While the other seven area teams have either locked up a playoff berth or play tonight with a berth on the line, Thorsby’s game against Hale County High at 7 p.m. carries no playoff significance for the Rebels.

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Chilton Co. (3-5, 3-2 region) at Greenville (5-3, 3-2)

– CCHS is on a three-game winning streak after starting the season 0-5. But the Tigers tonight will have their stiffest competition of the last four weeks.

Jemison (6-2, 5-1) at Holt (2-5, 1-4)

– Jemison – which is coming off a 35-22 setback to Bibb Co., – followed up its first loss this season with a 53-14 thrashing of Dallas Co.

Maplesville (6-1, 6-1) at Holy Spirit (6-2, 5-2)

– A Maplesville win would ensure the Red Devils play at George Walker Stadium in the first round of the playoffs for the third consecutive season.

Shades Mtn. (2-6, 1-5) at Isabella (5-2, 4-2)

– With a 49-7 win over Thorsby last week, Isabella ensured its first playoff berth since 2003, remarkable for a program that only two years won nary a game.

Montgomery Academy (6-2, 4-2) at Marbury (3-4, 3-3)

– Marbury needs a win to keep its playoff hopes alive, but that won’t be easy against the Eagles, who haven’t missed the playoffs since 1999 (and they went 8-2 that year).

Billingsley (6-2, 6-2) at Parrish(3-4, 3-3)

– These two teams enter the game in vastly different situations: The Purple Tornadoes have lost 12 games in a row while the Bears are enjoying their first winning season since 2004.

Verbena (3-5, 2-4) at Winterboro (3-5, 3-3)

– Verbena faces its second must-win game in a row. Winterboro will likely be more of a challenge than Donoho was last week.

The Thorsby players and coaches – and the loyal fans that show up at Susan Bentley Field every week – would surely love a win, but tonight’s contest could matter for more reasons than pride. The momentum a win would create could make a world of difference for a young team trying to discover how to succeed consistently.

Some pieces to the puzzle are obvious. Quarterback Andrew Farris, a sophomore, ranks fourth in the area in passing yards per game, averaging 122.1. Farris’ favorite target is receiver Marcus Bray. Bray, also a sophomore, averages 51.8 yards a game and has been on the receiving end of three touchdown passes.

Another sophomore, linebacker Eric Camarillo, is second in the area with 10.8 tackles per game.

Even with some impressive individual pieces, the Rebels (0-8) haven’t been able to put it all together.

Hale County will present Thorsby with another challenge even though the Wildcats (2-6, 1-5 in Class 2A, Region 4 play) are having a sub-par season. Hale last week defeated Shades Mountain Christian 54-0. Shades Mountain beat Thorsby 45-20 two weeks ago.

But, for a Rebels team whose first priority is improvement, the scoreboard at the end of the game might not tell the whole story.