[11/7/03]One month ago, Tallulah Academy and Claiborne met in what amounted to an exhibition game. When they play in the rematch tonight, there will be considerably more at stake.

Tallulah travels to Haynesville, La., for the second time in a month to face the Rebels in a second-round Academy-A playoff game. The winner gets a trip to the South State championship game, while the loser heads to the gym for basketball season.

“The picture’s kind of clearing up. We had to fight for our life every week, and now we can see the light at the end of the tunnel,” Tallulah coach Jacky Thames said.

The last time Tallulah (9-2) played Claiborne (10-1), on Oct. 10, the light turned out to be a train.

Claiborne returned the opening kickoff for a touchdown, recovered three Tallulah fumbles, and held the Trojans to 188 rushing yards in a 26-6 win. Tallulah’s only score came on a 22-yard run by Cade Marsh late in the fourth quarter.

The loss was a rare blemish on the Trojans’ record. They won five of their last six regular-season games to finish 8-2 and claim the Conference 5-A championship. Last week, they shut out Wilkinson County Christian 19-0 in a first round playoff game to set up the rematch with Claiborne.

Thames said the Trojans learned from the beating the Rebels dished out to them a month ago.

“We learned a lot. Not only about Claiborne, but about us,” Thames said. “You’re always going to learn more about your mistakes than your successes. On film, it’s easy to see how they beat us.”

The teams that have been successful against Tallulah are the ones that shut down the Trojans’ powerful running game.

Tallulah has three backs with more than 600 yards on the ground, led by the area’s leading rusher Cade Marsh. Marsh has 1,346 yards and 18 touchdowns this season, while Cole Grissom and Jonathan Dukes each have more than 600 yards on the ground.

Thames said Claiborne used an unbalanced line on offense and an aggressive, penetrating defense to win in the last meeting, and Tallulah would have to adjust to stay alive in its quest for the school’s first state title since 1992.

“If we don’t make any changes, they’re going to handle us again,” Thames said. “They’re a blue-collar, hard-working squad over there, and they’re 10-1 record isn’t a fluke.”