Football Recap: Tigers Knock Off Saints

Junior running back Dallas Rivers rushed for 115 yards and three touchdowns to lead the Class AAAAA No. 2 ranked Tucker Tigers to a over the Class AAA No. 7 ranked Cedar Grove Saints at Hallford Stadium on Friday.

Tucker (1-0) rolled up 411 yards of total offense as Yusuf Minor added 124 yards and one touchdown and Joseph Farrar rushed for 97 yards and one touchdown. The defense meanwhile limited the Saints and Class AAA preseason All-State quarterback Johnathan McCrary to 184 yards of total offense, including just 92 through the air for McCrary.

The Tigers got off to a quick start after pinning the Saints at their own one yard line on the opening kickoff and then junior defensive back Eddie Ivey tackled Cedar Grove running back Anthony Lattmore for a safety on the first play from the line of scrimmage for a 2-0 Tucker lead with just 10 seconds gone in the game.

Tucker took the free kick and marched 55 yards which concluded on a 13 yard run by Rivers for his first touchdown with 8:25 left in the first quarter. Steven Duffy added the extra point for a 9-0 Tiger lead.

Cedar Grove found the going hard against the swarming Tiger defense as eight first half plays went for a loss.

Tucker made it 15-0 heading into the half with a 24 yard run by Minor with 5:12 to play in the second period. A two-point try came up just short.

Cedar Grove’s onside kick attempt to start the second half  was touched too soon and the Tigers needed just six plays to take a 22-0 lead on the back of Rivers’ second touchdown of the game. Duffy added the point after try.

The Saints responded on the ensuing drive going 61 yards in five plays for their first score of the game. Facing second and nine at the Tucker 29 McCrary was forced out of the pocket and found running back Shane Ward open in the middle of field and dumped a pass to him. Ward gathered in the pass, turned up field and raced to the end zone to cut the Tiger lead to 22-6 with 6:43 left in the third period.

Tucker put the game away with two touchdowns in the final three minutes of third quarter on a 44 yard run by Rivers and a 29 yard run by Farrar. Duffy added both point after tries to send the Tigers into the fourth quarter with a 36-6 lead.

Cedar Grove added a 61-yard touchdown run by Deion Sellers and a two-point
conversion to make the final margin of 36-14.

Tucker’s win streak stands at 16-0 following a 15-0 run to the Class AAAA state title in 2011.

Arabia Mountain 40, Clarkston 0
The Rams hit the Angoras hard in the first half with a 40 point outburst and cruised to a 40-0 win at Panthersville on Friday night.

Arabia Mountain opens the season 1-0 while Clarkston is 0-1.

Greater Atlanta Christian 34, Stone Mountain 26
The Stone Mountain Pirates rallied twice against Greater Atlanta Christian before falling short in a 34-26 loss on the road.

Greater Atlanta Christian was up 34-14 before the Pirates rallied in the second half. Quarterback Cordaryl Cook connected with Sammy Johnson on touchdown passes of 67 and 86 yards to get within eight points (34-26) with five minutes to play.

The Pirates had rallied from a 17-0 deficit in the first half to make it 20-14 at the half as Solomon Parker had a three yard run for a touchdown and Cook added another score.

Stone Mountain, which finished 8-2 in 2011, fell to 0-1.

DeKalb Results
Friday, Aug. 24
Tucker (1-0) 36, Cedar Grove (0-1) 14
Maynard Jackson (1-0) 31, Towers (0-1) 6
Holy Innocents 20, Lakeside (0-1) 14
Greater Atlanta Christian (1-0) 34, Stone Mountain (0-1) 26
South Atlanta (1-0) 34, Lithonia (0-1) 19
Arabia Mountain (1-0) 40, Clarkston (0-1) 0

Mark Brock is the Information Officer/Statistician/Web Manager for DeKalb County Schools Athletics