If there’s such a thing as a winning loss Bryan County got it Friday night.

The Redskins, looking for a breakthrough season under third-year coach Cherard Freeman, went on the road Friday night and dropped a 23-20 decision to Class A state power Lincoln County.

The Red Devils, ranked No. 8 in the state in Class A Division II, were a 35-point favorite but wound up hanging on for dear life against a Redskins team looking to earn its first playoff berth since 2013 and its first winning season since 2013.

“The kids played hard,” Freeman said. “We played a heckuva game. We played well enough to win.”

Bryan County was forced to play without one of its top players as running back/middle linebacker Austin Clemons did not make the trip due to a strep throat and one of its best linemen, Tarrell Singleton, was limited to one quarter due to illness.

“Tarrell tried to go but he wasn’t able to do it,” Freeman said. “There’s no doubt in my mind we would have won the game if we would have had both of them.”

 Bryan County will be at home this Friday when it takes on Treutlen County at 7:30 p.m. 

Treutlen lost its opener, 40-0, to Jenkins County, a team the Redskins lost to, 7-6, in a pre-season game. 

Jacari Carney and Konnor Leggett had rushing touchdowns for Bryan County and sophomore quarterback Trevor Lanier and junior tight end Kris Martin teamed up for a touchdown.

“Trevor played well,” Freeman said. “He threw an interception but overall I thought he played a good game.”

While the Redskins could never claim the lead they gave Lincoln County all it wanted and showed it wasn’t going to be an easy out when it drove the ball 99 yards for a touchdown against a Red Devils defense which is expected to be one of the team’s strengths.

“We haven’t done that before,” Freeman said. “We stopped them on downs at the one-yard line and then drove it the length of the field. That was really encouraging to see.

 “I was also excited about how physical we were as a whole, especially our offensive and defensive lines. This game gives us something to build on.”

Sophomore Allen Williams at right tackle, right guard Kam Boggs, center Jet Lewis, Singleton at left guard and John Good at left tackle were all solid, Freeman said. When Singleton went out Evan Knight replaced him without any significant drop off.