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And why not?

The Tide appeared to be bigger, faster and stronger. At the opening coin flip, Trenton players seemed to be a head taller than their Rebel counterparts. Meanwhile, McKenzie, it stood to reason, was untested against a quality opponent. Shouldn't Trenton have been favored?

Someone forgot to explain things to the Rebels who forged a path, both literally and figuratively, to a 7-6 victory. McKenzie improves to 2-1 with the huge win and can take a step toward the playoffs with a win at Adamsville this Friday night.

The difference in the game was McKenzie's line play, particularly at the start of the second half.

"At halftime, we challenged the offensive line and they responded," said McKenzie coach Wade Comer. "Those seven we had up front played extremely well."

The Rebels established control from the opening kick of the third quarter and kept the ball 9:23 of the allotted 12 minutes and marched 75 yards, all on the ground, in 18 plays for the game-winning score.

Cody Cook's plunge with 2:37 to play in the third knotted the score at 6 and freshman John Kermit Laughery's extra point nudged the Rebels into the lead.

"We kept the ball nearly 10 minutes and 18 plays and finished. That was important," Comer said. "It was a total team effort; the kids are starting to believe in themselves. Then we have a freshman kicker who comes in and nails it. He's really stepped up."

Cook had another outstanding outing, rushing 30 times for 170 yards, following up last week's 131-yard effort. Cook played much of the second half with painful leg cramps.

"We challenged his manhood tonight," said Comer. "We needed him tonight and he knew it. He knew he was going to have to tote the ball and he withstood it. It was his biggest game so far against the toughest competition we've had."

Trenton, 1-2, suffered a heartbreaking 13-0 loss at Union City last week, a game where both UC and the Tide were scoreless at the half.

McKenzie's turning point in the third quarter may have been a crucial fourth-and-one play early in the frame. Rebel punter Daniel Duncan was suffering from cramps and couldn't answer the bell at that moment for a punting situation. Instead, Comer rolled the dice with his team on its own 34. A slip would have given Trenton prime field position.

"We told the kids we were going for it and we challenged the line," Comer said. "They got it done."

Indeed.

Once the Rebels took the lead, their defense took over. Trenton managed a mere 16 snaps in the second half and only scored in the second quarter after McKenzie fumbled off a punt practically under the Trenton goal posts. The Tide had problems moving the ball and had to punt twice in the first canto.

The second boot enabled the Tide to camp at the Reb 23. Five plays later, Isaiah Cherry punched it in from the three. All that separated Trenton from overtime was a missed conversion attempt following the TD.

In all, the Rebel defense limited Trenton to 151 total yards. Cherry was held to 73 yards on 12 carries.

"I'd say that's not bad," said McKenzie defensive coach David Duncan of his unit's performance against a quality, potent attack.

"I thought the defense played exceptionally well," said Comer. "They started seeing things, moving to the ball and when they played their responsibilities, they did well."

John Craig Howell, who led the team with six tackles, including a huge hit on behemoth fullback Daniel Cliff in the first quarter, paced the defense. The play went for a two-yard loss. Matt Merrick had five stops, including a sack for a 12-yard loss. Ricky Mathis and Brad Campbell had four tackles each. Sophomore Randy Lacey had three tackles and a pass break up.

"Coach Duncan and Coach (Brad) Chappell did a good job getting the defense prepared," said Comer.

The Rebels will hit the road next week, but Comer cautioned that McKenzie will have to be prepared.

"We'll go to Adamsville and work on getting better," the coach said. "Every week we try to get better and see the improvement."

SUMMARY

T 0 6 0 0 6
M 0 0 7 0 7

FIRST QUARTER
T - Isaiah Cherry 1 run, kick failed.

THIRD QUARTER
M - Cody Cook 1 run, John Kermit Laughery kick.

                 T   M
First downs  7  14
Yds. rushing  86   246
Yds. passing 65   0
C-A-Int. 3-15-0    0-3-0
Total yards 151   246
Fumbles-lost 1-0   3-3
Punts-avg. 4-29    1-27
Penalties-yards 6-40   2-15
Possession 19:40    28:20
Third down 5-11   7-12
Fourth down 0-3   3-5
Red zone-scores 2-1   4-1

The Mustangs wasted little time in making a statement to the Tigers as Mark Newsome received the opening kickoff and returned the ball to the Huntingdon 32 yard line. On first down, quarterback Justin Truett reached back and fired a pass to Kenneth Porter for a 38-yard gain, down to Lexington's 30-yard line. Matt Lange took the ball up the middle to the 20 and on their second first down of the evening; Porter took the ball around right end, broke two tackles and landed in the end zone at the 11:06 mark. Newsome's PAT was good and the Stangs led 7-0.

Lexington's Kevis Buckley was quickly stopped on the Tiger return by Adam Parish at the 14-yard line where the Tigers took over for a brief possession. Buckley took the ball for only three yards before Robert Weathers made the tackle. The ball was fumbled, but recovered on second down for a loss of seven and then the Tigers took to the air. Newsome quickly intercepted for a 23-yard return and then attempted the PAT at the 9:37 mark. Chance Frensley blocked the punt, leaving the Stangs with a 13-0 advantage.

Following a big entrance, the game stalled somewhat for the next few possessions for both squads. Kirk Butler, Adam Carter, Zack Davis, Weathers, Parish, and Hunter Hastings led the defensive attack, which led to a punt, with the Tigers having a fourth and eight. Parish received the punt and returned the ball to the Stangs 27-yard line.

Terrance Bell moved left to the 45 for a first down. Lange moved up the middle for three and Porter picked up two. A pass intended to Newsome was incomplete and Brian Nellett entered to punt the ball. The Tigers received the ball and Kenny Rich stormed through the line to stop Q. T. Buckley at the Tiger nine-yard line.

The Tigers had a sustained drive on this possession, but ultimately fumbled with the Stangs recovering. Parish, Kenneth Hillsman, Andrew Maddox, Weathers, Newsome, Hastings, Nellett, Taylor Milam, Kory Geans, and Nathan Wallace led the defensive attack which ended at the Stangs 22 when Newsome recovered a Tiger fumble at the 10:11 mark of the second quarter.

Porter moved left into a wall of Tigers, but a push from Will White gave the Stangs a couple of additional yards in the six-yard gain. Lange moved for gains of two and one and Nellett again entered to punt. The snap was high and Nellett jumped, tipped the ball with the tips of his fingers to gain control and punted. Although the punt was shanked out of bounds, the Tigers had been moved back to the 50-yard line for another offensive possession.

This time, the Tigers were able to gain the momentum they needed to reach the end zone. Despite the defensive efforts of Hastings, Hillsman, Weathers, Desmond Townes, Newsome, Davis, and Parish, the Tigers reached the end zone on a one-foot push by Quadras Buckley. Durrell Moody came in to kick the PAT good and the score was 13-7, Huntingdon.

The Stangs offensive unit moved on the field again after Weathers returned the kick to their own 32-yard line and made another statement of dominance. After a failed pass intended for Bell, he gained the nod and zigzagged his way to the Tiger 48-yard line. Lange picked up three and Bell gained first down at the 36. Bell then moved for a gain of nine before Lange picked up the first down at the 26-yard line. Porter moved right for six and Bell left for 11. With a first down at the nine, Bell's run was whistled dead at the six. On second and six, Truett reached back and found Hillsman in the end zone at the 32.4 mark of the half and Huntingdon led 19-7. They opted to go for the two-point conversion, but Porter's move up the middle was just shy of the end zone.

Chad Williams took the kick and was tripped by Weathers and Townes at the Tiger 35-yard line. The Tigers quarterback then took a knee to end the half.

Following intermission, Newsome kicked the ball to Kevis Buckley, the ball bounced off his chest and he fell on it at the Tiger 28. Once again it seemed as if the Tigers might score, sustaining a drive that lasted eight plays and gained three first downs.

Hastings, Hillsman, Stephen Wright, Matt Spellings, Adam Carter, Parish, Nellett and Weathers led the defensive attack that ended at the Stangs 14-yard line with a fumble, recovered by Nellett.
The Mustang mission continued as Bell took the ball left for a loss of one while Porter moved right and picked up a first down at the 36. Lange moved for nine and two yards and a first down at the 47. Running behind Lange, Bell was able to move the ball to the 38 for a first down. Lange was held for one while Bell picked up ten before Truett held for the first down at the 26. Porter was held for a loss of three, but Bell regained two and then Bell ran again and was pushed out of bounds at the three-yard line. Lange picked up two and was held for no gain before Truett moved behind his offensive line into the end zone at the 1:15 mark of the third period. Truett attempted a two-point conversion, but was held short as Huntingdon's lead improved to 25-7.

The Tigers were in control for the remainder of the third period and three plays in the fourth before Kevis Buckley passed the ball and was intercepted by Porter for Huntingdon at the Mustang 43.
A Truett pass was long and incomplete while Porter picked up a first down at the Tiger 39. Truett moved left for a gain of nine while a motion penalty moved the ball back five yards. Lange moved for some gain, but again a penalty moved the ball back a few yards. Facing second and nine, Bell moved up the middle and then right, dodged one tackle and was ultimately brought down at the two-yard line. A holding penalty moved the ball back to the 12 and Truett was held for a loss of one. Bell then took the ball up the middle of the line, jumped over one defender and went untouched into the end zone at the 7:12 mark. Newsome kicked the PAT and the Stangs lead improved to 32-7.

After Newsome's kick went into the end zone, the Tigers took over at their own 20-yard line. Cedric Fields got one good run for the Tigers before Parish stopped him near mid-field, but a holding penalty moved the ball back to the Tiger 35. A pass was good to Frensley, but again Parish was there, holding the gain to only four yards. Spellings and Hastings combined to stop Fields after a gain of three and a pitch to Fields resulted in a loss of five as he slipped on the wet grass. Moody came in to punt the ball, but a bad snap left him scrambling to find the moving ball and Hastings and Newsome combined to stop him at the Tiger 34 with 3:42 remaining in the game.

Several penalties hampered the Stangs efforts, but Truett, Bell, Lange and Porter managed to get the ball to the Tiger six with 50.2 remaining in the game and the Stangs' Truett took a knee twice to end it.

The Mustangs continue to show they may be the team to beat in Region 6-AA this year with hard running and tough defensive efforts. This Friday night they will celebrate homecoming in a game against Chester County. Game time will be 7:30 at Paul Ward Stadium.

B-80
Mustang quarterback Justin Truett moved the ball around left end for a first down on this play.


B-85
Kenneth Porter gained a good block from Taylor Milam on this run.

B-84
Defensive coach Jimmy Pritchard give instructions during a time-out.

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