The Mendenhall Tigers defeated the Trojans 46-18 last Friday night.
The game was closely contested, and Magee struck first after a blocked punt was recovered by Zacc Hall and run into the end zone for a touchdown. It was the type of momentum boosting play that has come to be expected in the Simpson County Super Bowl. The Tigers stayed the course and Christian Allen responded with a good read on an option play that ended in a touchdown. The Trojans scored the next points with a field goal from Sam Rials to give the Trojans a 3 point lead.
The Trojan defense was solid during the first quarter and was forcing the Tigers to fight hard for every yard. The rivalry was at full tilt to start the second quarter, and the competition spilled over into the bands that began challenging each other with the ESPN Sports Center theme song.
Back on the field the game was tightly contested. A game of this magnitude comes down to the breaks and who can make the fewest mistakes. After a pair of turnovers set the Trojans up with nice field position, back to back penalties by the Tigers put them in scoring position. Ross McInnis was also a large factor for the Trojans with his bruising running style. He finished the drive with a touchdown to give the Trojans the lead. The Tigers trailed for what felt like the first time all season and responded by closing the gap, thanks to a huge kick return from Keshun Collier. This gave the Tiger defense a much needed momentum boost and they forced a turnover. Christian Allen went 70 yards on a quarterback keeper to give his team an 18-15 lead.
In the waning moments of the first half the Tigers had back to back penalties called with 12 men on the field, which moved the ball within Sam Rials’ range. Rials connected on a 30 plus yard field goal to tie the game 18-18 heading into the half. It was a tale of two halves for the Simpson County Super Bowl. The Tigers dominated the second half of the game with break out performances from Zay Duckworth and Junkevious Mack. The Trojans appeared to run out of steam in the second half and the game slipped out of reach shortly after.
For more analysis see next week’s paper for a full game story with play by play coverage.
