The chants started before the game in the packed visitor's side bleachers.

"I believe," screamed the Lincoln fans, just one year removed from an 0-9 season.

"I believe," chanted the Lincoln fans, who have seen as many wins this season as the previous nine years combined.

"I believe that we will win," they screamed, minutes before kickoff with cross-town and Southeastern Conference rival Ypsilanti. "I believe that we will win."

Win the team did, defeating the host Phoenix, 27-12, and securing the first playoff berth in school history.

Even for those who believed, could they have imagined this?

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"Honestly I knew we could do it," said senior Tyree Waller. "It’s amazing. It’s just mind blowing."

He's not alone.

"I think we deserve to be here. We’re not shocked. I think we’re a darn good defensive team, I really do," said head coach Chris Westfall. "We're legitimate that way and we've built it offensively."

Lincoln's defense finished with five sacks on the night, two by DeJuan Hampton, and held Ypsilanti to 187 yards offensively, most of which was compiled on its final two drives of the night.

It was defense that dominated the early stages of the game as the teams played a scoreless first quarter. Ypsilanti (1-7, 0-6 SEC White) caught the first break of the game on the first play of the second quarter when a long-snap sailed over Lincoln punter Corey Gray’s head, giving the Phoenix 1st-and-10 on the Lincoln 30-yard-line.

The advantage in field position would prove short-lived, as Ypsilanti fumbled the snap on the next play. Gray had instant redemption, recovering the ball for the Railsplitters.

Lincoln took advantage of Ypsilanti’s missed opportunity and drove the ball 70 yards for the only points of the half. After being stuffed on three straight runs up the middle from inside the 1-yard line, George Miller took the ball off right guard on 4th-and-1 for the score. Gray kicked the extra point to give Lincoln a 7-0 lead.

Ypsilanti had a chance to even the score before half, and got the ball inside the Lincoln red zone following a pair of 4th-down conversions on a clock-consuming drive. But on 1st-and-10 from the 20-yard-line, Darryl Tipton was intercepted by Johntae Pittman with under a minute to play and Lincoln (6-2, 4-2) went into the half unblemished.

"That hurts us, it hurts to the core," said Ypsilanti coach Jason Malloy. His team would finish with three turnovers. "That's what hurts us every game all year. Turnover after turnover after turnover."

The third quarter cinched up the playoff berth for the Railsplitters. First, Waller hit Rare Williams on a 60-yard double-pass that caught Ypsilanti totally off guard. Waller is the third player Williams has caught a touchdown pass from in the past two games. He caught a pass on a fake punt from Gray last week.

"Rare’s a fantastic player and we should get him the ball more, but that also comes with the higher risk of turning it over," Westfall said of the trick plays.

Ypsilanti had the ball for all of one play on the next drive before fumbling deep in its own zone, setting up Miller for his second 1-yard score of the night.

"When you're trying to win football games, turning the football over does not lead to wins," Malloy said.

Ypsilanti punted on its next possession and TJ O'Bryan hit Tyler Lincoln on the Railsplitters next possession to put Lincoln up 27-0 heading into the fourth. Ypsilanti would score two late touchdowns.

Perhaps no one personifies Lincoln's turnaround as much as their quarterback, O'Bryan, who threw his first interception of the season against the Phoenix after throwing 19 and fumbling 10 times a year ago.

Now that his team has reached a goal that seemed unreachable to most at the beginning of the season, what will they do now?

"Win," O'Bryan said.

Why not?

Contact Pete Cunningham at petercunningham@annarbor.com or by phone at 734-623-2561. Follow him on Twitter @petcunningham.