COUNTY CAT FIGHT – RBHS Tigers dominate THS Wildcats

By Bart Moss for the FCT

The sixth-ranked Red Bay Tigers remained undefeated with a dominating performance in a shutout of Tharptown.

The Tigers racked up 413 yards while limiting Tharptown to 54 yards.

“I was pleased with our team’s performance tonight,” said Red Bay coach Michael Jackson. “We did what we needed to do early, and we got our young guys some quality playing time to build depth.”

Red Bay also took advantage of six turnovers – four interceptions and two fumbles. The Tigers scored following each turnover.

Red Bay opened the game with 41 points in the first quarter, thanks to four Tharptown interceptions.

Reed Holt got the scoring started with a 56-yard run. Tate Ozbirn then scored on a nine-yard run, Kaleb Burroughs had a 50-yard interception return, Jesus Kelley had a 22-yard run and Nick Thorn caught a 27-yard pass from Troy Borden.

The Tigers pushed across two scores in the second quarter as Aaron Lewey and Payton Thorn both scored on 1-yard runs.

Lewey had a 10-yard touchdown run in the third and a 3-yard run in the fourth. A sophomore running back, Lewey had 19 carries for 155 yards and three touchdowns.

Red Bay will close out the regular season Friday night as hosting Marion County in a warm-up for the playoffs.

For the second consecutive week, Tharptown will face a ranked opponent, traveling to Hubbertville to close out the season.

“I don’t think any team in the state has to close out their schedule like we do with two of the best teams in the state,” said Tharptown coach Jason Murray. “We will not quit. We will go out there and compete. That is all I ask of our kids.”