FITZGERALD — The Fitzgerald Purple Hurricanes had the perfect storm Friday night — Tevin Stewart-Gaulden at running back, Kaleb Nobles at quarterback and Trenton Pruitt all over the field.

The Purple Hurricanes drenched Thomasville for 443 total yards and seven touchdowns. The performance led Fitzgerald to a 49-14 win and a Region 1-AA championship at Jaycee Stadium.

"Our kids played a great game," said Fitzgerald coach Robby Pruitt, whose team completed an undefeated regular season with its ninth game scoring at least 40 points. We beat a great football team tonight. I didn't expect that. I thought it'd be a really tough game. It was a tough game, but we're certainly not that much better than Thomasville. I don't know if they had an off game or what.

“It feels good. The kids played awfully well and I'm proud of them."

The loss was Thomasville's first in seven games and dropped the Bulldogs to a No. 2 seed in next week's playoffs. They will host the No. 3 seed out of Region 4.

The 49 points were the most allowed by a Thomasville team since 2003. Thomasville coach Richie Marsh, who drew a personal foul penalty in the second half, would not comment after the game.

Known for its ground-oriented wing-T attack, Fitzgerald scorched Thomasville through the air. Nobles, a sophomore, missed on just two of his 15 pass attempts and threw for 234 yards. He had touchdown tosses of 66, 21 and 18 yards.

"They're dang good against the run," Pruitt said. "We had to throw the ball on them and we worked on that this week. That paid off.

"Noble's only a sophomore, so he's got great things ahead of him. He's got great presence, a good mind and he knows what we're doing. That's an awfully big game for a sophomore."

Fitzgerald's bread and butter was successful as well. The Purple Hurricanes gashed the Bulldogs for 209 rushing yards, led by Stewart-Gaulden's 100. He capped the night with a 62-yard jaunt in the fourth quarter. It was the sixth offensive touchdown for the Purple Hurricanes, all of which covered at least 15 yards.

"It was just a great team effort," Fitzgerald's coach added.

The key play didn't even come at the hands of the Purple Hurricanes' offense. After Fitzgerald notched the first touchdown of the game late in the first quarter, Thomasville had possession at its own 36-yard line.

Ineffective on offense until that point, Thomasville went with a halfback pass with Fred Holton. Holton, though, was pressured by several defenders and was hit as he threw. The ball landed in Stewart-Gaulden's hands and he returned it 29 yards for a score and 14-0 lead.

"That was huge," Pruitt said. "There were so many plays that could've busted it open. It was a complete team effort."

Pruitt's son, Trenton, was unstoppable as well — on the ground and through the air. He finished with 250 total yards, 167 through the air and two receiving touchdowns. One grab went for 66 yards and the other totalled 18.

Thomasville's touchdowns came in the first half, both of which were touchdown tosses from Charles Hayes to Holton. The first covered 12 yards and cut the deficit to 14-7. The latter was a 26-yarder in which Holton made a spin move after the catch and cruised into the end zone. Holton finished with eight receptions for 92 yards.

"They're well-coached. They're going to do well in the playoffs," Pruitt said.

Emotions boiled over in the second half for Thomasville. Nobles was hammered on a pass play in the third quarter by Jarrail Murphy. Nobles fumbled on the play and Murphy recovered the loose ball and scampered 49 yards for an apparent touchdown. However, the officials ruled Nobles was down and the score was overturned.

Marsh came out to argue the play, which was on third down. The coach was flagged for a personal conduct penalty. Fitzgerald took advantage of the first down and capped the drive with the second touchdown pass from Nobles to the younger Pruitt.