Southeast Bulloch continued its dominance of flag football in Georgia Monday, defeating Columbus, 13-6, in overtime inside Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta and earning the team’s fourth consecutive state championship.
Emma Kate Barron ran for a 10-yard touchdown on the first play of overtime, knifing through the Columbus defense, for the winning score.
After falling behind 6-0 with 7:09 to play in the game, Southeast Bulloch went on its only sustained drive of the game to tie the score, with Paige Nelson capping an 11-play, 79-yard drive with a one-yard plunge.
In the four seasons since the program began playing in 2021, Coach Marci Cochran’s teams are 82-1, with their only loss coming in the final regular season game of 2024. That 7-0 loss to Calvary Day may have ended the team’s 77-0 run, but it focused the Yellow Jackets on quickly erasing the sole blemish and winning a fourth straight title. In their five-game playoff run, SEB outscored its opponents, 108-12.
In her interview with Jon Nelson of GPB on the podium immediately after the game, Cochran said the loss to Calvary prepared them for the comeback against Columbus.
"For the team to do what they did in coming back, I really think that game helped us win this game today because we were down a little bit," she said." We came back down and scored to answer them and then put it in overtime. I couldn't ask for a better team. I'm just so proud of them."
Columbus had dominated most of the game, completely bottling up SEB's offense. Opening the second half with the teams tied 0-0, the Blue Devils went on a 13-play drive that took 7:25 off the clock. But SEB broke up a fourth down pass in the end zone to stop that drive.
Columbus forced a three-and-out and would not be denied on their next drive. Quarterback Serenity Hickman found Harmony Franklin for a five-yard touchdown and a 6-0 lead with 7:09 to play. SEB broke up the extra-point attempt.
Up to that point, the SEB offense had only amassed two first downs, unable to get past the speed of the Columbus defenders.
But with their season and their dynasty on the line, the Yellow Jackets responded.
Barron got SEB going with the biggest gain of the game, finding Laina Erickson on a 25-yard pass play. Erickson went up high to haul in the pass.
Completions to Natayla Odom and Jaci Kitchings moved SEB to a first-and goal. Three plays later, Nelson tied the score. SEB was unable to convert its extra point, which set up the overtime.
Columbus won the coin toss and elected to be on defense first.
On the first-and-goal from the 10, Barron took the snap and stumbled slightly as she started running to her left. She made one defender miss and then split two Columbus defenders to just make it into the endzone.
On the extra-point, Nelson took the short snap and pushed a pass to Chloe Cochran, the coach's daughter, for a 13-6 lead.
Needing to score and convert an extra point to stay in the game on their overtime possession, Kelsey Johnson put the Blue Devils in a hole immediately, causing a four-yard loss with an athletic flag grab.
Columbus had a chance to score a touchdown on third down, but a dropped pass in the endzone set up fourth down. Putting immediate pressure on Hickman, SEB defenders forced her to dump off a short pass that was stopped well short of the goal line and setting off a celebration on the field and in the stands.
After the game, Nelson also asked Cochran which of the four championships is her favorite.
"Probably this one," she said. "People counted us out. We lost five of the seniors last year and five before that, but it was a changing of the guards and (this team) came here to take it."
Look for more about the game on statesboroherald.com.
