By KATIE WIGGINS
News Sports Writer
The J.U. Blacksher Bulldogs pulled off another area win Friday night when they hosted the Choctaw County Tigers, winning 37-6. The Bulldogs are now 3-0 on the season and 2-0 in area games.
The offensive captains were seniors Tanner Weaver and Dustin Graham and junior Lane Sims. The defensive captain for the night was senior Taylor Graham.
In the first quarter, the Bulldogs scored their first touchdown during the first minute of the game with a 33-yard touchdown pass from Cooper Dean to Taylor Graham. Weaver who had a 25-yard rushing touchdown. Jacob Bowman recovered a fumble and was able to run it back 18 yards for a touchdown.
On the first play of Choctaw County’s next possession, JT Tucker managed to help the defense and got a pick, which he returned for 19 yards. Senior Bryson Bowen was back in action Friday night after an injury had him sidelined for two games. He was able to make a touchdown.
The score at the end of the first quarter was 30-0.
The second quarter was scoreless, but freshman Damon Rolin forced a fumble, which was recovered by Jadaniel Nettles. The Bulldog defense kept the Tigers from crossing midfield the entire first quarter and held Choctaw County when they threatened to score at the end of the second quarter. The score at halftime was 30-0, Bulldogs.
During halftime, Tanner Weaver and Kendall Murphy competed in the Dr. Pepper Football Toss Scholarship. Tanner Weaver won and will receive a $500 college scholarship.
During the second half of the game, the quarters were shortened to 8 minutes instead of 12 minutes. In the third quarter, Tucker had a 20-yard touchdown run. The Tigers scored their only touchdown with 30 seconds left in the third quarter. Lane Sims was able to break up Choctaw County’s 2-point conversion pass. The score at the end of the third quarter was 37-6, Bulldogs.
The fourth quarter was scoreless, but it did have some action when an unexpected fan ran onto the field. A small child got fans’ attention as he was making its way across the field to the visitors’ sideline. The child was scooped up by quarterback Cooper Dean and was returned to his father. The final score was 37-6, Bulldogs.
On offense, Dean completed 3 out of 5 passes for 34 yards and 1 touchdown. Jacob Bowman rushed for 36 yards on two carries. Tanner Weaver rushed for 79 yards on 5 carries and scored 1 touchdown. Bryson Bowen rushed for 8 yards on 2 carries and scored 1 touchdown. JT Tucker had 20 yards rushing and 1 touchdown. Taylor Graham had a 33-yard catch and 1 touchdown. The Bulldogs had 157 rushing yards on 17 attempts.
On defense, Taylor Graham led with 7 tackles. Dustin Graham had 4 tackles, 2 tackles for a loss, and 2 sacks. Damon Rolin had 6 tackles, 1 for a loss, a forced fumble, and 1 sack. Jadaniel Nettles had 6 tackles, 1 for a loss. Jacob Bowman had 4 tackles, 2 for a loss, and a fumble recovery for a touchdown. Logan Crosby had 5 tackles and broke up a pass.
When asked about the game, head coach Wes Sims said, “Overall I was very pleased. We were able to jump out to a big lead early and rest a lot of our starters. We have several kids banged up and it was important for us to be able to limit their playing time.”
J.U. Blacksher goes on the road to Washington County for another area game, Friday, September 22nd.