The Mendenhall Tigers were on a 7 game winning streak coming into last week’s contest and boasted a 7-1 record. Their opponents, the Northeast Jones Tigers, were on the opposite end of the spectrum at 1-7.
The Tigers received the opening kickoff to start the game and Zykiel Woodard would take the field in place of Christian Allen at quarterback. Allen was sidelined by injury.
The Tigers went three and out on their opening drive,which included a miscue on a punt that led to good field position for NEJ. NEJ lost their starting left guard two plays into the game. The Tigers were able to bring pressure and force a fumble to end NEJ’s opening drive. But Mendenhall’s offensive struggles continued and they were forced to punt yet again. Following the punt NEJ put together a balanced offensive attack which was good for the first touchdown of the game. The defense struggled against the pass, and NEJ quarterback Javier Magee was able to exploit their mistakes.
The Tigers attempted to pick up the pace on offense. With Woodard at quarterback the offensive attack was relegated to mostly running plays, and the drive ended with Jordan Willis being stuffed in the back field on fourth down. The Tiger defense finally came alive on the next possession. Defensive tackle Jarious Newsome made a big hit in the backfield that sparked a midfield stand for the Tigers.
The momentum created by the Tiger defense was contagious, and the Tigers offense began rolling. A big run by Woodard helped advance the ball to midfield. Willis would handle the rest, breaking for a 52 yard touchdown run on 3rd and short. Josh Freels tied the game at 7 with his extra point. The game remained tied through the halftime break.
NEJ possessed the ball to start the second half and ran the opening kickoff back for a touchdown but a penalty would wipe out the big play. NEJ would then go on a sustained drive that seemed to last forever. Running and passing effectively, NEJ chewed up much of the third quarter with an 8 minute offensive sequence that ended with a touchdown and extra point.
Keshun Collier failed to catch the kickoff cleanly, and the Tigers were pinned deep in their own territory when the offense took the field. Woodard and Willis did their part to advance the ball before the Tigers’ progress was stifled by multiple penalties. Mendenhall would punt the ball to start the fourth quarter. Trailing 7-14 the Tiger defense forced a much needed turnover with 9:28 left on the game clock.
A fumble by NEJ would lead to a 14 yard Jordan Willis touchdown run and Josh Freels extra point to tie the game. With the game tied NEJ began playing conservative, and the Mendenhall defense took advantage. Linebackers Jarquez Dixon, Tavares Grace, and Eli Drummond took turns making plays in the backfield forcing NEJ to punt. On the punt, Grace got a clean release, blocked the punt, recovered the football, and carried it to the 3 yard line. Willis notched his third touchdown with a 3 yard rush on first down.
The extra point was no good, and the Tigers led 20-14. Freels’ kick on the following kickoff did not travel very far and it appeared that the Tigers were attempting to recover the football. This gave NEJ excellent field position as they attempted to mount a comeback. Another miscue in the Tiger secondary would cost them the lead. NEJ left just under 2 minutes on the clock after taking the lead with a 42 yard touchdown pass and extra point. Down by 1 with more than 60 yards to go for a touchdown, Woodard led the offense back onto the field. On a crucial 3rd down play, Woodard looked uncomfortable in the pocket and slipped in the backfield to lose big yardage. The Tigers used their last time out with 1:32 left on the game clock. On fourth and long Woodard completed a pass to Keshun Collier, who would be stopped short of the first down marker for a turnover. NEJ got their second win of the season and snapped the Tigers’ seven game win streak.
Defensive Coordinator Jeff Crosby said, “The defense lost this game. They weren’t mentally focused, bottom line.”
Head Coach Chuckie Allen had words for his team that were worthy of their poor performance. Afterwards he said, “We weren’t prepared to play tonight. Because they were 1 and 7 they thought that team was going to come in here and lay down for us. This won’t happen again.”
This loss was far from the Tigers’ best performance. The offense was not as fluid without Allen under center. This also forced the coaches to reduce Woodard, arguably their best pass catcher, to a running back. The offensive line play for the Tigers was not up to their usual standards, which obviously contributed to their struggles. Defensively, the Tigers could have played better, and they failed to get consecutive stops for most of the game.
Many of the fans could be heard saying that this game should serve as a wakeup call as the team gets closer to the playoffs. The loss gives everyone a chance to refocus and recommit to the goal of winning a state championship.
Mendenhall is currently tied for first place in their district with West Lauderdale and Quitman. The Tigers will face Quitman this upcoming Friday, and one of these teams will walk away with their second district loss, which would seed them no lower than third place entering the playoffs.
