Tigers send Saints marching, claim area crown 34-8
The AHSAA Class 5A region 3 championship was on the line Friday night in Demopolis. The Demopolis Tigers entered the game 5-0 in region play and the Selma Saints entered the game 4-1 in region play. A win by the Saints would have dropped the Tigers into second place. The Tigers convincingly dropped the Saints, 34-8, to finish their region schedule unbeaten and claim the area crown.
The Saints won the toss and elected to receive the opening kickoff. The Tiger defense held and the resulting Saint punt rolled dead at the Tiger 48-yard line. Craig Nichols got the Tigers on the board at the 7:50 mark of the opening quarter on a 14 yard run. The PAT failed, leaving the Tigers with a 6-0 lead over the Saints.
On their ensuing possession, the Saints drove inside the Tiger 10-yard line, but mishandled the snap on a fourth down try and fell short of the line to gain, turning the ball over to the Tigers at the Tiger 7-yard line. The ensuing Tiger drive was capped by a KJ Rowser touchdown on a 20 yard swing pass from Drew Seymore. The second PAT attempt missed its mark, but the Tigers increased their lead to 12-0 with 1:29 remaining in the first quarter.
The Saints’ next possession ended when Kevin McElroy broke up a fourth down pass, turning the ball over to the Tigers. Rowser collected his second touchdown on a 20-yard run. Matthew Witherspoon added the 2-point conversion and the Tigers took a 20-0 lead with 10:06 to go in the second quarter.
Another failed fourth down try by the Saints gave Tigers possession at their own 13-yard line. KJ Rowser tacked on his third touchdown, another 20 yard run, with 3:19 to go in the half. Joseph Gantt tacked on the PAT, giving the Tigers a 27-0 lead over the Saints.
On the Saint’s ensuing possession, Dexter Boston forced and recovered a fumble, but the Tigers were unable to capitalize, resulting in the 27-0 halftime score.
The Tigers offense cooled down in the third quarter, but the defense held the Saints in check.
The final score of the night for the Tigers came on Nichols 8-yard touchdown run with 5:02 remaining in the game. Gantt connected with the PAT, giving the Tigers a 34-0 lead.
The Saints were able to get on the board on the ensuing kickoff, when Dakaari Nelson returned the kick for a touchdown. The successful 2-point conversion proved to be the final score of the night, resulting in the 34-8 final, in favor of the Tigers.
The Tigers put together another good offensive showing. This week was a little heavy on the rushing side, with 286 of the 455 yards of total offense coming on the ground. Seymore totaled 169 yards on 11 completions, with one touchdown. Camron Wright led the receivers with two catches for 48 yards. KJ Rowser caught two passes for 38 yards, one being a touchdown. Vincent Deas hauled in two passes for 23 yards and Kenon Rowser had two catches for 21 yards. Nichols caught one pass for 16 yards. Montgomery Freeman caught one pass for 13 yards and Harrison Carroll caught one pass for 10 yards.
Nichols led the rushing attack with 154 yards on 19 carries, including two touchdowns. KJ Rowser had two touchdowns on seven carries and totaled 107 yards. Keishawn Rowser had four carries for 29 yards.
The Tigers (5-3, 5-0) will host the Hillcrest (Tuscaloosa) Patriots Friday, Oct. 29 for their final regular season game. Friday night will serve as Senior Night for the Tigers and will also see the field house at Tiger Stadium named in honor of Albert “Can Good’ Thomas.