The Pike County football team cannot avoid the season ending this week.

Win or lose, the Bulldogs will put up the cleats and shoulder pads for a final time following Thursday's game against Oneonta. Of course, a win means the Bulldogs are the best in the state in 3A.

Pike County (13-1) faces north division winner Oneonta (13-1) Thursday at 3 p.m. in Legion Field. The game is the first of the Super 6 state championship games played Thursday through Saturday.

Since the game is on Thursday, the Bulldogs have one fewer day to prepare for the game than during normal weeks.

"We just moved practice up a day," Pike County head coach Wayne Grant said. "Sunday was Monday and today [Monday] will be Tuesday. Thursday, we're leaving at 8 o'clock to go to Birmingham."

Pike County has won its last two playoff games by a combined seven points. The Bulldogs defeated Tarrant 34-28 two weeks ago and T.R. Miller 35-34 in overtime Friday night.

Oneonta shut outs its fourth team of the season Friday with a 15-0 win over Colbert County. The Redskins are also 13-1 on the season, matching Pike County's record.

"You can't get to 13-1 by doing things wrong," Pike County tight end Nick Walker said. "We know they're good."

Oneonta is especially good on defense. In addition to shutting out four teams over the course of the season, the Redskins have allowed only eight points per game.

That number will be tested against the Pike County offense. The Bulldogs have averaged scoring 41 points a game.

Quarterback Chris Nickson leads the way for Pike County, having a hand in 62 touchdowns. He has thrown 42 of them and rushed for 20.

The Pike County defense has not been too shabby this year either. The Bulldogs only allow 14 points per game over the course of the year, but the last two games have been rough on the Bulldog defense. Tarrant and T.R. Miller put up a combined 62 points on the Bulldogs.