Numbers Game | Braden River sole playoff survivor

In the immortal words of the 1980s cult-classic film "The Highlander:" "There can be only one."

Well, that one for Manatee County is Braden River, which is the lone school still alive in the quest for a state football championship after dusting off Venice, 17-0, in last Friday's region semifinal -- a rematch from the regular season also won by the Pirates.

Manatee High faced a different fate on the road against Orlando Dr. Phillips, suffering elimination in the Class 8A-Region 2 semifinals.

So let's unveil the digits comprising this week's Numbers Game!

12:36

Amount of game time Braden River has trailed this entire season. The Pirates have fallen behind just twice as Southeast held a 3-0 lead for 9 minutes, 42 seconds in September, while St. Petersburg Gibbs grabbed a 6-0 lead for 2:54 in the regular-season finale.

That's due to how fast Braden River starts games. Including the playoffs, the Pirates have outscored opponents 292-36 in the first half. Its defense has allowed just three touchdowns in the first half. The other touchdown allowed came against the special teams.

Only the Seminoles have held a halftime lead, and that second regular-season game served as the lone occasion the Pirates failed to score in the first half. Last Friday's 17-point first-half performance was the Pirates' lowest tally in the first two quarters of a game since the Southeast victory.

908

Rushing yards Manatee's defense allowed in its last two playoff losses. The Hurricanes were gouged for 451 yards on the ground in last week's 40-21 defeat at Dr. Phillips, while Apopka smashed Manatee for 457 rushing yards in a 45-14 rout in last season's Class 8A state semifinals.

Coincidentally, both programs that dished out the pounding are from Orange County. It's an area where the Canes had historically been successful. Manatee won seven of eight playoff encounters with Orange County foes prior to exiting the postseason against Apopka last year and against Dr. Phillips this season. That setback also runs the Canes' road playoff mark to 7-7 since 2005.

55.42

Average passing attempts for Braden River quarterback Jacob Huesman per interception thrown over the last two seasons. Huesman tossed just his fourth pick of the year against Venice last Friday, and has only seven in more than 330 passing attempts in back-to-back playoff years for the Pirates.

During that span, he's launched 33 touchdown passes and currently sports a 61.1 completion percentage in this year's postseason. The unbeaten Pirates, ranked No. 2 in Class 7A, travel to Plant City looking for the program's first region championship. The Pirates are playing on the road for the first time since Oct. 30, when they earned a 27-17 victory in Sarasota. Plant City is also appearing in a region final for the first time.

.675

The winning percentage of Class 7A playoff teams at home, since the Florida High School Athletic Association football playoffs expanded in 2011 to include the 7A classification.

Entering this year, that homefield advantage yielded a .675 winning percentage. Home teams are 15-9 in the Class 7A playoffs this year. And only half of the top 10 from the season-ending 7A state poll remain alive.

154

Rushing yards Brooksville Nature Coast Tech running back DeShawn Smith tallied against Southeast in the opening game of 2015. Why are we mentioning something from months ago about a nonarea player against a local team ousted from the postseason two weeks ago?

Well, it's because Smith is on the verge of running into the record books and the Seminoles held him to a season-low 154 rushing yards on 21 carries and three touchdowns. He has 58 rushing touchdowns on the season, breaking the state record set in 2012 by Yulee grad and current Alabama Heisman Trophy favorite Derrick Henry. Smith ran for 444 yards and six scores to push Nature Coast into a region final in Class 5A. It gives him a total of 63 touchdowns this year, just five shy of the national record set in 2001 by T.A. McLendon in North Carolina.

But in the late August game against Southeast, the Noles limited Smith, who has rushed for 3,555 yards this season.

Jason Dill, sports reporter, can be reached at 745-7017 or via email at jdill@bradenton.com. Follow him on Twitter @Jason__Dill and like his Facebook page at Jason Dill Bradenton Herald.

This story was originally published November 24, 2015 at 12:03 AM with the headline "Numbers Game | Braden River sole playoff survivor ."