Last week, the Appling County Pirates shocked 2A when they defeated the Pierce County Bears 13-6 in Baxley to win the Region 3-2A championship, snap the Bears’ 17-game winning streak (which began after Appling beat them last year on September 29), and dethrone them from the #1 spot – a position they had held all season long.
And two former Trojans helped the Pirates do the unthinkable.
Appling assistants Tye Bailey and RJ Ringgold both played together and coached together at Coffee High. After a brief respite, they’re together again in Baxley. Bailey graduated from Coffee in 2016 and went to Webber International University in Babson Park, Fla., where he played football for four years. He was a four-time All-Conference and three-time All-American defensive tackle and he finished his career with 100 tackles. After graduation, he returned to Douglas and coached at Coffee for two years before serving as the defensive coordinator at Chattahoochee County, defensive line coach at Fitzgerald, and now the defensive line coach at Appling.
Ringgold is a 2018 Coffee High graduate who went into coaching right out of high school. In addition to coaching at Coffee, he has also coached at Tift County and now at Appling. He coaches safeties and also serves as the women’s head basketball coach.
Both had a hand in a defensive game plan that contained one of the classification’s most explosive offenses. Appling scored a touchdown in the first quarter on a 60-yard pass from Harrison Hickox to Jaiden Knight. The Pirates’ Alan Ramirez kicked two field goals (37 yards and 24 yards) in the fourth quarter. Pierce’s Jaeveon Williams scored the Bears’ lone touchdown, a 20-yard scamper in the third quarter. Appling blocked the extra point, leaving Pierce trailing by one. The Bears wouldn’t get any closer and Ramirez’s two field goals iced the game for Appling. The game ended on a sack by Appling’s 6’1”, 275-pound defensive lineman Edwin Burt.
“Going in, I knew if we were going to win, we were going to have to strike up front, press then separate. All night long, they struck and played free. They were consistent and relentless. They never took a play off,” recalls Coach Bailey.
“Our kids were up for this game. The Appling-Pierce game is a rivalry, a border war. Our staff had the blueprint to beat them. They hadn’t been tested all year long. We had – and we had come out on both sides. We’d won and lost. They’re a great program and they’re well coached. But we knew we had a great shot to beat them,” says Coach Ringgold.
The Pirates’ defense has been solid all year long. They’re ranked #10 in 2A in defense, allowing only 15.6 points per game. Ringgold’s secondary hasn’t given up a touchdown in region play and they’ve held opponents to under 120 yards passing all year. Bailey’s line has led the region in tackles for loss, sacks, and most other major categories.
The game, however, was about more than defense. The Pierce County defense is #2 in the state, allowing just 7.6 points per game. So the Pirates had to find a way to score points against an even stingier defense than their own. They did so with a balanced but effective running attack that spread the work between two backs – Darion Hood (15 carries for 72 yards) and Tavion Wallace (six carries for 70 yards). Appling completed just two passes but one was the aforementioned first-quarter touchdown. Pierce held Appling to just 205 total yards but they couldn’t keep them off the scoreboard.
“We beat a defending state champion on a good run. We can play with anyone in 2A. We’ve got five grueling weeks ahead of us. But we don’t want to look ahead. Our players have the confidence they need,” says Ringgold.
The season isn’t over for Appling. Tonight, they face the Fitzgerald Purple Hurricanes in a non-region game that, interestingly, has post-season implications for both teams. The lower classifications are using a power ranking system this year to determine playoff seeds. Even though Fitzgerald and Appling are in difference classifications, what happens tonight will help determine both teams’ opponents when the playoffs start next week.
The top eight teams all get home field advantage in the playoffs and the Pirates have already secured a top-eight finish. However, they could finish either fifth or sixth, depending upon who wins. Fitzgerald’s postseason fate could also be affected tonight as well. “We won’t know until Saturday morning who we will play next week. But we know we’ll be playing at home,” says Bailey.
And for Bailey, Friday night’s game is about more than just earning a favorable playoff seed. “I’m from the Fitzgerald tree. I played for Robby Pruitt and he’s a father figure to me. Tucker is like a big brother. It’s going to be emotional,” he says. “But I also want to win.”