It was odd. Dublin lost a game early in the season, and even stranger still, it lost a region game early in the season.

And with that, the Irish faced more pressure before the end of September than they had in a long time, because one more loss could have kept Dublin from the playoffs.

Such is how life would be in GHSA Region 3-AA, where every game counted, and that wasn't just a slogan. There were no non-region games, and six teams currently have winning records.

"Going into the season, we didn't know what to expect," Dublin head coach Roger Holmes said. "We're kind of surprised to be in this situation after the Laney loss."

The situation is a region championship game, and it takes place tonight when Dublin visits Jefferson County in a battle of 8-1 teams.

Dublin hasn't lost since the second game of the season, 21-11 to Laney. Jefferson County, which beat Laney 23-21 to open the season, had a six-game winning streak broken in a 35-7 loss to East Laurens, a team Dublin defeated 32-14 two weeks later.

The Irish responded well to their early season loss, pounding Dodge County 51-14 in their next game. Their only win by fewer than 19 points since then was a 23-20 victory of Swainsboro on Oct. 17.

And they've survived some injuries all season.

Place-kicker Briceton Cannada was hurt against Swainsboro, and running back-defensive back Jontrel Colbert broke his leg against Bleckley County. Receiver Chris Smith has missed almost a month with some cartilage problems.

Smith will be back tonight, but Cannada and Colbert won't be.

Dublin survived early on because of the play of quarterback-defensive back Rashad Smith, one of the state's top players. Others have been stepping up on a regular basis.

"I think Rashad carried us for two or three weeks," Holmes said. "And our running backs have gained some experience and gotten better, and we're getting some balance."

Josh Jordan, Michel Coffey and Nick Glenn have emerged to take some of the offensive heat off of Rashad Smith. Holmes also said offensive lineman Jack Whittle has turned into an impact player.

"We're starting to get the balance you need to be an effective wing-T football team," Holmes said. "I've always felt like an experience football team, if you can be good defensively, your offense will catch up as time goes."

Only Laney and Swainsboro have scored 20 points or more on the Irish, who have been held to fewer than 20 only in the first two games of the season.

"Gerald Rollins played defensive tackle last year, and we moved him to middle linebacker," Holmes said. "Just reps and experience in games, and he's become a good middle linebacker on the high school level."

Holmes said his philosophy is geared more toward getting into the playoffs and being sharp in the first round rather than focus on region championships. But his team will face a playoff atmosphere in Louisville, about a half hour southwest of Augusta.

"It just so happened that it's come down this year to week 10, a game that's gonna be a region championship game," Holmes said. "I don't want the ballgame we're fixing to play to determine our future in the playoffs.

"The real focus is to get yourself into the playoff and be playing as good as you can from that time forward."