It’s been an un-UMS like year for the UMS-Wright football team.

Terry Curtis’ Bulldogs are just 4-3 overall and fighting for their playoff lives entering Friday’s home game against a much improved Citronelle team.

“We have to win these next three games,” said Curtis, who has yet to miss the postseason in his 25 years as head coach of the school. “Every game counts the same. It doesn’t matter if it is Citronelle, Faith Academy or Williamson. Where we are now, we don’t need to lose any of them.

“The playoffs are starting early for us.”

Class 5A top-ranked Gulf Shores leads Region 1 with a 6-0 mark.

Behind Mark Hudspeth’s Dolphins, there is a jumble of playoff competitors – Vigor (5-2, 4-2), UMS (4-3, 3-2), B.C. Rain (5-2, 3-2), Faith Academy (4-3, 3-2) and Citronelle (4-3, 2-3). Only four of the six can play in the postseason.

“I told our kids we could go 7-3 and not make the postseason or go 7-3 and make it. I think the future is in our hands,” Citronelle coach Jason Rowell said. “Week in and week out, even teams with losing records are really good football teams in our region. Their record is not indicative of who they are. You’ve got to bring your ‘A’ Game each week.”

The Wildcats stayed in contention last week with a 14-8 home win over Williamson. They also have a 27-10 win over Faith on their resume along with losses to Vigor, Gulf Shores and B.C. Rain. All three of their region losses came on the road. They will be on the road this Friday as well.

“Going down there and playing is tough,” Rowell said. “Coach Curtis and his staff do a great job. They aren’t going to make mistakes. They are going to be in the right position all the time. If you win down there, you have to go beat them. I have a lot of respect for their program and what they’ve done over the last 20-plus years with coach Curtis. We expect it to be a tough ballgame. We hope to be in it and have a chance in the fourth quarter.”

UMS’ playoff hopes would be dangling by a thread had the Bulldogs not received a forfeit win from Vigor. They are coming off a 31-21 loss to B.C. Rain in which UMS watched a 21-6 first-half lead vanish to Amari Yelding and the Raiders.

“We had two touchdowns called back in the second half. We missed a field goal. We had opportunities to put more points up,” Curtis said. “One time we had a holding. One time we had an illegal man downfield. One time we were hurt by a sack. You can’t do those things and keep getting by with it. We have to execute and play sound football and, when we have a chance to score, make the most of it.”

Scoring has been an issue for the Bulldogs. UMS has scored just 121 points all season and 55 of those came in one game (a 55-13 win over Elberta). The Bulldogs have given up 126. Still, Rowell said his team won’t take anything for granted.

“Our kids have talked about how they beat the crap out of us last year (50-6),” Rowell said. “They respect UMS. They want a chance to go down there and show that last year’s team was not who we are. They know UMS and their history and their record. I think our guys really respect their guys and their coaching staff.”

This week’s pivotal matchup could come down to quarterback play. UMS starter Joe Lott, a Troy commit, left last week’s loss with an ankle injury. Curtis said Thursday, “I’ll be surprised if he doesn’t play.” Lott is also the team’s starting safety and a key special teams contributor.

“He jumps out. He’s a smart player,” Rowell said of Lott. “When things break down, he does a good job of throwing the football away and obviously his legs are a tremendous asset. He is another running back in the backfield at the quarterback position. He will make you lose sleep at night.”

Citronelle counters with Justin Adams, who was 6-of-7 for 99 yards and a TD in last week’s low-scoring battle against Williamson.

“One word that comes to mind is unselfish,” Rowell said of Adams. “He’s an unselfish football player. He’s a leader in every aspect. He shows up every day and brings his lunch pail with him and goes to work. He’s always on our guys that it’s not just another period, it’s a period to get better. When your players say that, you know you are headed in the right direction.”

UMS’ final two Region 1 games following Citronelle are both on the road against Faith and Williamson. The Wildcats play at LeFlore (Oct. 27) and at home against Elberta (Nov. 3) to finish the season. The playoff start Nov. 10.