Last Friday was a historic night for the Pike County area. All four of the County high schools put their football team in the playoffs for the first time ever.

Unfortunately the dream of a state championship ended for all but the Pike Liberal Arts Patriots. The Patriots won in their usual way, with defense and a heavy dose of Jerel Foster.

To be fair, Trey Walters made the Marengo Longhorns respect more than the legs of Foster, as he ran for 80 yards on eight carries.

No matter how they won, they are only the third Pike Liberal team to reach the semifinals since the school opened in 1970. And I know coach Steven Kilcrease and his team are happy to be in the record books.

But if I know anything about sports I know that the Patriots will not be satisfied until they are hoisting a state trophy Nov. 21 in Movie Gallery Veterans Stadium.

There were nothing but smiles in Delaney Kervin Stadium, but across town in Movie Gallery Stadium, in Luverne and in Reform there was sadness as the Charles Henderson Trojans, Pike County Bulldogs and Goshen Eagles, respectively, all saw their seasons come to an end.

I know the fans of all three of these teams were sad to see the year end, but all three have nothing to be ashamed of. For the Trojans it was a case of losing a hard-fought battle on the gridiron. The Bulldogs were in the game for most of the time and the Eagles were tied 7-7 at halftime.

All three had great seasons and they have no reason to hang their heads. Way to represent your community and make the postseason.

And in the college football world, Troy protected Movie Gallery Stadium with a 17-7 Homecoming win over Western Kentucky.

All this being said, last week was a 3-2 week for Nascone’s Predictions. The season record now stands at 31-12.

This week, the Pike Liberal Patriots host the Tuscaloosa Academy Knights. The Knights are 11-1 so far and Pike Liberal will have their work cut out for them with an athletic Tuscaloosa team.

This should be a good game to watch and I think the Patriots will continue to roll with a 35-28 victory.

Troy has the daunting task of traveling to Death Valley this week. The Trojans will put up a good fight against the LSU Tigers, but will lose 28-21.

Matt Nascone is the sports editor for The Messenger. He can be reached at 670-6315 or online at matt.nascone@troymessenger.com.