Thursday Night Lights Football Recap

Upperman 27, DeKalb County 20 

The Upperman Bees used a three touchdown, third quarter to beat DeKalb County in Smithville Thursday night. Daniel Metzgar returned the opening kickoff of the second half 82-yards for a touchdown to break a 7-7 halftime score.

Ty Dutchess raced 53-yards into the endzone on the following drive to extend the Bee’s lead to 21-7. The Tigers Axel Aldino answered with a 10-yard touchdown pass to Desmond Nokes on the ensuing possession.

Dutchess scored again from five-yards out as the third quarter drew to an end to put the game out of reach.

Sophomore running back Terrance Dedmon rushed for a game high 20 carries and 194 yards and the lone Upperman touchdown in the first half. Aldino finished the night 15-27 for 170 yards and a touchdown.

Next week Upperman (1-1) will travel to Carthage to take on Smith County while DeKalb County (0-2) will look for their first win of the season against region foe Stone Memorial in Crossville.

Sale Creek 26, Jackson County 44

The Jackson County Blue Devils scored early and often on senior night in Gainesboro. The Blue Devils took the lead, 6-0, early in the second quarter off a Wid Robbins 11-yard touchdown run.

Robbins would go on to carry the ball 11 total times for 169 yards and three scores offensively. The Blue Devils took the lead back early in the second quarter off of an 84-yard Eil Burris to Jacob Calvin touchdown pass and never looked back.

Jackson County’s Austin Birdwell ripped off a 42-yard touchdown run in the second quarter to give the Blue Devils a 20-8 lead. Robbins sealed the game late with a 95 yard interception return for a touchdown. Jackson County’s defense also recorded a safety on the night.

Jackson County (2-0) jumps into region play next Friday night as they host Westmoreland in Gainesboro

Cannon County 0, Warren County 48

By Trevor Evans 

The Pioneers were back in action Thursday night at Nunley, where they took on the Cannon County Lions. The Pioneers went into the game trying to avenge a 20-7 loss last year, and behind a big night from CJ Taylor they got that revenge.

Taylor had 144 yards on the ground with 3 touchdowns and went 5-7 for 31 yards in the air as well. Taylor has now accounted for seven touchdowns through two games on the season.

The Pioneers (2-0) will be put to the test next week as they travel to Murfreesboro to take on region opponent Rockvale.

Livingston Academy 18, Cookeville 33

Stockton Owen (170 rushing yards) and Logan Sides (136 yards) led the Cavaliers to a 33-18 victory over Livingston Academy.

After LA Quarterback Parker Coleman scored to tie the game at six, Cookeville rattled off 27 unanswered points to take control of the game at 33-6. The Wildcats battled back with a pick-six and a touchdown connection between Nathan Cowgill and Ayden Coffee, but it was too little too late, and the Cavaliers held on for the victory.

Cookeville (2-0) faces their first big test of the season next week when they hit the road to Murfreesboro to take on Riverdale. LA will take on Cumberland County in Crossville.

Clay County 0, Stone Memorial 32

The Panther defense shuts down Clay County’s offense in a 32-0 shutout win to push their record to 1-1.

The secondary forced two interceptions from Bulldog Quarterback Keaton Arms, who struggled mightily on the night. Overall, he finished with just three completions on 17 attempts.

The Bulldogs didn’t have much more success on the ground, as they finished with 87 yards on 40 total carries for an average of 2.2 yards per carry.

Clay County’s (1-1) next contest will be against Jo Byrns at home, while Stone will host DeKalb County.