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Huntingdon 8-Dresden 0
The first two quarters of action pitted the Mustangs from Huntingdon against the Lions of Dresden. The Mustangs were initially held to four and out while the Lions drove the ball into Stangs territory on their first possession. However, the game became a defensive battle between the squads until the final two minutes when the Stangs regained possession and drove for the only score of the night.

On the Stangs first possession Brandon Taylor and Mathew Weathers both were charged with picking up a first down, but Lions Chase McMullin, Justin Coleman and Clay Adams combined to hold the line and allowed Huntingdon only eight yards.

After the punt, Dresden took over at its own 33-yard line and quarterback Coleman held for a four-yard gain with Zack Blount and Derek Johnson on the stop. Adams carried for a gain of three and then facing fourth and another three, Coleman moved the ball up the middle to the Lions 45 for the first down. A pass to Derick Carrington was good for a first down at the Huntingdon 41. Taylor made the tackle. The Lions maintained control for one more first down before the Stangs held and took over at their own 25 yard line with only 56.5 seconds remaining in the first 10-minute stanza.

Once again the Stangs were held for four and out, but Huntingdon’s defense also held the Lions to a punt after four downs and took over for their first sustained drive. Taylor and Justin D. Hampton took over the running duties and managed to move the ball to the Dresden 40-yard line. Tyson Wright, Brandon Jolley, and Coleman led the defensive attack. Hampton picked up three and the Stangs were penalized for motion. Taylor took the ball right, it was knocked loose and Coleman recovered for the Lions.

The Lions took over briefly with Cody Smith and Weathers on the defensive push. Ultimately, the Lions were held to a fourth and 28 and had to punt with 1:53 remaining in the second quarter.

Hampton took over for the Stangs and moved the ball quickly for a first down at the Dresden 25, with Wright on the stop. Taylor moved the ball up the middle for a yard and then for three. Hampton then took the ball for two yards with Adam Minchew on the tackle. On third and four with only 21 seconds remaining in the game however, Blount reached the end zone and Hampton put the ball in for the two-point conversion. Dresden was unable to drive the ball for a score although Coleman completed a pass to Wright for a first down with only 5.9 seconds remaining. Dewayne Bailey managed to pick up a couple of yards and then a last ditch pass was intercepted by Blount to end the game.

Camden 16-West Carroll 8
West Carroll’s War Eagles under the leadership of new head coach Josh Fronabarger met the Camden Lions in the second game of the night with the War Eagles gaining the first offensive opportunity. However the larger and more physical Lions were able to stop the War Eagles after only a couple of first downs and then held them in check for most of the contest.

The War Eagles gained a pair of first downs on their first offensive run. Antonio Bell took the ball for four, Tyler Nelson picked up two and then quarterback Trent Gateley took the ball up the middle for six for the first down at the War Eagle 44. A motion call against Camden aided the War Eagles in a second first down. Needing only five yards, Bell took the ball right to the Camden 39 before he was stopped. However at that point the War Eagles were effectively stopped. Between a penalty and a strong defensive effort from the Lions, the War Eagles faced fourth and 24 before having to punt. Camden took over at its own 23. Jerry Dale was held to no gain, but a toss to Leon Williams appeared to have potential until War Eagle Carlos Martinez took the initiative and Williams down after a gain of only one. A pass to Chase Horton was good for a first down at the War Eagle 36 before he was stopped by Gateley. The Lions again went to the air with Williams the receiver and he scored the touchdown at the 3:27 mark. Kyle Combs took the ball in for two and Camden held an 8-0 advantage.

The War Eagles Nelson picked up three and Bell was held for a loss. On third and 10, Gateley passed the ball to Michael King for a first down at the 44. Gateley fumbled and recovered, Bell gained three and Gateley held, took the ball up the middle and was pushed back for a loss of one as the first quarter ended. A pass intended for Tyler Shaw was off the mark and the loose ball was recovered by Bell as Camden took over at the 50-yard line.

Once again the Lions were on the offensive and took the ball for several first downs before a fumble ended their opportunities. Dale picked up slightly over nine yards before Gateley made the tackle. Williams gained the first down, but a holding call brought the ball back. A pass to Danny Plant resulted in a first down before Shaw made the tackle at the 39. The Lions were penalized for motion. Jonathan Bell held the gain to four yards and a pass was incomplete. Dale took the ball right, was hit hard by Derek Williams and the ball popped loose and was recovered by Camden who had a first down at the 18. On first down, the ball was fumbled and Martinez recovered for the War Eagles at the West Carroll nine.

An incomplete pass to King was followed by an attempted run by Gateley for a loss of four. The ball was then fumbled and recovered by Camden. Quarterback Spencer Berry took the ball into the end zone for the touchdown at the 4:58 mark. Combs scored on the two-point conversion and the Lions held a 16-0 advantage.

The War Eagles had four and out and at the 3:11 mark the Lions took over. Both teams substituted. Camden quickly fumbled and the ball was recovered by Richard Patterson for the War Eagles.

On first down Bell moved right for three and up the middle for just over six. A motion call led to the ball being moved back, but on third and just over five, Bell took the ball to the right and scored at the 1:34 mark. Gateley held for the two-point conversion and with just over a minute remaining the score was narrowed to 16-8. The Lions gained a first down and Combs had a good gain before he was hit by Patterson and a host of War Eagles. The final 10 seconds ticked away with Camden gaining the victory.

Inman 22-Hollow Rock-Bruceton 6
The third game began with the Tigers from Hollow Rock-Bruceton Central showing a bit of dominance. Under the leadership of new head coach David Thomas and with new running back Chad Jordan, the Tigers took only two plays to score for Central. Jordan picked up six yards on the first down run and then moved to the left and galloped 64 yards to the end zone for the longest run of the night from any team. The two-point conversion was thwarted and at the 9:05 mark, Central held a 6-0 lead.

The Bulldogs took the ball for a long sustained drive, but in the end took the lead from the Tigers at the 2:41 mark and then scored two more times for the win. Dominique Allen took the ball for a gain of six with Sam Lowe on the tackle. A fumble on the snap was quickly recovered and Allen moved left for a first down at the Central 49 with Adam Douglas on the stop. Another fumble was recovered by Inman for a gain of five. Allen moved for four yards with Michael Runions on the tackle. A motion call against Inman led to third and five. Marselis Teague was stopped by Douglas and on fourth and six; Corey Capps took the ball for a first down. Jerrell Ray picked up seven and then had the first down at the Tiger 10-yard line. Allen gained four and then scored on second down. At the 2:41 mark, Capps moved inside the end zone for two and the Bulldogs now led 8-6.

With Jordan briefly out of the game, Jacob Edwards went in as quarterback and Billy Stevens took over at tailback. Stevens moved to the right and had a first down for the Tigers at their own 45-yard line. Jordan returned to the game, Stevens returned to the quarterback position and Jordan moved left for a first down at the Inman 30. At that point, the Bulldogs defensive line buckled down and held the Tigers to a loss of ten overall. Jordan picked up four with Justin Hutcherson on the stop. Jordan was unable to hold onto the ball the next two plays, but recovered to maintain control. A fourth down pass incomplete and the Bulldogs took over at their own 40 yard line at the end of the first quarter.

A couple of penalties held the Bulldogs in check for several minutes as the second quarter began. Allen ran the ball, but a motion penalty negated his yardage. Ray moved right and deep into Tiger Territory but a clipping penalty brought the ball back. Capps gained 11 before he was brought down by Cody Fenti and Ray picked up a first down at the Tiger 46 before he was stopped by Runions. Ray gained a first down before he was stopped by Jarret Watson and Lowe. Lowe and Jordan stopped Allen after a gain of four and Capps was stopped by Jordan and Casey O’Brien at the 21. Nick Russell moved to the right and scored the second Bulldog touchdown at the 6:20 mark and Malcolm Tharpe scored the two-point conversion. The Bulldogs now led 16-6.

Stevens was stopped by John Teague for a loss of five. Stevens was then held for an even larger loss and Jordan was held for no gain. Facing fourth and 25, the Tigers punted. Inman took over at the Central 42.

Allen took the ball and was held for a loss of two by Runions, Alex Matlock and Lowe. A fumble on the toss was recovered by Inman for a loss of one and then Jared Collins moved left, but a holding penalty placed the Bulldogs at third and 23. Collins was held by a host of Tigers and the Bulldogs punted.

The Tigers were on their own 23 when they fumbled the ball and it was recovered by Bulldog Hutcherson, who took the ball into the end zone for the Bulldogs final TD of the night. At the 2:00 mark, the Bulldogs took a 22-6 lead. Stevens held on to Collins long enough to get some fellow Tigers assistance and the two-point conversion was thwarted.

On first down, Jordan took the ball for a first down at the 47. Jordan then moved the ball to the Bulldog 32 for a second first down of the series. Jordan moved left for no gain and the ball was fumbled and recovered by Edwards, in at quarterback. Stevens moved right for a loss with Hutcherson on the stop. A fumble was recovered by Tiger Jarrett Watson as the game ended.

McKenzie 6-Medina 0
The Rebels scored in the first quarter and good defensive action for the remainder of the night maintained that one score as the winner for McKenzie. Medina won the toss and elected to take the first offensive opportunity. They managed to gain a couple of first downs, but ultimately had to punt. Drew Brown, Charles Lawrence, Tyler Holt, Tyler Watson, Travis Russell, Chris Ventura and Jacob Fussell led the defensive attack. Following the punt, the Rebels took over at their own 25 yard line.

Fussell moved the ball for three and then first down at the 35. Charles Lawrence was held for a loss of one, but then picked up a first down at the Medina 48. Lawrence moved left and ducked one tackle before he was stopped after a gain of one. A pass from quarterback Derek Carr was incomplete to Brown. Lawrence moved right behind Fussell and then Fussell picked up the first down at the 41. Lawrence moved the ball to the 18 for the first down and a pass to Shabree Payne was incomplete. Fussell was held for a loss, Lawrence moved for a gain of 11 and Fussell picked up the first down at the four with 19.5 remaining in the first quarter. Fussell scored at the 7.9 mark and was held on the two-point conversion attempt. McKenzie led 6-0.

The Hornets managed a single gain of four as the first quarter ended. Holt led the attack on second down as the Hornets picked up two additional yards. The Rebels were penalized for motion, giving Medina a first down at the 42. Ventura held the Hornets to a loss of three while Tyler Moore and Lawrence held the advance to only six. Brown caught halfback Chase Barton behind the line of scrimmage for a loss of four and the Hornets punted.

The Rebels were held to four and out and the Hornets regained possession at the 5:20 mark. The Rebels defense allowed a couple of first downs, but ultimately held as Brown, Holt and Fussell led the attack. A couple of penalties against Medina aided the Rebel effort. On the final play of the game, Watson hit the Hornet quarterback for a loss to end the contest.

All teams will begin their regular seasons this week.

"We called the meeting last week for Friday and only five or six girls showed up with their parents for it," said MHS principal Terry Howell. "Most of them were seniors."

A few weeks ago, the school board hastily decided to add soccer this year at the request of some parents. It was the soccer parents' belief that they could parlay the success of the youth and middle school programs into a viable high school program.

Even if their had been enough to field a team, it would have been difficult to find a schedule at this late date. While the TSSAA doesn't have hard and fast rules regarding filing and adding soccer, TSSAA media relations director Matt Gillespie said it would have been difficult placing McKenzie in a district and region at this juncture. In fact, Aug. 18 was the first official day of soccer competition and teams have been conditioning and practicing since July 28.

"It is a bit late, but McKenzie could have added soccer," Gillespie said. "But how it would affect schools in the district and region as far as scheduling goes is the thing. It would be up to the schools in the district if they could get the scheduling worked out."

McKenzie would have likely been placed in District 14A-AA, which includes the soccer-playing schools of Lexington, Adamsville, McNairy Central, Jackson Christian (girls only), University School of Jackson, Fayette Academy (girls only), Jackson-South Side and Trinity Christian. In addition, there are five soccer schools playing within 35 miles of McKenzie: Lexington, Trenton, Martin, Milan and Henry County. Of those five, only one is a district opponent. The remainder are in Jackson or over 50 miles away.

Additionally, of the 22 soccer schools in West Tennessee, five have enrollments of 400 or fewer, like McKenzie, and four of them are private: Adamsville, USJ, JCS, Trinity and Fayette Academy. Trenton, 31 miles from McKenzie, has an enrollment of 431.

"We would have needed between 15 and 17 to make it a viable team," said Howell. "And we'd need more underclassmen, if we are going to build a program."

In September, MHS will have a meeting for interested parties playing soccer in the spring. The TSSAA classifies the spring sport simply as "soccer," not "boys soccer," which means girls can play on a spring team provided there isn't a girls' program.

"We'll meet with the boys in September and if girls want to take part in that, they can," Howell said. "If there is interest there, then we'll pursue it. There just wasn't enough interest for the girls at this time."

But Howell said the school will conduct a survey next spring to evaluate interest in girls' soccer and if there is increased interest, they will field a side next August.

The Class 2A Rebels easily dismantled the 5A Patriots 4-1 in scrimmage action last Tuesday at McKenzie High School. The Rebels employed the wide-open attack, yet maintained some balance and answered some questions.

"With each scrimmage, we've made a lot of improvement," said McKenzie coach Wade Comer. "We have a long way to go, but we are headed in the right direction."

The Rebels affair with Henry County was the last scrimmage of the pre-season. Now, they prepare for this Friday's Jamboree at Huntingdon High School. The Rebs take on Lexington in the third pairing of the event.

"We'll try to get some things corrected this week," said Comer, "then we'll see how well we will be executing at the jamboree."
The time off from scrimmages will enable McKenzie to focus on itself.

"Now we can go in and fix things," said Comer. "We have a good idea of what we need to correct."

Against Henry County, the Rebels showed poise in the passing attack and progress in their running game.

"We ran the ball a whole lot better against Henry County," said the coach. "We threw the ball better and hit our outlets. The running game opened up our passing game."

Comer said that sophomore quarterback Drew Hayes is showing more poise in the new offense and got the ball in the hands of the receivers pretty well.

"We are getting more people involved in the offense," he said. "Our backs and tight ends are catching the ball better. We are getting the fullback more involved and more of the pieces are coming together."

There were two bits of good news from the scrimmage. First of all, senior Brad Campbell returned to the football field for the first time since November. He had been sidelined by a wrist injury incurred early in the 2002 season. He had surgery on the wrist in the spring and was just cleared Monday. His impact was immediate. He had a thunderous collision against a Henry County defensive back after he caught a pass. The train wreck drew oohs and ahs from the fans. He also had a big hit on defense.

"The two series Campbell was in on, he gave us a big pick up," said Comer. "Defensively, he gave us a boost. We have some things to correct mentally, but physically, we are set pretty well. The defense has been steady all year so far."

The Rebels also believe they've found a back-up quarterback. Randy Lacey led the Rebels on a 70-yard scoring drive in his first-ever stint at quarterback. He completed both of his passes, handed off to fullback John Craig Howell for a sizeable gain, then bootlegged the ball around the right side for the TD. Lacey, Cody Cook, Drew Hayes and Clint Anderson had scores for the Rebels.
Some bad news, senior Daniel Duncan was held out of the scrimmage and his prognosis is not good. He continues to suffer from a back ailment and he will get final word from a specialist soon.

Up front, McKenzie is progressing, Comer says.

"We made huge improvements and we're starting to come together," he said.

This week, the Rebels will tweak their offensive and defensive packages then get a jumpstart on Lexington and Obion Central. The Rebels open the season with visiting OC on Aug. 29.

REMINDER - All four Carroll County teams will take part in the Huntingdon Jamboree this Friday night. Tickets are $5 at the gate and $4 in advance. Advance tickets are being sold at the participating schools. Participating schools keep the proceeds earned from advance ticket sales. Ticket proceeds from gate receipts will be divided by the eight participating schools.

With the horse show going on at the Carroll County Fair, competition for parking spaces will be fierce, almost as fierce as it will be at Paul Ward Stadium.

An estimated 5,000 usually packs the stands at the stadium during the pre-season football affair.

"It's going to be a big night," said Huntingdon coach Mike Mansfield. "There will be people going to the Jamboree and the Fair and back and forth the whole night."

Kickoff for the Jamboree is 7 p.m. and will feature eight top-notch area teams. The event will begin with Huntingdon and Henry County squaring off at 7. At approximately 7:45, Hollow Rock-Bruceton Central and Martin-Westview will battle. McKenzie will get a chance to showcase its new offensive attack when it takes on Lexington at 8:30. West Carroll and Camden will draw the curtain on the jamboree when they pair up at 9:15.

Each pairing will play two 12-minute quarters. Tickets are $4 in advance and $5 at the gate.

"We encourage everyone to buy their tickets in advance," said Mansfield. "If you buy your jamboree tickets at the participating schools, those schools will get to keep that money. So you can help your school by buying your tickets locally."

Money collected from the gate will be divided by the Huntingdon Quarterback Club and the eight teams in the event.

The regular season opens Aug. 29. Obion Central will visit McKenzie, Huntingdon travels to Central and West Carroll is at Trinity Christian. Kickoff for high school games is 7:30.

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