"POD" PATTERSON FIELD – It seems a bit of an oddity, at first. The Piedmont offense lines up in the spread formation, receivers all over the field. Then, when the ball is snapped, they rare back and pound the opposing defense directly in the mouth.

“We've got seniors across the front,” Piedmont head coach Steve Smith said. “Senior guard, left tackle, center, and a senior quarterback who's built like a fullback.”

Smith couldn't care less how the offense looks from the bleachers, as long as those seniors keep doing what they're doing. His Bulldogs (10-2) overcame two onside kicks and over a hundred yards in penalties to advance to the quarterfinal round of the Class 3A state playoffs with a run-heavy, 28-7 victory over Susan Moore Friday night.

Along the way, playoff-savvy Piedmont –headed to their third consecutive appearance in the third-round – knocked and banged their way to 317 rushing yards.

Tied at 7-7 after Piedmont scored on a seven-yard run by Christian Cantrell in the first quarter and Susan Moore quarterback Justin Hawkins' 5-yard pass midway through the second, quarterback Chase Childress put Piedmont ahead for good at the end of the first half.

Beginning at his own 1-yard line, the senior ran the two-minute offense to perfection, carrying the ball for 33 of his 130 rushing yards and going a perfect 5-for-5 through the air. The fifth completion was an 11-yard fade route to Jamal Johnson in the corner of the end zone with seven seconds remaining.

The hurry-up drive, which included a conversion on fourth-and-inches at their own 11-yard line, actually lasted 18 plays and took over five minutes off the clock.

“I sort of went on a gut feeling, knowing it wasn't the smartest play in the world,” Smith said of his decision to leave the offense on the field on fourth down. “But going down and scoring like that had to be disheartening to them, and it was a huge momentum changer for us. If we can't get an inch we don't deserve to win.”

The momentum swung back, briefly, when Susan Moore recovered its second onside kick of the night at the beginning of the third quarter. But Piedmont's Luke Smith sacked Hawkins for a loss on third-and-long, and the Susan Moore offense never threatened again.

Susan Moore finished the night with 115 passing yards and 64 yards rushing.

“No doubt, I thought our defense played great tonight with their backs to the wall,” Smith said. “We put them in some tough positions, but they sure did step up.”

In the second half, the Piedmont defense took over completely after Susan Moore virtually abandoned its anemic running game. Hawkins attempted 12 passes in the final two quarters, but was sacked twice, hurried on numerous other attempts, and never got the offense across midfield until a 30-yard scramble on the game's final play.

Smith was clearly unhappy about the penalty situation – Piedmont was flagged 10 times, Susan Moore only twice – but stopped short of criticizing the officiating.

“Like I told our kids, we probably committed every one of them,” Smith said. “There are a lot of penalties that can be called during a game, if you want to call them.”

For Piedmont, Childers finished with 112 yards passing on 14 completions in 16 attempts. Running back Christian Cantrell added 102 yards and scored three touchdowns.

Piedmont hosts Hamilton (11-1) at the Field of Champions Friday night. Kickoff is at 7 p.m. The Post will Tweet live updates throughout the game (www.twitter. com/postpaper) and have full coverage in the Nov. 23 edition.