DMS Tigers roll over Aliceville
Demopolis Middle School took a while finding its way on offense Thursday night before Juan McClain and Dequan Birl anchored a bruising ground attack that dropped Aliceville 24-0.
McClain opened the scoring with 6:23 remaining in the second quarter when he took a quick handoff from his fullback spot and shot through the middle of the Aliceville defense for a 23-yard touchdown run. Aldraius Pruitt added the conversion run to make it 8-0.
Little more than two minutes later, McClain ran through the defense again, covering 40 yards and finding his way to the end zone for his second touchdown of the night. R.J. Smith added the conversion run on a quarterback keeper to make it 16-0 in favor of the Tigers.
“On offense, big plays helped us a lot,” DMS coach Jeremy Silcox said. “We had some miscues that prevented us from being able to drive on a regular basis.”
After a series of false start penalties threatened to halt the Tigers’ lone third quarter drive, Birl took the ball on a reverse going around the left end, sprinting for a 25-yard touchdown run on his only carry of the game. Tyler Gamble punched in the conversion run to make it 24-0 with 1:19 to play in the frame.
McClain led all rushers with 173 yards and two scores on seven carries.
Birl also showed himself well on defense, recording seven total tackles including five for loss and a sack.
C.J. Sandridge added five tackles including two for loss and a sack.
“On defense, our guys just flew to the ball like they’re taught. They stayed at home,” Silcox said. “(Aliceville) ran some things that could give us trouble, some reverses and halfback passes. Our guys stayed at home and made plays.”
Demopolis is set to host Greensboro Monday. The Tigers then welcome Thomasville to town Oct. 5 where they will also observe Breast Cancer Awareness Day. After a 10 day layoff, Demopolis hosts Sweet Water Oct. 15 and closes out the season Oct. 20 in Selma.
