FLORENCE, Ala. – Josh Rhodes ran for two touchdowns and Vinemont stopped Central-Florence on fourth down at the Eagles’ 8-yard line with five minutes remaining Friday night.
The Eagles ran out the clock to secure a 16-8 victory over the Region 7 champion Wildcats in the first round of the Class 3A playoffs.
It was Vinemont’s first postseason win since 1993. Head Coach Stephen Robinson was a sophomore on that team, which beat East Limestone 41-6 in the second round before losing 20-14 at Central-Florence the following week.
“I’m just proud to get a little bit of revenge for those guys and mostly for these guys,” Robinson said. “Man, these seniors have worked so hard and our coaches have worked so hard.”
Jaxon Marotz set up Vinemont’s first touchdown late in the opening quarter when he recovered a fumble and returned it into Central-Florence territory.
Rhodes scored from a yard out, and Travis Speer ran in the 2-point conversion for an 8-0 lead.
Central-Florence tied the game with just under five minutes left in the first half.
Lucas Price scored on a 33-yard run, and Ja’kari Brown connected with Logan Pettus for the 2-point conversion.
Vinemont regained the lead on its next possession.
Rhodes scored on a 16-yard run with 1:30 remaining in the half, and Speer ran in his second conversion to make it 16-8.
Two plays later, Speer recovered a Central-Florence fumble. The Eagles took the eight-point lead into halftime.
The Wildcats drove inside the Vinemont 20 in each of the final two quarters. The Eagles stopped them on fourth down at the 17 in the third quarter.
With five minutes left in the fourth, Central-Florence faced fourth-and-short at the 8.
Vinemont held the runner to no gain, then picked up first downs on the ground until the Eagles could take a knee.
After the game, Robinson was asked how his players had responded to their 29-28 loss to Hokes Bluff on Oct. 9.
“It hadn’t been pretty every week since then, but tonight we played some really, really good football, man,” he said.
Vinemont, the fourth seed from Region 6, improved to 7-4. Central-Florence finished 8-3.
The Eagles will face Fayette County in the second round after the Tigers defeated North Jackson 43-7.
