LIVE OAK — A two-point conversion and a matter of a few feet is what kept Suwannee from reaching the playoffs in 2016.

This year, once again, the Bulldogs came up painfully short in their quest to make the postseason. A few plays in a make-or-break game against Ribault cost Suwannee a district title and a berth in the redesigned playoff system based on a points system.

“The expectations will always be high and I hate being home for the playoffs,” said Suwannee coach Kyler Hall, who finished his second as the Bulldogs’ head coach. “We talked about the little things coming into the season.

“If you look at each loss — Ribault, Chiles, Fort White — you can narrow it down to three or four plays. We didn’t get it done when we needed to. We didn’t reach our goals.”

The Bulldogs, despite battling multiple injuries and playing with a pair of underclassmen quarterbacks, were a few plays away from a district title and a record that could have been closer to 8-3.

A look back at Suwannee’s 5-6 season 

Aug. 25	at Fort White	L 13-10	SHS loses close game to FWHS for second straight year.
Sept. 1	Columbia	L 48-0	Bulldogs drops their 10th straight game to rival Tigers.
Sept. 22	at Hamilton Co.	W 42-6	Carlton Hall runs for 156 yards and 3 TDs as SHS uses a big second half to defeat HCHS.
Sept. 29	at Stanton Prep	W 31-9	Backup QB Jaquez Moore sparks Bulldogs with two rushing TDs in the district opener.
Oct. 6	Chiles	L 17-2	SHS loses first homecoming game since 2011 in a tilt that was closer than the score looks.
Oct. 10	Ribault	L 33-26	In a game that ended up deciding the district, Ribault returned two punts for TDs to win.
Oct. 13	at Paxon	W 48-0	SHS takes out some frustration on Paxon in a blowout victory.
Oct. 20	Yulee	W 22-9	SHS plays excellent defense and capitalizes on offense to finish district play at 3-1.
Oct. 27	at Madison County	L 50-19	Tyree Taylor’s long TD passes to Jaquary Pratt helped SHS stay close most of the way.
Nov. 3	at Taylor County	L 52-14	TCHS gains control in the 2Q and shows its offensive firepower in convincing win.
Nov. 9	Mosley	W 28-24	Three big Brantly Roberson punt returns help SHS close the season with a bowl game win.

Suwannee won three of four district contests. Hall thought those games were some of Suwannee’s best moments of the season.

“Our district play was some of our better games,” said Hall. “Coming back at halftime against Stanton Prep. Senior night at the house against Yulee.

“We just let one slip away.”

Team leaders/Statistical breakdown 

Passing	Tyree Taylor, 42-93, 587 yards, seven touchdowns
	Jaquez Moore, 14-35, 149 yards
Rushing	Carlton Hall, 181-904, nine touchdowns
	Demarius Thompson, 68-376, three touchdowns
	Moore, 46-319, five touchdowns
Receiving	Jaquary Pratt, 7-237, two touchdowns
	Brantly Roberson, 16-219, three touchdowns
	Demoundre Evans, 17-184, two touchdowns

The Bulldogs didn’t surprise anyone on offense — featuring a run-heavy attack — and they didn’t need to with a big offensive line, two good running backs and a mobile quarterback in Moore. Even after losing a big piece on the O-line — Taylor Torres missed almost the entire season with an injury — Suwannee’s three leading rushers still combined to average a little more than five yards per carry.

In the most important game of the season, the Bulldogs slowed the game down and ran well against Ribault.

With teams having to respect the run, Suwannee was able to hit some long passes down the field to Pratt.

All the statistical leaders from this season, except Roberson, will be back next year.

2018 outlook

With most of their skill players returning, the Bulldogs will have playoff expectations again in 2018. They’ve also got key players in other positions who are coming back.

“We saw a lot of guys mature as juniors and those will be the guys leading us next year,” said Hall. “Jay Williams on the d-line, Billy Douchaj, Demoundre Evans, Lance Gamble at linebacker. Kale Twiggs is another I think can have a big year.

“The offseason is going to be very important for all of us. If you’re going to be an elite program, it’s got to be year-round.”