By Jim Steele steele@mckenziebanner.com

TROY - With so many questions swirling about McKenzie High School's line and defense, Obion Central had few answers.
The visiting Rebels turned away OC 28-7 in the season opener, thanks to a ball-hawking defense and pretty solid offensive play. McKenzie forced nine Central fumbles. The host Rebels lost five of them which led to three McKenzie scores. Senior defensive tackle Ben Boyd came up with three fumble recoveries while senior defensive end Cody Cook had a great night with his 49-yard fumble return for a touchdown.
Indeed it was a good night for the McKenzie defense, which was pleasing to head coach Wade Comer.
"The defense played well, and we were real concerned about that," said the coach. "They played exceptionally well."
It didn't hurt that Central had a case of the butterfingers.
"We got a lot of turnovers," Comer said. "We were getting after the football tonight and that was a huge bright spot."
Not to be overshadowed, the McKenzie offense was especially potent in the first half. Junior quarterback Drew Hayes was 13-19 for 162 yards, a touchdown and an interception. He spread the wealth a bit as well. He found junior Greg Pruitt for a 5-yard TD pass and connected with five different receivers on the night. Randy Lacey caught eight passes for 97 yards.
On the ground, McKenzie ballcarriers went through a revolving door. Cook led the ground attack with eight carries for 48 yards including a 7-yard TD run. Junior James Horton had nine carries for 14 yards and a TD. Frosh Keanthony Weatherford rushed six times for 20 yards, which gave the Rebels a glimmer of hope. In all, it wasn't a bad offensive effort.
"We had a lot of kids produce," Comer said. "Cody ran well and Drew threw the ball well. He made one mistake and he knows it and it's already corrected."
Comer also praised the front men.
"The offensive line did a lot better job," he said. "We have to get better, but our two guards came to play."
Central charged all the way to the Rebel 18 and appeared to be on a fast track to the end zone. McKenzie's defense turned to stone and Obion found holding on to the ball difficult.
The Rebels took advantage of Central turnovers early. Boyd picked up his first loose ball and MHS set up on its own 42. Nine plays later, Horton bolted into the end zone from the 4, capping a nine-play, 58-yard drive. John Kermit Laughrey booted the first of his four extra points and the Rebels led 7-0.
Obion lost two more fumbles in the first frame, the second almost leading to another MHS score. The Rebs marched all the way to the Central 14 when they, themselves, lost a fumble.
Early in the second frame, McKenzie was on the board again. After forcing an Obion punt, the Rebs marched 55 yards in four plays. A 28-yard pass from Hayes to Lacey parked McKenzie on the Obion 8. Two plays later, Cook surged into the end zone with 7:24 to play. McKenzie led 14-0.
Pruitt recovered yet another Central fumble and was a direct benefactor of the gift. Four plays and 44 yards later, Hayes hooked up with Pruitt for a 5-yard scoring play. It was Pruitt's first TD reception. With 3:35, McKenzie held a healthy 21-0 lead.
As the second half began, a Rebel turnover set Obion up deep in MHS territory. Obion converted a fourth-down play on the MHS 8 and had the ball first-and-goal from the 2. But Mark Ghyers made a big stop on third down and then Central stopped itself on fourth with an unsportsmanlike call. Instead of first-and-goal from the 5, Central had a fourth down on the 21. Its next pass fell harmlessly to the ground.
Central had the ball with 90 second left in the third close to midfield. On the third play of the drive, Cook ripped the football away from Obion and raced 49 yards to the end zone with :16 to play in the frame. McKenzie held a 28-0 lead going into the final 12 minutes.
Central needed a big play to get on the board and got just that. Obion quarterback Garrett Grady hooked up with Ashton Kendall for a 57-yard touchdown pass. Grady booted the PAT and Central was on the board with 8:57 to play.
>From that point, McKenzie allowed reserves to play.
"We played well in the first half, but we sort of spit and sputtered in the second half," said Comer. "I think we were able to develop a little depth ."
Grady completed 3 of 6 passes for 85 yards. Mark Muirhead had five carries for 45 yards to lead Central. Cole Clanton carried 18 times for 44 yards.
Corneilius Harris and Cook each had six tackles to lead the Rebels. Ghyers had four stops.
The Rebels have a big test this Friday when a much-improved Camden team comes to town. The Lions defeated Waverly 28-6 last Friday night.
"It's always good to get the first win and the kids played hard," said Comer. "The kids have a good taste in their mouths, but we have to be more focused at practice this week and be healthy this Friday night."

SUMMARY

M 7 14 7 0 - 28
O 0 0 0 7 - 7

FIRST QUARTER
M - 4:56 James Horton 4 run, John Kermit Laughrey kick. 9 plays, 58 yards, 4:38
SECOND QUARTER
M - 7:24 Cody Cook 7 run, Laughrey kick. 4 plays, 55 yards, 1:44
M - 3:35 Greg Pruitt 5 pass from Drew Hayes, Laughrey kick. 4 plays, 44 yards, 1:16.
THIRD QUARTER
M -- :16 Cook 49 fumble return, Laughrey kick.
FOURTH QUARTER
O - 8:57 Ashton Kendall 57 pass from Garrett Grady. Grady kick. 8 plays, 74 yards, 3:19.

M O
First Downs 17 10
Yds. Rush 27-119 46-114
Yds. Pass 162 85
Comp.-att.-int. 13-19-1 3-6-0
Total Yds. 281 199
No. of Plays 46 50
Third downs 5-8 2-8
Fourth downs 0-1 2-3
Red Zone 3-4 2-3
Fumbles-lost 2-0 9-5
Punts-avg. 2-21 2-41
Penalties 5-62 5-45
Possession 23:57 24:03

By Jim Steele steele@mckenziebanner.com

McKenzie's Rebel golf team continues to scorch fairways across West Tennessee.
MHS is 11-0 after defeating Henry County on the road, then topping Gleason, Clarksburg and Humboldt.
Last week, in a four-way match, some of the top golfers teed off at Carroll Lake. McKenzie's Beau Brown fired a 34 in the meet to lead MHS to another school mark 149. In the foursome with Brown was Gleason's Kirk Rogers, who holds the Carroll Lake junior golf single-round score of 66, Clarksburg's Cody Biggart and Humboldt's Wesley Stewart.
Rogers carded a 40, Stewart also blistered with a 34 and Biggart recorded a respectable 38.
Craig Broadbent had a 37, Justin Wilson added a 38 and Jake Brown carded a 41. Marshall Smith and Carson Rider had 41 and 42 respectively.
"They had good scores, but we didn't need them," said MHS coach Larry Joe Smith.
McKenzie led Humboldt (167), Clarksburg (171) and Gleason (183).
In girls' play, Gleason topped McKenzie 110-115.
Kristi Petering fired a 54 and Tish Brown added a 61. Gleason's Ellen Owen shot 43 and Leah Mebane had a 67.
At Henry County, McKenzie toppled a 3A school on its home course at Paris Landing. MHS won 162-166.
"We needed that," said Smith. "It was good to beat a 3A school on its home course."
Broadent shot 37, Beau Brown 40, Wilson 41 and Jake Brown 43. In girls' play, Petering shot 53 and Tish Brown scored a 56.

By Pat Cole pcole@mckenziebanner.com

Huntingdon’s Mustangs and Hollow Rock-Bruceton’s Tigers opened their 2004 football campaigns last Friday night at Paul Ward Stadium. The defending State Champion Mustangs appeared to have most of their game plan intact. They ran the ball at will with a variety of backs, passed enough to keep the game interesting and if they can resolve a somewhat inconsistent kicking game, should continue to give opponents more of the same competition they delivered in 2003. The Tigers are definitely an improved team than the one which met the Mustangs in 2003. Although the score was somewhat similar (54-14 in 2003 and 55-7 this year), the Tigers played hard, refused to give up and once again incurred some injuries along the way.
The game began with the Tigers on offense and after Orey Willis picked up three yards on first down, a five-yard penalty placed them in need of 12 for a first down. Willis picked up nine yards on his next run, but on third down, a pass was incomplete to Lucas Young and the Tigers Young punted the ball to Scott Hampton, who was stopped by freshman Chad Jordan at the Tiger 41. Willis’ runs were stopped by Hampton and Desmond Townes.
With Phillip “Boo” Weathers taking the tailback position, the Stangs appear to have the same speed as in 2003. A first down pass was incomplete, but on second down, Weathers moved right and then left for a first down. Jeremy Lowe led the defensive attack. Weathers then gained a yard before he was stopped by Willis and Joe Wortham and on second and nine, jigged and jagged his way into the end zone on an 18-yard scamper. The PAT by Hampton was wide and the Stangs led 6-0 at the 8:21 mark.
Willis received the kickoff and was stopped by Brandon McCormick at the Tiger 32. After a gain of two yards by Willis, Ryan McMackin took the ball and it was stripped from his grasp and recovered by Hunter Hastings. A pass from Cody Crocker to Kegan Ball was good for a first down at the 17 before Kerry Hunt made the stop. Weathers then took the ball left and into the end zone at the 6:54 mark. Chris Donald came in for the two-point conversion and the Stangs now led 14-0.
The kick went out of bounds, giving the Tigers first down at their own 35. Wortham moved left for no gain and then took the ball up the middle where it was fumbled and again Hastings was there to recover for the Stangs at the Tiger 37.
The Tiger defense was a bit stronger this time, needing eight plays to reach the end zone. Donald, Hastings and Crocker ran the ball while Young, Willis, McMackin, Michael Dupree, Chaz Barmore and Lowe provided the defensive effort. In the end, Crocker passed the ball to Cody Baker for an 11-yard completion in the end zone. The PAT was blocked by Nick Bryant and Huntingdon led 20-0 at the 1:49 mark of the first quarter.
Hastings appeared to be making an onsides kick, but regardless, the Tigers Josh Irwin took possession at the Tiger 39. Willis was held for a slight loss and then picked up the lost yardage. A third down pass was incomplete as Young punted to Hampton. He was stopped by Hunt at the Stangs’ 36-yard line. Donald and Maurice Williams led the defensive attack.
Crocker passed the ball to Ball for a gain of seven with Hunt on the stop as the first quarter concluded. The second quarter began with a concerted effort to score a fourth time and a defensive stand by the Tigers. After a motion penalty Ball picked up five yards and Weathers was held to one. Jorge Perez punted the ball to Willis who chased the ball down at the Tiger 15.
Willis moved left and picked up a first down at the 30 before he was stopped by Perez and Jerry McClerkin. Willis was then held for no gain and a pass to Irwin was good, but he was stopped by Jonathan Mullikin. A roughing the passer penalty moved the ball to the Stangs 45 and after a gain of one, a fumble was recovered by Hampton, who picked up the ball and rambled into the end zone for the fourth touchdown of the night. A pass for the two-point conversion was incomplete and the Stangs led 26-0 at the 8:42 mark of the second period.
Hunt received the kickoff and was stopped by Ball at the Tiger 42. Willis picked up one, McMackin ran for five and quarterback recovered a fumble for a loss of two. Hampton received the punt and was hammered by Wortham, Jordan and Franco Lambraia.
A 10-play drive followed for the Stangs from their own 22-yard line. Donald and Weathers ran the ball with Weathers ultimately gaining the end zone at the 2:21 mark from the 10-yard line. Hunt, Michael Hargrove, Lambraia, Josh Oatsvall, McMackin, Danny Cason, Lowe, and Young led the defensive attack. Hampton’s kick was good and the Stangs now led 33-0.
Hargrove received the short kick at the Tiger 46. A pass to Dupree was long and incomplete. Willis gained three and another pass was batted down by Hampton. The ball was dropped on the punt attempt and Young ultimately covered it at the Tiger 26.
With excellent field position, the Stangs wasted little time in scoring one more time before intermission. The four-play drive ended with Donald moving the ball up the middle from the two-yard line. Again the PAT was good and Huntingdon led 40-0. With only eight-tenths of a second remaining on the clock after receiving the kickoff, Eason took a knee to end the half.
Both the Marching Tigers and Marching Mustangs presented portions of their 2004 competitive shows to an appreciative audience.
The second half began with the Stangs again on offense. Playing the second team, Huntingdon had Josh Noles and Brandon Snyder running the ball with Snyder ultimately scoring at the 6:57 mark. R. McMackin, Michael Baker, Wortham, Young, Lambraia, Willis and Will McMackin led the defensive attack. The PAT attempt was low, giving the Stangs a 46-0 advantage.
Once again the kick was out of bounds and the Tigers took over at their own 35. R. McMackin picked up one and a pass to Willis was incomplete. Wortham gained eight and was hurt in the effort. The punt was again fumbled and recovered by Huntingdon’s Marcus Beal at the Tiger 37.
After a five-play drive, the Stangs were again knocking on the door, but after being held to fourth and six, they elected to attempt a field goal from 24-yards out. Hampton put the ball through the uprights to give Huntingdon a 49-0 lead. At the 3:00 mark of the third period.
Willis received the kickoff and was hit by Tony Nellett and Noles at the 30. Jordan took over tailback duties and moved the ball for no gain, but them for a first down at the Huntingdon 41-yard line. A pass from Eason to Hunt brought Tiger pay dirt at the 11:53 mark of the final period. The kick by Young was also good and the Tigers had narrowed the margin to 49-7.
After swapping possessions, the Stangs hit pay dirt one more time. At the 2:54 mark, Brandon Taylor took the ball into the end zone on a four-yard scamper. With no PAT attempt after the ball was fumbled, the Stangs led 55-7.
The Tigers were driving and had the ball at the Stangs 47 when time expired with Jordan picking up two consecutive first downs in the final two minutes of play.
This week, the Stangs travel to Adamsville for regional action and the Tigers host Halls, also a regional game. Adamsville lost to McNairy Central last week and may have lost one of their better running backs to injury. Halls won over Southeast Baptist Educational Center 15-13 in week one.
Both the Mustangs and Tigers should have the victory in game two.

2004 Sports Archives:

01-07-04 01-14-04 01-21-04 01-28-04 02-04-04 02-11-04 02-18-04 02-25-04 03-03-04 03-10-04 03-17-04

03-24-04 03-31-04 04-07-04 04-14-04 04-21-04 04-28-04 05-05-04 05-12-04 05-19-04 05-26-04 06-02-04

06-09-04 06-16-04 06-23-04 06-30-04 07-07-04 07-14-04 07-21-04 07-28-04 08-04-04 08-11-04 08-18-04

08-25-04 09-01-04 09-08-04 09-15-04 09-22-04 09-29-04 10-06-04 10-13-04 10-20-04 10-27-04 11-03-04

11-10-04 11-17-04 11-24-04 12-01-04 12-08-04 12-15-04 12-22-04 12-29-04

2003 Sports Archives:

01-01-03 01-08-03 01-15-03 01-22-03 01-29-03 02-05-03 02-12-03 02-19-03 02-26-03 03-05-03 03-12-03

03-19-03 03-26-03 04-02-03 04-09-03 04-16-03 04-23-03 04-30-03 05-07-03 05-14-03 05-21-03 05-28-03

06-04-03 06-11-03 06-18-03 06-25-03 07-02-03 07-09-03 07-16-03 07-23-03 07-30-03 08-06-03 08-13-03

08-20-03 08-27-03 09-03-03 09-10-03 09-17-03 09-24-03 10-01-03 10-08-03 10-15-03 10-22-03 10-29-03

11-05-03 11-12-03 11-19-03 11-26-03 12-03-03 12-10-03 12-17-03 12-24-03 12-31-03

2002 Sports Archives:

01-02-02 01-09-02 01-16-02 01-23-02 01-30-02 02-06-02 02-13-02 02-20-02 02-27-02 03-06-02 03-13-02

03-20-02 03-27-02 04-03-02 04-10-02 04-17-02 04-24-02 05-01-02 05-08-02 05-15-02 05-22-02 05-29-02

06-05-02 06-12-02 06-19-02 06-26-02 07-03-02 07-10-02 07-17-02 07-24-02 07-31-02 08-07-02 08-14-02

08-21-02 08-28-02 09-04-02 09-11-02 09-18-02 09-25-02 10-02-02 10-09-02 10-16-02 10-23-02 10-30-02

11-06-02 11-13-02 11-20-02 11-27-02 12-04-02 12-11-02 12-18-02 12-25-02

2001 Sports Archives:

06-06-01 06-13-01 06-20-01 06-27-01 07-04-01 07-11-01

07-18-01 07-25-01 08-01-01 08-08-01 08-15-01 08-22-01

08-29-01 09-05-01 09-12-01 09-19-01 09-26-01 10-03-01

10-10-01 10-17-01 10-24-01 10-31-01 11-07-01 11-14-01

11-21-01 11-28-01 12-05-01 12-12-01 12-19-01 12-26-01