Friday night’s Region 5 4A matchup between Tucker High School vs Southwest DeKalb left Panthers fans looking for answers to several questions, and one is at the quarterback position. The game came down to the last three plays, and the Tigers were unable to execute.
The Tigers’ Andre Blackburn returned the Panthers’ kickoff to the 3-yard line, putting Tucker High School in position to win the game.
The Panthers held a 27-point lead late in the second quarter, leading to a 34-14 halftime score. The Panthers learned quickly from this game that a lead is not safe because teams can find a way to get themselves back into the game. The Panthers received the ball and scored on their opening drive on a Tamir Rudolph rushing touchdown.
The Tigers quarterback, Jace Graham, threw a pass intercepted by the Panthers. The Panthers’ offense converted the Tigers’ turnover into a touchdown, giving them a 14-0 lead in the first quarter. The Tigers rallied back, cutting the lead in half on a touchdown pass caught by Jaden Joyner. The Panthers’ physicality and speed were a bit too much for the Tigers, which led to the 27-point lead with 4:27 left in the second quarter. The Tigers cut the lead to 20 points before halftime, scoring another touchdown.
One thing the Tigers are known for at halftime is making adjustments and positioning the players to execute on both sides of the ball. The Tigers received the ball to start the third quarter, and returned the kickoff for a touchdown down cutting the Panthers’ lead to 13 points. The Tigers made sure to set the ending of this game to have some serious drama. Tucker was able to gain the lead in the fourth quarter on a short field, turning the game into a track meet, with the speed they have at the running back and special teams positions.
The Tigers were able to frustrate the Panthers’ quarterback by changing up the defensive fronts and blitzing extra defenders, forcing him to make errant decisions by speeding up decision-making. The Panthers defense prevented the Tigers from tying the game, forcing Tucker’s running back to fumble the ball into the endzone, and the Panthers recovered. The Tigers’ defense held the Panthers from turning the turnover into points. The Tigers found a way to give the Panthers another turnover, deep at their end of the field. The Panthers’ offense got it together to make a final drive down the field to retake the lead in the game from a pass interference call that got them deep in the red zone, leading to a Tamir Rudolph rushing touchdown to win the game 40-35.