Thomasville quaterback J.T. Rice looks for a receiver. 

DALTON — Thomasville’s football team believes it’s ready to win when the new season begins next month. The Bulldogs hope that their experience at this year’s Southeastern 7-on-7 Championship was a foreshadowing of things to come.

After a so-so first day in pools, the Bulldogs stormed out of the gate on Saturday, eventually earning the 2017 title after lightning cancelled the championship game. Thomasville won it all by virtue of its undefeated 4-0 record in bracket play.

“It was fun to watch our kids compete and have fun, it’s fun to coach with these coaches,” Thomasville head coach Zach Grage said. “I’m just proud that they reacted to the adversity.”

In the tournament’s format, games were 22 minutes long with the clock running nonstop until the final minute, when regular timing applied. All drives started at the 40 yard line.

No running plays were allowed, which meant quarterback JT Rice got plenty of chances to air it out. He did not participate last year due to an injury. His performance earned him the tournament MVP award.

“He played really well,” Grage said. “When he’s focused, he’s been good. (Friday) wasn’t his best day but today he came in pretty locked in.”

In the semifinals, Thomasville matched up with Hickory Ridge (N.C). Down 16-14 with less than a minute left, Rice threw a touchdown pass to Pierson Weatherspoon to seal the game, and effectively, the title.

On Friday, Thomasville began the event on the wrong foot in pool play, falling 39-6 to Bowling Green (Ky.) in its opening game. The Bulldogs followed up the loss with three straight wins against Coahulla Creek, North Murray and Walker Valley (Tenn.).

However, the Bulldogs fell to Pepperell 24-19 to end Day 1, which left them with a 3-2 record and the No. 8 seed in bracket play.

“I got onto them pretty good after our last loss because we did not play well,” Grage said. “I said, ‘Look, that’s not the expectation. The expectation is to win. If you all play to your ability there’s no way anyone here can hang wth us.’”

Thomasville began its bracket run by beating No. 9 Whitfield (S.C), before defeating No. 1 Sacred Heart-Griffin (Ill.) 17-15 in the second round. It advanced to the semifinals with a 35-26 win over Greenville (S.C.).

The Bulldogs were the only team from South Georgia that made the trip to Dalton, which is near the Georgia-Tennessee line. That meant there was plenty of mystery involved as to what was in store for them.

“You don’t know who these teams are,” Grage said. “You have a little of an idea but the kids don’t know. The kids aren’t going to run into a team where they know somebody. You’re focused on you and you’ve got a real quick time to figure out what they’re doing and who their players are. I think it’s a good test.”