Tigers sink Rebels, win district title outright

The Daingerfield Tigers defeated the Ore City Rebels on Nov. 4, giving the Tigers sole possession of the 2016 District 7-AAA, Division II Championship. The Rebels season ended with the 48-20 home loss to the Tigers.

The Tigers came out knowing a loss would throw them into a four way tie for the district championship. The Tigers’ goal for the week was to stand alone at the top of the district, and they knew that to do that, they had to defeat the Rebels.

The Tigers again won the toss, and again elected to defer to the second half. The Tigers and Rebels would swap penalties and possessions to begin the game, and Tiger fans were wondering what it would take to break through. On Ore City’s second possession, they punched it in from the three yard line, putting them ahead of the Tigers 6-0 following the missed extra point. The onside kick was recovered by the Tigers, and the Daingerfield offense set up at their own 47 yard line. Quarterback Jakauri Woods, who was splitting signal-calling duties with Reggie Jeter, scrambled 34 yards to put the Tigers on the board. Following a Jose Bello extra point, the Tigers had a lead they would not relinquish the rest of the game.

The Tigers would add a fumble recovery for a touchdown less than a minute into the second quarter, and followed that up with a safety on the ensuing kickoff to go up by ten, 16-6. Not wanting to be outdone, the Dangerfield defense would recover a fumble with 48 seconds left in the half and return it 38 yards for a touchdown. The Tigers were up 23-6 by the time the teams headed to the locker room for halftime.

The Tigers took possession on their own 44 yard line following the second half kickoff. Two plays later, Kieston Rushing rushed 52-yards for another Tiger touchdown, giving the Tigers a 30-6 lead. Daingerfield would revcover a Rebel fumble on the next drive before turning the ball over on downs. The defense then returned with an interception, setting up the Tigers nine yards from another score. Jeter punched it in from two yards out for the Tigers, giving Daingerfield a 30 point lead. Markevian Grant got into the scoring action for the Tigers, scoring with 11 minutes left in the game to give the Tigers a 42-6 advantage. The Rebels would score twice more in the fourth quarter, but it was a moot point, as the final score was 48-20, thanks to a 45 yard fumble return for a touchdown by Tacodi Williams with four minutes left in the game.

The Tigers knew their first round opponent would be Winona, it was just a matter of Coach Mike Waldie meeting with the Winona coach for the flip. “All teams set out with a goal: to make the playoffs, and we did that. Our next goal was to be district champions: we did that. Thirdly, we wanted to be selfish and be district champions on our own: tonight, we did that. Now, we have to get ready for the third season,” said Coach Mike Waldie. Waldie left Rebel Stadium in Ore City and headed to the flip with Winona’s coach. This was one flip the Tigers did not win, so Winona chose the location and will be the home team. The Tigers, who have played more on the road than at home this season, will travel to Panther Stadium at Longview Spring Hill High School on Friday, Nov. 12 as the visiting team in the bidistrict match up. Kickoff is set for 7:30 p.m. For Tiger fans attending the game, Panther Stadium is located at 3101 Spring Hill Road (cut-off) in Longview.