Every time Andalusia senior running back Derrick King gets a hold of the football, there is only one objective on his mind — to reach the end zone.

“That’s basically it,” King said before practice Thursday. “I don’t just want one or two yards when I touch it.”

King will get another chance tonight, as he and his teammates vie for a first round win over Escambia County in the Class 4A state playoffs.

On the game, King said he’s anxious to “get out there.”

“I’m very excited about the game,” he said. “I think we’re well-prepared, and have a good game plan for it.

“We’ve just got to go out there and execute the plan,” he said.

King has played football his whole life, he said. For the Bulldogs this season, he’s racked up 1,178 yards on 184 carries, and has scored 11 touchdowns.

His game high of four touchdowns came against region opponent St. James in week three.

King said the key for him against Escambia County’s defense is to “read the blocks” handed to him by the offensive line.

“I’m just going to follow my blocks, and trust my line,” he said. “That’s what I will do — trust my line and trust my teammates. I’ll just go out there, and run the ball.”

In addition to playing on offense, King has had some experience as a defensive back for Andalusia.

Escambia County will give the Bulldogs defense multiple formations in tonight’s game.

King said containing Blue Devils’ quarterback Ricco Stallworth is a must.

“I know they have a good quarterback, and we’ve just got to contain him,” he said. “If everybody’ll do their job, then we’ll be all right. (AHS defensive coordinator) Coach (Marshall) Locke has a good plan for us, so we’ll just do what he tells us to do.”

Getting another chance to carry the load for the Bulldogs tonight is a great “opportunity,” King said.

“I played last year, but this is the moment I’ve been waiting for — for the chance to touch the ball a lot,” King said. “To kind of take the opportunity (AHS head) coach (Brian Seymore) has given me.”

King is the son of Mary and Wayne King of Andalusia.