A historical night was witnessed by all who attended Friday night’s football game. The Tiger squad began DeKalb County football’s 50th anniversary season as they played the Warren County Pioneers. Head Coach Steve Trapp enjoyed his first shut-out as leader of the DeKalb County Tigers.
Based on the performance at VanHooser Stadium Friday night, the DeKalb County Tigers’ football team began the season determined to prove that the 2012 Tiger squad is as good as any team in the area. Case-in-point, the 50-0 stomping the Pioneers experienced at the paws of the Tigers.
If the Pioneers thought on the ride to Smithville that they were going to skin the Tigers, well, they left a little disappointed.
Big-arm senior quarterback Lucas Phillips had a big night, not only with his passing (11-4 attempts, 186 yards, 4 touchdowns), but also with his legs. Phillips rushed for a game-high of 79 yards.
Phillip’s ability to distribute the football led seven different Tiger receivers to record a catch in the game.
Will Molander led the way with three receptions for 54 yards and one touchdown.
Molander also added one touchdown on the ground, gaining 18 yards on just two carries.
The Tigers’ offense racked up a total of 401 yards, 206 of which came in the air.
New Tiger kicker Ben Driver made a 32-yard field goal. However, Driver, a senior, had two extra-point attempts blocked.
DeKalb’s line dominated the line-of-scrimmage on both sides of the ball. Matt Boss, Caleb Cantrell, Gage Brown, Cameron Rhea, Cole Parsley, and Eli Gill controlled the game from one of the most critical spots on the football field.
The Tigers had a total of 37 plays during the game, 17 of which resulted in first downs. On the down side, DeKalb was flagged five times for 44 yards.
The Tigers started the game fast as they hit pay dirt at the 7:19 mark when Molander plowed over the goal-line for the games first score.
DeKalb’s defense took to the field at that point, forcing the Pioneers to punt.
On the punt, Warren County quarterback Hunter Mullican, who was on the special-teams unit was hit on the knee by Tiger return man Devonta Milan during the tackle. Mullican was lost for the game.
Milan’s return to the 8-yard line of the Pioneers set up Phillips’ first touchdown pass of the night to sophomore tight-end Lance Ball for three yards.
After back to back sacks by junior linebacker Rickey Spare and senior linebacker Spencer Stanfield, the Pioneers were forced to punt.
Phillips and company wasted little time as they reached the end-zone yet one more time when Molander found a soft spot in the defense and Phillips was able to connect for the 35-yard touchdown strike. With only 30 seconds remaining in the first quarter, the Tigers extended their lead 21-0.
The Tigers went on to score on their next three offensive possessions, as the Pioneer defense could not stop the talented Tiger offense.
Milan scored on a dive play from 28 yards out. After the first of two blocked extra-point attempts, the Tigers padded their lead by a score of 27-0.
On the Tigers next possession, running back Chris Chapman scored his first touchdown of the season, when he took the hand-off and rumbled into the end zone. With 7:11 remaining in the second quarter, the Tigers led 34-0.
After a reception by wide receiver Jason Judkins, Phillips connected once again with Sonni Fullilove for a 29-yard touchdown reception that had many in the stands pumped up. With Driver’s second blocked extra-point attempt, the Tigers still were in command with a score of 40-0 with only 2:28 seconds remaining in the first half.
The tigers began the second half with the football and the DeKalb offense took only three plays to score. Phillips would find a wide-open halfback Cody Puckett, who then raced 54 yards for the touchdown. With the good point-after-try, the Tigers broke the game while open.
DeKalb’s last score of the game came from the foot of Driver for a 32-yard field goal, to give the Tigers the final score of 50-0.
The Tigers will travel to Celina Friday to tale on the Fentress County Bulldogs. TIGER PRIDE!