PCHS takes down Hackleburg, faces J.B. Pennington Friday
It has been 20 years since Phil Campbell High School has hosted a football play–off game. The long wait will end Friday night when the Bobcats host J.B. Pennington in the first round of the Class 3A playoffs.
Phil Campbell will enter the playoffs as the runner–up in Class 3A Region 8. J.B. Pennington finished third in Class 3A Region 6.
The schools have no history or common opponents.
“I am proud of this team and the work they have put in for us to be able to host a play–off game,” said Phil Campbell coach Kevin Barnwell. “This is a big deal for our school and this community. It has been a long time, and these guys deserve to be here. We are looking forward to a big crowd.”
Phil Campbell finished the season with a 7-3 record and went 5-1 in region play. The Bobcats’ only region loss was to Lauderdale County 13-6.
Phil Campbell’s other losses were to Lamar County 7-0 and Haleyville 13-12.
J.B. Pennington enters the playoffs with a 7-3 record as well. The Tigers went 5-2 in region play. Their losses were lopsided blowouts to Oakman 27-13, Cleveland 55-0 and undefeated Winfield 48-0.
“They have a very good quarterback and make things happen for them,” Barnwell said. “They are well coached, and they have some really good teams in their region. They will be tough to defend because they run out of so many different formations.”
Phil Campbell has morphed into a tea, that can beat other teams in many different ways – through the air, a power run game or speed on the outside edge. Barnwell, however, said it boils down to the way his guys played in the trenches.
“We made a commitment early on in the summer that if we were going to compete in our region, we were going to have to toughen up,” said Barnwell. “We needed to be more physical on both sides of the ball, especially along the offensive and defensive line.”
Phil Campbell is averaging 28.6 points per game while giving up 13.3 points per game. J.B. Pennington is averaging 26.5 points per game while giving up 21.7 points per game.
All play-off game tickets must be purchased on the GoFan app or at GoFan.co. Ticket prices are $10. No tickets will be sold at the gate, per AHSAA rules.
Knocking off Hackleburg
The Phil Campbell Bobcats geared up for the playoffs with a dominant run game and stingy defense to upend rival Hackleburg 31-8.
The Bobcats piled up 269 yards in total offense, all on the ground, and held the Panthers to 150 yards on a cold, rain–soaked night.
The Bobcats spread the ball around to three different running backs, with John Randle Herring leading the way with 18 carries for 89 yards. Bryant Hyde carried the ball 14 times for 74 yards and two touchdowns. Noah Raper carried the ball 11 times for 70 yards. Kyle Pace and Andrew Green also scored two touchdowns on the ground.
Phil Campbell scored just over midway through the first quarter on a six-yard run by Andrew Green. Pace completed the two–point conversion pass to Blain Goodson to give the Bobcats an 8-0 lead with 5:28 to go in the first quarter.
Hacklebug answered the Bobcats almost immediately, scoring just over a minute later on a 61-yard touchdown pass to tie the game 8-8.
The game remained tied until the Bobcats put together a solid drive that culminated in a one-yard touchdown run by Hyde with 7:47 to go in the second quarter. Herring added the two-point conversion run to give Phil Campbell a 16-8 lead.
Turnovers plagued both teams, with Phil Campbell turning the ball over twice and Hackleburg three times.
Neither team scored again until the Bobcats broke the game open late in the fourth quarter.
Hyde scored on a three-yard run with 5:25 to go in the game, and Herring’s two-point conversion run gave the Bobcats a 24-8 lead.
Phil Campbell put the game away on a one-yard run by Kyle Pace with 3:04 to go in the game. Pace kicked the point after to make the score 31-8.
