The numbers are scary. Pike County has been nothing short of dominant in the regular season.

Going into their Class 3A playoff opener at home against Alabama Christian Academy of Montgomery, the second-ranked Bulldogs have scored more defensive touchdowns than they've given up.

Five Pike County opponents scored touchdowns this year - Booker T. Washington, W.S. Neal, T.R. Miller, Straughn and Elba. Each scored once.

Meanwhile, the Bulldogs defense did some scoring of its own. James Jackson returned a fumble 25 yards for a touchdown and an interception 51 yards for a touchdown. Kevin Marshall has a 69-yard interception return and a 20-yard fumble return for scores. Julius &uot;Buck&uot; Fenn returned a fumble 25 yards for a touchdown. Trent Bennett blocked a punt and returned it 35 yards for a touchdown.

Already, PCHS has more points than its opponents - and the offense hasn't taken the field.

Jackson, the starting tailback, rushed for 1,045 yards on 110 carries. He scored 14 touchdowns. Two other running backs, backup tailback Darrell Reynolds and fullback Jarmon Barrow, rushed for more than 600 yards each. Freshman Jerel Foster has rushed for 351 yards on just 23 carries. Quarterback Alonzo Foster has carried 72 times for 344 yards. He has also completed 45 of 98 passes for 553 yards. He has 11 touchdowns and seven interceptions.

Yes, the numbers are scary. But those numbers are driven by players.

Pike County coach Wayne Grant and his players know they are every opponent's biggest game.

&uot;Everybody talks like beating us would be the biggest upset of the year,&uot; Grant said. &uot;At this time of year, you can't play bad and win.&uot;

Grant told his players that, despite a special season, the playoffs are reserved for special teams.

&uot;A lot of people would like to be in your shoes,&uot; he told the team Monday. &uot;They had to get on a bus today. Football season is over for them. It'll be over for half the teams that play Friday night, too. We don't want to go home early.&uot;

Tickets for Friday night's game in Brundidge are available at the school. They are $7 each, a price set by the Alabama High School Athletic Association.

WTBF FM 94.7 will boradcast the

game live.