Defense quietly getting job done for Freeport

FREEPORT — The Freeport football team’s offense has hogged most of the spotlight this year with its dazzling performances and bottomless production.

The Bulldogs have racked up mountains of points this season, scoring at least 33 in every game save the season-opening loss to Class 4A Milton and totaling 434 points over the course of their 11 games.

Perhaps lost in the shuffle has been Freeport’s hounding defense, and Bulldogs coach Jim Anderson thinks the unit as a whole is far from its peak.

“We can do a whole lot better,” Anderson said.

That’s bad news for Liberty County (10-1), which Freeport (10-1) hosts at 7:30 p.m. on Friday in the Class 1A regional finals. At stake is a trip to the state semifinals, a level previously unattained by any Freeport football team in 34 years as a program.

While the high-octane Freeport offense has been getting most of the attention, it’s the defense that’s been the team’s hallmark of late. While the Bulldogs’ offense has been a quick starter all year, the defense has followed step-for-step as Freeport has outscored opponents 163-17 in first quarters this season.

For Freeport quarterback Cole Weeks, one of the few to not play on both offense and defense, turning the reigns back over to the defense has never been an iffy proposition this season.

“Especially with such a low class like we are because most of the guys are going offense and defense, our defense is going to wear them out,” Weeks said. “The guys on their offense are going to have to run plays and we’re going to wear them out once we get back on offense.”

The two sides of the coin have worked just that seamlessly together this season for a Freeport team that hasn’t lost a game in over two months. Most recently, Freeport forced five Blountstown turnovers in its regional semifinal contest last Friday in a mesmerizing 48-12 win that illustrated just how dominant the Freeport defense has been at times this season.

In all, Freeport has given up more than 21 points just twice this year. With how efficient the Bulldogs’ offense has been it’s been a lethal combination for the opposition all season long.

“It gives you a lot of confidence when you have a defense like we do,” Weeks said.