The DeKalb County Tigers football team traveled to Macon County last Friday night to take on another district opponent. While the Tigers took control of the game early, there was some controversy off the field at halftime between Lafayette city officials and diehard black and gold fans.
DeKalb got the ball first, and right off the bat began to show their dominance on the field. Mixing up the pass and running game, the Tigers started at their own 23-yard line and drove downfield on seven plays to the Macon 35. There, on a second and ten, the ball was handed to Devonta Milan, who took in for the first touchdown of the night. Kicker Matthew Poss’ extra point was good, and the Tigers were up, 7-0.
On Macon Tigers’ first possession, it looked as if it might be a close game. Macon County returned the ball to their own 29, and with some big runs from Macon’s Dalton Driver the team managed to drive down to the DeKalb 44-yard line. There, facing a fourth and ten, it looked as if the drive would stall, but an off-sides penalty gave the Macon Tigers a fourth and five from the 41-yard line. Electing to go for it, the ball was handed to Driver who took it down to the DeKalb 28.
It looked as if Macon would score, but after a fumble and a series of penalties by Macon the DeKalb defense stepped up with a big play. On a fourth and twelve from the DeKalb  31-yard line, Quarterback Carson Cook was sacked in the backfield, giving DeKalb the ball at their own 33.
The Tigers would waste no time after the stop. On the next play, a big run by Milan set DeKalb up at the Macon 25-yard line. Then, Luke Boss would be handed the ball, taking it the 25 yards for six points. The extra point was good and the Tigers commanded a 14-0 lead with 1:52 left in the first quarter.
After the kickoff, again the Macon Tigers looked to score, driving back down into DeKalb territory. As the second quarter began, Macon drove down to the DeKalb 24-yard line, but there the Tigers’ D stiffened. On a third and 11 from the 25-yard line, a Macon pass was intercepted by Dustin Warner at the 11-yard line.
Again, the Tigers would make them pay. Facing a third and nine from their own 12-yard line, DeKalb QB Steven Jennings threw to Aaron Patterson, who took it to the Macon 22. Then, a run by Milan set DeKalb up at the three-yard line. The ball was then given to A.J. Mooneyham, who took it in for a touchdown. Poss’ kick was good, and the Black and Gold were up 21-0 with 7:07 left in the half.
On the kickoff, again the Macon Tigers looked to get points. On the return, the ball was taken to the Macon 46, giving the team good field position. But, the DeKalb D was up for the challenge. Macon was held to only nine yards on the drive, and in desperation Macon County decided to go for it on a fourth and one from the DeKalb 45. The running play was held for no gain, and DeKalb took over on downs.
 For the first time in the game, DeKalb’s next drive faltered.  With an illegal man downfield penalty and a block-in-the-back penalty, the Tigers found themselves down with a fourth and 21 and were forced to punt. Macon would field the ball at their own 39, but on a second-and-10 play, a pass was again intercepted, this time by Mooneyham.
DeKalb looked to put the nail in the coffin and with 1:37 left in the half proceeded to drive into the Macon red zone, but on a second and eight from the Macon 20, a fumbled snap resulted in Macon recovering the ball with 44 seconds left on the clock. Macon would drive down to the 16-yard line, but time was not on their side. The half would end with a firm DeKalb lead, 21-0.
It was during halftime that some DeKalb fans would get a shock. Though they were told they could set up the familiar air horn used by fans in the visitor’s stands, that seemed to be before Macon County was losing. During halftime a Lafayette City official told the fans there was an ordinance against the air horn and it would have to be removed. That despite DeKalb fans clearly hearing an air horn on the home side of the field. Nevertheless, the air horn was removed and Tigers’ fans ramped up their use of cow bells and other noise makers during the game.
At the beginning of the second half Macon received the ball and came out on the field with a new sense of urgency. Starting at their own 26-yard line, Macon would go 12 plays to the DeKalb 15. They would then be backed up by a holding call, but then a hand off to Driver would get the Macon Tigers their first points of the game. The extra point was good with the score 21-7.
DeKalb would start their first drive of the second half on their own 39, but it would end disastrously. On the first play, Milan fumbled and the ball was recovered by Macon at the 44-yard line.
Macon would not be able to take advantage of the turnover, and with a couple of holding calls, and a false start penalty, would find themselves facing a fourth and 31 at their own 35. Macon would have to punt, and DeKalb would return to their own 38.
On the next drive the Tigers faced some adversity. After a successful pass to Patterson, QB Jennings would go down untouched with a leg injury. Jennings would come out of the game, with Patterson switching to the quarterback position. Three plays later, a fumble by Patterson would turn the ball over to Macon at the DeKalb 43. Milan would be hurt on that play and would also have to come out.
Macon would take advantage of DeKalb’s miscues, and as the drive went into the fourth quarter, Macon would face a fourth and eight from the DeKalb 16. Electing to get points on the board, Macon attempted a field goal. The kick was good, and Macon narrowed the score, 21-10 with 10:33 left in the game.
DeKalb would start their next drive at their own 23, but with Jennings out, a key receiver now acting as QB, and the big play maker Milan still out, the Tigers went three-and-out and would punt the ball.
It looked as if the Tiger defense would hold Macon to a three-and-out, but once again facing a fourth and 10 from their own 47, the desperate Macon Tigers went for it and converted. But on a second and eight from the DeKalb 40, Milan, who had returned to the game, got a fumble recovery and returned the ball to the 46-yard line.
With renewed energy, DeKalb powered their way down the field. The next play, Milan was handed the ball and took it to the 21, but a facemask penalty added more yards. With a first and 10 at the 11-yard line, it was Milan again to the five. Runs by Luke boss would give the Tigers a fourth and inches at the two-yard line. The Tigers smelled blood, and decided to go for it. The hand off was to Boss who took it into the end zone for six. With the extra point, DeKalb was up 28-10.
The rout was on, and the DeKalb D came out meaning business. Taking the ball at their own 15, Macon could not move and would be forced to punt. The return by Warner would set the Tigers up again at the Macon 27-yard line. Two plays later it was Milan again, in for a touchdown. With 3:16 left in the game, DeKalb was up 35-10.
Macon would drive down the field as the seconds ticked off of the clock, and a pass would find Chris Gunter in the end zone as the final buzzer sounded, but the DeKalb Tigers would come away with the win, 35-16.
"We told our guys for a couple of weeks that Macon County has been playing really hard," Tigers Coach Steve Trapp told the Review. "We couldn’t take them lightly. We started the game off really well. It’s something we’ve been focused on. We had some bad stuff in the middle of the game. Some turnovers and things like that. I’m just really proud of our guys. They battled through adversity and ultimately got the result we wanted in the end."
When asked about the Tigers preparedness against the unbeaten district rival Upperman next week, Coach Trapp said, "It will be a big challenge for us. They’re playing some good football. They’ve got a lot of guys that have been playing for quite a few years over there. It’s going to be a big work week for us, like it is every week. A lot of stuff is at stake, playoffs, the championship, stuff like that, but we’re going to approach it just like every other game. We’ll prepare Monday through Thursday, put our teams out on the field and see who wins."