The DeKalb County High School football team returned to the gridiron Friday night. Hosting the Livingston Academy Wildcats on a cold and dreary night at VanHooser Stadium, the Tigers looked sluggish, as the Wildcats rolled to a 42-7 win.
The Wildcats rushed for 282 yards against the Tigers defense, the second most all season. The Tigers offense did not fare so well either, with only 107 yards of their own. The high-powered Tiger offense was shut down on Friday, with the Wildcats defense surrendering only seven points, the lowest output from the Tigers all season.
Junior quarterback Lucas Phillips went 10 for 14 with 146 yards and two interceptions. Phillips who was flushed out of the pocket often, ran for 31 yards on the night for the Tigers.
Livingston Academy running back Hayes ran for 132 yards with 3 touchdowns in the District 8-AA matchup. Hayes' 11-yard touchdown run with 7:44 remaining in the first quarter capped the Wildcats first drive of the night.
The Wildcats, who scored on their first six possessions, were able to control the line of scrimmage on both sides of the football, and in the end, that was the difference in the game for the Tigers.
DeKalb's only score of the night came when Tigers' wide receiver Zach Taylor scooted around the end to score with a 4-yard touchdown run with 8:41 remaining in the second quarter to make the score 14-7 in favor of the Wildcats.
After a seven-play scoring drive,  all running plays by the Wildcats, the Tigers found themselves behind with a score of 21-7.
Sensing some urgency, the Tigers offense put together a nice 12-play, 68-yard drive but was unable to punch the football into the end zone as the halftime buzzer sounded. At the half, the Tigers trailed the Wildcats 21-7.
 Beginning  the second half, the Tigers moved the football down the field on the Wildcat defense. Junior wide receiver Will Molander's two receptions sandwiched a 10-yard catch by senior H-back Sebastian Phillips. However, the drive ended with a Lucas Phillips interception on the Wildcats 27-yard line.
Seven plays later, the Wildcats hit pay dirt again with a 1-yard quarterback sneak, extending their lead to 28-7.
After a 3-and-out drive by the Tigers, Livingston Academy started on their own 41-yard line. On the seventh play, Hayes once again found the end zone for the Wildcats, padding their lead by 28 points.
With the score 35-7, the Tigers came back onto the field trying to find some momentum. However, on the first play of the drive, Tiger quarterback Lucas Phillips scrambled to his left and then awkwardly pulled up and fired the ball down field into the waiting arms of a Wildcat defender.
Three plays later, the Wildcats connected for a 30-yard touchdown pass that brought the score to 42-7, with only 33 seconds remaining in the third quarter.
The two teams traded possessions two times in the fourth quarter with no scoring from either team.
Tiger's cornerback Chris Chapman had an interception on the Wildcats seventh possession that ended the drive on the Tigers' 19-yard line.
However, after some nice runs by Luke Boss and Sam Giles, the Tigers fumbled the football on the 50-yard line.
Three plays later, the final buzzer sounded, and the game ended with the Tigers dropping their second loss of the season, with a score of 42-7 in favor of the Livingston Academy Wildcats.