With a huge stop on a two-point conversion in overtime last week, Portal defeated Jenkins County and laid claim to its first ever region championship.

The only downside is that the party was short-lived as there are now bigger games ahead.

Aside from the region title, the Panthers (7-3) secured a top seed in the Class A Division II state playoffs. On Friday, they’ll welcome in Turner County (3-7) which enters as the No. 4 seed out of Region 2.

“Last week was incredible,” Portal coach Jason McEachin said. “To know how hard these guys have worked and to see all of the students and community get behind them was something everyone is going to remember.

“But it’s also something we have to put on hold for now. On Monday we had one more meeting about the game and took one more team picture with the trophy. We’ll look back on it again at some point, but now there’s more work to do.”

Portal had already secured a playoff berth and a first round home game before winning its region, but the stakes are now as high as they can get with every game from here on out a win-or-go-home proposition.

It’s nothing unusual to see top-seeded teams roll through opponents in their first round matchups across all sports and classification levels in Georgia, but the Panthers aren’t taking anything for granted.

“Turner County’s record might not scare people, but they’ve played some tight games against tough competition to get her,” McEachin said. “The three teams they finished behind in their region are all teams that have made big runs at state before and they played a really good non-region schedule as well. We know that’s what prepared us to win big games like last week, so we definitely aren’t just looking at their record.”

In fact, the Panthers figure to be looking all around as they’ll try to rein in a Titan offense that slings the ball every which way.

Senior quarterback Carlton Brannon has racked up 26 passing touchdowns and over 2,000 yards through the air this season. Turner County often spreads the field wide with four-receiver sets and both Ke-arrin Dawsey and Kaleb Joiner are averaging over 60 receiving yards per game.

Of course, Portal has plenty of its own star power.

Elijah Coleman runs the show at quarterback, utilizing great running instincts to gain yards on the ground while also embracing incredible escapability in the pocket to extend passing plays that often result in Florida-bound wide receiver Amir Jackson racking up big plays and highlight-reel catches such as a one-handed touchdown grab last week.

Also in the mix are Samari McBride and Charles McNeal. McBride scored a pair of touchdowns last week and both gave the Jenkins County defense fits, making the Portal attack balanced and tough to slow down.

Just as important as the region title and the No. 1 seed is the additional confidence gained by the Panthers. McEachin spent last week reminding his players that earlier losses came in close games where they could have won if they had overcome some miscues or capitalized on a few more plays.

Against Jenkins County, that corner was turned.

“You could see it in their eyes,” McEachin said. “Everyone was calm and under control. There wasn’t too much celebration or loss of focus when we scored. When we turned the ball over late, there was no helmet-throwing and no one was panicking.

“I know we haven’t won a lot of games the last few years, but this team is full of veterans who have seen success in other sports. That confidence and leadership showed up when we needed it and that’s what we’re going to continue to lean on.”

Kickoff is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. at the Portal Athletic Complex.