QUITMAN — On a night with plenty of miscues on both sides, the Brooks County Trojans made the one big play that gave them the edge.

Jamal Sanders made a sliding catch in the back of the end zone with 4:50 to play in the game, and the host Trojans downed the Thomasville Bulldogs 20-14 at Veterans Stadium.

The former longtime region rivals — Brooks dropped to Single-A after last year’s appearance in the Class AA state championship game — staged another dramatic contest worthy of their series.

But there a rash of mistakes for both sides. The Bulldogs were flagged eight times and lost two fumbles. Coupled with a strong Brooks County start, the Bulldogs found themselves in a 14-0 hole less than 10 minutes into the game.

“I didn’t think our kids were ever going to quit,” Bulldogs coach Zach Grage said after the season-opening loss. “That’s just not what we do. You hate to get into that position, where you’re trying to preach to your kids, ‘don’t quit, don’t quit.’ I’m proud of them for that.”

Brooks County went 67 yards in five plays on its first drive, with Nitavion Burruss bulling in from 2 yards out. 

Willie Brown got free from the Bulldogs defense and turned Burruss’ hitch pass into a 14-yard score with 2:43 to go in the first quarter. 

Meanwhile, the Bulldogs also struggled mightily on offense in the first half. They managed 30 yards of total offense and three first downs in the first two quarters. Sixteen of their first 25 plays went for no yards or negative yards.

“Their box straight whipped us,” Grage said. “They played faster. They made good plays. They didn’t miss any tackles. 

“Our game speed off the jump was awful, and that’s 100% me,” Grage said. “We have to look at our practice schedule, how we do things, maybe the way we approached today and why we came out slow.”

The Trojans committed 13 penalties, flubbed an extra point attempt and turned the ball over twice. 

“I thought we did some good things,” Trojans coach Maurice Freeman said, “but we made some mental mistakes. I don’t like mental mistakes.”

A fumble thwarted Thomasville’s first drive of the second half, which got to the Trojans’ 23-yard line. 

Thomasville finally broke through as Ricky Baker hit Jay Cody for a 6-yard score on the final play of the third quarter. 

The Bulldogs came out of the pile with the ball on the ensuing onside kick attempt, but another fumble at the Trojans 25 ended that threat.

Thomasville’s punt rush team, which had been a fingernail away from blocking a handful of punts, finally got their hand on one. Patrick McNeill smothered a Trojans punt deep in Brooks County territory, and the resulting return tied the game at 14-14 with 7:26 to go.

Brooks County, though, answered right back. Omari Arnold’s 16-yard gain on third down set up Burruss’ game-winning 35-yard strike to Sanders.

Thomasville got to midfield but turned the ball over on downs, and Arnold converted a fourth-down attempt to allow the Trojans to run out the clock.

“I thought the defense played a really good second half,” Grage said. “We got the special teams play, when Patrick so was close so many times and he finally got the block. 

“I’m proud of all the guys. They didn’t give up.”