The DeKalb County Junior Pro Football teams were on the field last Saturday, taking part in a jamboree held at Upperman in Baxter. The teams got some much needed real-time playing time, and looked good for the upcoming regular season.
All teams played the Upperman Stingers, and though no scores were official, the future looks good for these young players. The Tiger teams played some good football, with the first string players putting up some big points.
For the Senior Tigers, the team came away with a 22-0 win, with all of their points coming in the first half. In the second half, the team substituted for the rest of the game, getting some inexperienced players some on-the-field playing time.
The Junior Tigers’ game was almost identical to their older counterparts. The team put up 20 points in the first half, then substituted the B-team in the second half. Upperman would come back with a late touchdown to put them on the board, but the Tigers held on for the 20-7 win.
The Pee Wee Tigers were not as fortunate, but as the game turned out, the young players had something to celebrate after all. The team was overwhelmed during the first half, but then settled in and played some tough football in the second. Most didn’t know they were actually playing a team that was a year older than the DeKalb team. Though the team did not get a victory, the players should know they fought hard playing an older and more experienced team.
DeKalb Junior Pro Football is part of the Middle Tennessee Youth Football Conference (MTYFC), a youth football organization that has been in existence for more than 25 years. The conference is for boys and girls, ages 6-7 (Pee Wee), 8-9 (Junior Division) and 10-11 (Senior Division).
The seven teams that make up the conference are from counties in the Upper Cumberland region of Middle Tennessee. The Conference Board is made up of two voting members from each team while the executive board consists of a head commissioner and two assistant commissioners.
The MTYFC has been noted as one of the premier youth football conferences in the entire state of Tennessee. Teams include DeKalb, the Fentress County Bulldogs, the Smith County Owls, the Overton County Outlaws, the Upperman Stingers, the Monterey Wildcats, and the Jr. Jets.
