THOMASVILLE — The Thomasville Bulldogs shook the rust off of their aerial game Friday night and revealed a shining threat.

A week after not attempting a pass in a 48-16 romp over Mitchell County, the Bulldogs connected on five of seven tosses for 91 yards and two touchdowns in Friday’s 35-7 homecoming victory over the Berrien Rebels.

“We’ll throw it when the opportunity presents itself, and I think the opportunity presented itself tonight,” Thomasville head coach Richie Marsh said. “We do work on it every day.”

The Bulldogs didn’t need to pass against Mitchell County because they ran the ball at will, racking up nearly 500 yards on the ground. Against the Rebels, however, they took to the air in sneaky situations.

Fred Holton hauled in an 8-yard toss from Quintez Spear on a second-and-3 play near midfield in the first quarter. Another second-down pass in the second quarter resulted in a 9-yard scoring grab by Duanterrius Wilson.

Thomasville’s second touchdown pass, a 28-yarder from Charles Hayes to Jeffery Dyson, came on a first-down play.

Hayes and Dyson have been hobbled recently by leg injuries, but they appear to be rounding into form just in time for next week’s Region 1-AA championship game at Fitzgerald. The Purple Hurricanes are 9-0 overall and 6-0 in the region.

“I’m happy where we are. We’re coming back healthy, and now we can go back to work on Monday,” Marsh said. “That’s the big thing.”

After the Berrien game, Marsh challenged his players to have their best practice of the year on Monday. He added it is important to keep the players focused on the task at hand because their minds can wander.

“They are young men, and sometimes we have to keep our foot on the gas and help try to remind them. That’s why we are the adults who have made the mistakes, and they are the young ones we are just trying to guide,” Marsh said.