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THS Tigers turn away Sweet Water rally
The game featured the third-ranked 4A team and the second ranked 2A team. "Throw the ranking and the class size out the window in this game," THS Coach Jack Hankins said. "It was a great game, the guys played hard and it was a good win. But that game is behind us and now we have to get ready for Hillcrest-Evergreen." After Delvonte Harris took the opening kickoff 45-yards, Thomasville set up shop at the Bulldog 35-yard line. On the fourth play Roya Campbell broke through for an 8-yard touchdown run. The attempt failed but the Tigers had a 6-0 lead very early in the quarter. The Tigers added to that lead on the second play of the second quarter as Jake Overstreet dialed up Shed Simmons who made a circus catch in the back of the endzone for the Thomasville touchdown. The try for two came up short but Thomasville had an important 12-0 lead.
The Bulldogs took the ball and marched to paydirt. Taking eight plays Anthony Landrum capped it with a 17-yard sprint. Ty Glass kicked the PAT, making it 12-7 as the first half came to an end. In the third quarter Thomasville had the ball under the shadow of their goalposts, when Campbell shot through the line on a trap play and rambled 61-yards for the Tiger touchdown. On the try for two, Jarell Watters recovered Delvonte Harris' fumble and Thomasville led 20-7 midway through the period. After forcing a Thomasville punt early in the fourth, Sweet Water made their way to the opposing goal. Quarterback Drew Luker called his own number to cap the drive with a 1-yard sneak. Glass' kick was good as the Bulldogs cut the lead to 20-14 early in the fourth. Thomasville's defense then stopped two final Bulldog pushes. One with an interception and the other as they forced Sweet Water to turn the ball over on downs, preserving the 20-14 win. With the Tiger win, coupled with losses by Deshler and North Jackson, they looked to catapult to the top spot in the 4A poll. "It would be nice but it is what happens at the end that counts," Hankins said. "We saw that our kids were not satisfied and they were hurting after this game," Bulldog Coach Stacy Luker said. "They felt like they could win this game but we saw something from the players. They showed courage, character and the ability to battle adversity in this game." Both coaches see the need for their teams to get better in all aspects of the game as the season progresses. The Thomasville defense was able to do something no other team has done in a long time. They held the due of Landrum and Dominic Holt to under 100 combined yards. "They may have the best tandem of backs we see all season," Hankins said. "Sweet Water had 16 more snaps than us, meaning the defense was on the field more and they answered the bell." Campbell led all rushers with 154 yards on 16 carries and two scores. Harris added 67 yards on 12 carries. Overstreet was 3-of-9 passing for 54 yards and a score. Simmons caught two passes for 38 yards and score. Tyshon Thompson caught the other pass for 15 yards. Jarrell Watters and Katrell Watersled the Tiger defense with 11 and 13 tackles each. Campbell had six stops. Daril Jackson had two tackles and an interception. Justin Smith had four stops and a fumble recovery. In an ironic twist the Bulldogs had more yards in the air than on the ground as Drew Luker was 8-of-21 passing for 144 yards. He also led the team in rushing with 50 yards on 10 carries. Landrum added 42 yards on 13 carries. Holt had 32 yards on 13 carries. Jacques Lockett had four catches for 57 yards. Antonio Landrum had two catches for 79 yards. Holt led the Bulldog defense with 15 tackles. Drew Luker had nine stops. Antonio Landrum and Michael Robinson each had a fumble recovery. This Friday the Tigers (1-0,0-0) take to the road as they take on Hillcrest-Evergreen in their first region game of the season. The Jaguars (0-1,0-0) lost 44-13 to Geneva this past Friday. The Bulldogs (0-1, 0-0) look to get into the win column this week as they host the Akron Rams. Both games start at 7 p.m.
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