The DeKalb County High School Tigers Football team has been in do-or-die mode for the last two games. With two losses against the first two scheduled district games, the team had to win out its remaining schedule to continue its hopes for postseason play. The Tigers have been on fire, getting a big win over Macon County, and then taking a hard-fought win against the Upperman Bees last Friday night.

The game was ugly, with flags flying, jaws talking, and even an ejection. The matchups each year against Upperman have always been full of trash talk and high emotions, but this year seemed as if it had been turned up a notch. Through the game, it was the Tigers that would keep their heads straight, and pull through with a victory.

DeKalb County fans came out in force, filling the stands and showing some strong support for their team. The Bees would receive the ball on the opening kickoff, but after attempting a fancy reverse after the reception Upperman coughed up the ball, with DeKalb recovering at the Upperman 10-yard-line. On a second and goal, Quarterback Steven Jennings tossed the option to Luke Boss who ran it in for six points. The extra point by Matthew Poss was good, and just like that DeKalb was up 7-0 with only 21 seconds run in the first quarter.

Upperman’s offense would finally take the field after the kickoff gave them the ball at their own 31-yard-line, but the Tigers’ defense was ready to play. DeKalb held the Bees to a three-and-out with only six yards gained. The resulting punt would go out of bounds, giving the Tigers the ball at the Upperman 46. An illegal shift backed them up to their own 49 on the first play, but the Tigers quickly moved that ball downfield.

A Jennings pass to Christian Pruitt moved DeKalb to the Bees’ 21, then a pass to Isiah Jones fell incomplete. The next play, a QB keeper, had Jennings into the end zone. A Jennings pass to A.J. Mooneyham was good for two points, and DeKalb’s lead increased to 15-0, with 8:56 left in the first quarter.

The kickoff had the Bees starting their next possession at their own 24, and it looked as if the Tigers’ D-line would hold Upperman to another three-and-out, but on a third and short an Upperman run broke lose all the way down to the Tigers’ 28. There, the defense once again looked as if it would get off the field, but on a fourth and seven from the 25, a pass to Upperman’s Ben Guffey was complete to the eight-yard-line. From there, a run up the middle lost a yard, then a pass to the Bees’ Cody Leckenby was good to the one. The next play, a keeper by QB Bailey Phillips, was in for a touchdown. A delay of game penalty backed the Bees up on the extra point attempt, and the kick afterwards was no good. Upperman was on the board with 4:29 left in the first quarter, 15-6.

DeKalb still had the lead, but on the kickoff a miscue sent shivers up the spines of the DeKalb faithful. Poss received the kick, but on the return fumbled, with Upperman recovering on the DeKalb 38. The Bees would take advantage, and three plays had them to the 11-yard-line. Then, a keeper up the middle took them to the three, but a holding penalty nullified the run and backed them up to the 23. The D-line looked to take advantage of the penalty, with a keeper tackle by Eli Cross for no gain, then two incomplete pass attempts. On a fourth and 20, Upperman decided to go for it. A pass to Guffey was good in the end zone for the touchdown. The extra point was good, and the Bees had narrowed the score 15-13, with 1:41 left in the first quarter.

The miscue might have been a moral-buster for DeKalb, but the Tigers were up for the challenge. They would start their next drive at their own 33, and quickly began moving down the field. But, once in scoring position, penalties and failed plays kept DeKalb in a seemingly endless drive.

A Boss carry took them to the DeKalb 38, then another down to the 40. An option to Boss moved to the 46, then a pass to Jacob Washer fell incomplete. Another run by Boss gained one yard to the 47, then, on a third and nine as the game entered the second quarter, a pass to Aaron Patterson was good down to the Upperman 40. The next play had Jennings calling his own number, up the middle to the 29.

Next, a holding penalty backed the Tigers up to the 39, but afterwards a pass to Patterson at the one drew a pass interference penalty against Upperman, giving DeKalb a first and five on the 24. A carry by Boss lost two yards, then a false start backed the Tigers up five more.

After penalties and miscues moved the ball back and forth, DeKalb finally got things together. On a second and 12 from the 31, Jennings threw a beautiful pass to Patterson in the end zone. The extra point kick by Poss was good, and DeKalb was up 22-13, with 9:11 left in the half.

Upperman would not go away however, and quickly struck back, keeping the game close. Starting at the 39, the Bees ran a keeper to the 21, a pass to the 16, then another keeper in for a touchdown. The extra point attempt was no good, but Upperman stayed in striking distance, 22-19 with 7:49 left in the half.

On the kickoff, Matthew Poss gave the Tigers good field position with a return back to the DeKalb 47. From there a couple of QB keepers moved the ball to the Upperman 49, then a pass was complete to Patterson down to the one, but a block in the back penalty backed them away from the goal line. The penalty was assessed from the spot of the foul, giving DeKalb a first down, but backing them up to the Upperman 15.

The next four plays were all Jennings. A keeper drove down to the six, then another took them to the four, but a facemask penalty against the Bees gave the Tigers a first down at the two. Another keeper went for no gain, but drew a defensive holding penalty against Upperman. The next play, Jennings ran it in for a touchdown. The extra point gave DeKalb a 29-19 lead, with 4:42 left in the half.

The Poss kickoff, along with a second effort tackle by Jesse Smith, backed the Bees up to their own 13. The Tiger defense was back on the field and fired up. They would hold Upperman to only three yards and force a punt.

DeKalb returned to their own 40, and would soon move into Upperman territory. A pass to Dalton Halfmann was good to the Upperman 45, but following passes to Patterson and Jones fell incomplete. On a fourth and 10 from the 45, DeKalb went for it. The pass to Jones was incomplete and Upperman took over on downs.

The Bees would not do much better, moving the ball to the DeKalb 44 before throwing an interception to Patterson, who ran back to the Upperman 48. With 33 seconds left on the clock, DeKalb ran three plays and the half would end, but not without confusion.

A couple of keepers moved DeKalb down to the 38-yard-line, and with five seconds left on the clock, Jennings tossed it up to Patterson in the end zone. The pass was intercepted as the buzzer sounded, and Patterson drew a pass interference penalty. Thinking the half was over, both teams ran off the field, but officials soon called the teams back. Because the half had ended with the penalty with the interception, Upperman was allowed one untimed down. Upperman threw a last gasp pass, which fell incomplete and the half ended.

If the first half was ugly, the second half only got worse. Penalties mired drives on both sides of the field, and even resulted in one player being ejected from the game.

DeKalb received the ball to start the half, but penalties would doom their drive. They would start from their own 33, and move up to midfield. A carry by Boss gained four, then a carry by Jacob Washer was up to the 42. Boss took it to the 46, but an illegal shift penalty nullified the run. On the next play, a pass to Lane Ball got the yards back, moving to the 47, then another Boss run took them into Upperman territory at the 48. Then, after an incomplete pass, Jennings was called for intentional grounding. The penalty moved the Tigers back to their own 47 and they were forced to punt.

Upperman started at their own 18, and right away a false start backed them up to the 13. Five plays later had them at the DeKalb 49, but a false start backed them up to their own 46. From there, the Bees moved five plays down to the DeKalb 35, and on fourth and six, decided to go for it. A pass to Guffey was good and run into the end zone, but an unsportsmanlike penalty was called before he crossed the goal line. The touchdown was nullified, and the Bees were moved back to the 16-yard-line. On the next play, a personal foul was called on DeKalb, giving the Bees the ball at the eight. Then, Upperman struck with a keeper in for six. The extra point was blocked by Lane Ball, but the Bees moved closer, 29-25 with 3:31 left in the third.

Patterson returned the kickoff to the DeKalb 30, and from there the Tigers began another troubled drive. On the first play, Jennings kept the ball for a run up to the Upperman 45, then a pass to Patterson fell incomplete. Jennings was sacked back at the 48 on the next play, then a pass was intercepted by the Bees and run to the DeKalb 49.

The Bees mounted a drive that took them deep into the DeKalb red zone, and threatened to take the lead in the game. On a third and nine, a pass was complete to the 34, but a personal foul by DeKalb moved the ball down to the 18. A keeper on the next play set the Bees up at the six, but the following play, another keeper to the four, resulted in a personal foul by Upperman. The penalty moved them back to the 19. Another keeper was stopped by a big tackle by Ball at the 11, then a sack moved the Bees back to the 17. Facing a fourth and goal from the 17, Upperman again went for it. The pass play was broken up in the end zone, and the Tigers took over on downs.

DeKalb had got the stop, but would not be able to add points to the board. A third down pass to Patterson was good to the 32, then a keeper moved the ball to the 35. The next play, a pass to Jonathon Munoz, was complete down to the Upperman 31. That would be as far as they would get. Facing a fourth and 11 from the 32, Jennings tossed it to Patterson, but it fell incomplete.

Upperman took over on downs, but on the first play a keeper resulted in a sack for a loss of two yards. A run on the following play was up the middle to the 34, but a personal foul was called by the officials. Guffey, who had been vocal with the DeKalb players all through the game, then had some words for the referee, who quickly through an additional flag and ejected him from the game. The two dead-ball fouls moved the Bees all the way back to their own eight-yard-line. Facing a third and forever, Upperman threw a pass on the next play, which fell incomplete. With a fourth down, the Bees decided to punt, but the snap was low and the punter juggled the ball in the end zone. DeKalb got the tackle for a safety, taking a 31-25 lead, with 7:56 left to play.

With the safety, Upperman had to kick off to the Tigers, and Patterson returned the ball to the DeKalb 49. But Upperman’s luck was not out yet, with a run by Boss resulting in a fumble with the Bees recovering at the 43. The Bees looked to get back in the game, and were able to push to the DeKalb 30, but on a first down run, Munoz was able to rip the ball loose, with Pruitt recovering at the 30.

With the turnover, the Tigers soon put the nail in the coffin. With passes to Jacob Washer and runs by Boss, DeKalb moved to the Upperman 39, but from there the drive stalled. A run by Boss lost six yards, then a pass to Washer was incomplete out of bounds. Next, a delay of game penalty backed the Tigers up five more, then a sack pushed DeKalb back even more. With a fourth and 35 from the Upperman 37, DeKalb punted, but a roughing the kicker penalty was called on the play. The foul gave the Tigers a first down at the Upperman 48, and two plays later a keeper had Jennings back in the end zone. The extra point was good and DeKalb took their final score, 38-25 with 57 second left in the game.

Upperman would get the ball for three more plays, but DeKalb took the victory.

"We’ll take them anyway we can get them," Head Coach Steve Trapp told the Review. "We’ve been on the other end of some of those games this year. The first half, we came out pretty clean and executed pretty well. We knew we were going to have to hit some plays on third downs with all their pressure. We knew we were going to have some ugly plays in there as well."

"In the second half we just got bogged down a little bit, but we had some breaks in there to go our way. Kudos to our guys for keeping playing. Steven [Jennings] had some pressure issues right there. We were missing a lineman at the last second that got sick and didn’t get to play. So we kind of had to scramble around. Kudos to those guys playing out of position."

"We’ve got to clean up our pressure, and on scramble plays, we made some, we missed some. Like I said, we’ll take a win any way we can get it."

When asked if the Tigers would be ready for the final district game next week against Smith County, Trapp said they are all in. "It’s all on the line right there … second place in the district, an automatic playoff spot, and a potential home game for the playoffs as well. We’ve been in playoff mode for the last couple of weeks, so nothing’s going to be any different. It’s going to be another hard week of preparation, understanding our opponent, and hope to get the same result next week."

The final regular season game will be this Friday at home against Smith County. Game time is at 7 p.m.