BROOKLET — Appling County’s big play offense was too much for Southeast Bulloch Friday night as the Pirates ran away from the Yellow Jackets in the second half for a 43-30 victory.
    Coming in to the game, the SEB coaches knew they’d have to stop the big play to have a chance against one of the fastest teams in the region, and for the first half, they were able to do so.
Following a fumble recovery late in the first quarter, the Yellow Jackets (4-6, 2-5) were able to take an early 7-0 lead on a Tyler Epps 6-yard touchdown run.
    On the Pirates’ (8-1-1, 6-1) next possession, quarterback Vernon Dasher was able to scramble for 26 yards on a third-and-21 to kick-start a 69-yard touchdown drive culminating with a Dasher touchdown run from five yards out.
    The Yellow Jackets dominated time of possession in the second quarter and were able to take a 10-7 lead with 1:22 remaining in the half on a 20-yard field goal from Reid Hadden.
    However, after being held in check for the half, Appling County went 55 yards in a little over a minute and scored on a 44-yard touchdown pass when Trey Newkirk was able to get behind two SEB defenders for the score.
    The Yellow Jackets entered Friday night’s game with an outside chance of making the playoffs if several things fell into place. However, for that scenario to play out, the Yellow Jackets had to defeat the Pirates.
    “Give credit to Appling County tonight,” SEB head coach Pat Collins said. “They played well and could very well be the best team in the region.
    “We played hard until the end like we’re supposed to,” he said. “We battled hard.”
    Unfortunately for the Yellow Jackets, the wheels fell off in the third
quarter.         A fumble on their third play from scrimmage set up a 20-yard touchdown pass from Dasher to Jordan Vann. After being forced to punt on their next possession, Vann took the punt on his own 10 and raced 90 yards for a touchdown.
Southeast Bulloch was able to stem the tide when Jacob Stansell jumped a sideline route, intercepted the pass and raced 25 yards for a touchdown.
    The Pirates added two more long touchdowns before the Yellow Jackets cut the final deficit to 13 with two late touchdowns. Quarterback Cole Carter found Matt McBride on a 5-yard slant, and then Epps finished off the scoring with a 17-yard touchdown run.
    “I’m especially proud of our seniors. They showed tremendous resolve and leadership this year,” Collins said.
    Despite the loss, SEB had its most successful season in seven years, which saw the end of a 39-game region losing streak, and came within a break or two from having a .500 season.
    Individually, Antonio McMillian broke the 1,000-yard barrier and Epps crossed the 800-yard mark on the season.
    “We’ve made tremendous strides this year,” Collins said. “We had some opportunities where we could have made more, but overall I’m very pleased with the process and the direction this team is headed.”
    Collins said the progress is a credit not only to the players, but to their families, the Brooklet community and administration who all support the team and what they’re trying to accomplish.