Courtesy of Florence Times-Daily
Florence battled the second-half rain and churned out a tough 24-10 win over Gadsden City (0-7, 0-5) thanks to its defense and some late-game heroics from senior Dee Beckwith, who finished with 12 carries for 114 rushing yards and two touchdowns and was 2 for 3 through the air with 41 yards and an interception. The multi-positional athlete put the game away on a 35-yard touchdown run where it looked like three or four Gadsden City defenders were primed to take him down.
Florence (4-4, 3-2 in Class 7A, Region 4) went to the locker room tied 3-3 with the Titans.
After quarterback Gardner Flippo found Beckwith for a 31-yard touchdown that was negated by an offensive pass-interference call, Flippo threw an interception on the next play. Led by linebacker Preston Hardin and cornerbacks Dean Moore and Clayton Moore, the Falcons defense came up with a big stop.
When Beckwith threw an interception at the goal line that was returned deep into Florence territory, the Falcon defense came up big, blocking a field goal, flipping the field and setting up a Florence touchdown on a 4-yard run from Beckwith.
Florence head coach Willie Hester was impressed by Gadsden City’s athleticism. He said the record isn’t representative of how good the Titans are as a team.
Florence has picked up two wins in a row and is in fourth place in the Class 7A, Region 4 standings, remaining in position for a playoff berth.
Gadsden City resumes region play this Friday (Oct. 18) at home against Huntsville.