pirate punt 62 yards for a score and after the first quarter, the Buccaneers led 14-0.
Boyd-Buchanan drove to the Pirates ten yard line and on the first play of the second quarter, LaJuan Ford picked off a Cooper Hodge pass and returned it untouched 96 yards for a touchdown. That cut the Bucs lead to 14-7 early in the second stanza.
Another Pirate turnover set up another Buccaneer score. Boyd-Buchanan recovered a fumble, setting up a 28 yard touchdown run by quarterback Cooper Hodge and the Bucs held a 21-6 lead at halftime.
In the third quarter, Hodge scored his third touchdown of the game as he broke free and scored on a 52 yard romp and the Bucs increased their lead to 28-6 midway through the third period.
South Pittsburg put together the Pirates most impressive drive of the night as quarterback Hunter Holland scored on a quarterback sneak from a yard away and the Bucs' lead had been cut to 28-12 at the end of three. The teams played a scoreless fourth and Boyd-Buchanan held on for a 28-12 victory.
The Buccaneers are a perfect 9-0 going into their regular season finale next week as they host Silverdale at home. Coach Grant Reynolds, whose team was picked to finish fourth in Region 3-2A in the preseason said he was happy with the win, but they have a lot of mistakes to fix. " We didn't play very well, but hats off to South Pittsburg. They played hard and are a well coached football team."
South Pittsburg Coach Vic Grider, whose team dropped to 6-3 on the year, has been proud of his team all season long, " I know everyone's excited about our future, but I'm really excited about this team and the special things they can do the rest of this season."
The Buccaneers are the top seed in Region 3-2A and will get a bye in the first round of the playoffs on November 6th.