It was a game the DeKalb County Tigers had to win. With key injuries earlier in the season, the Tigers found themselves on the edge, looking at elimination from the post-season if they did not step up. Earlier losses to Macon County and Stone Memorial had DeKalb fighting for fourth place in the region, where only the top four would advance. DeKalb County had to beat White County to go to their 13th straight post-season play.

It was a cool night as the Tiger faithful traveled to Sparta. Unbeaten Upperman has dominated the region, with Macon and Stone taking the second and third spots. The 4-4 Tigers would now battle the 4-4 Warriors for fourth place, and it would be a battle.

The Tigers would win the toss and defer until the second half. White County would start the game from their own 39, and would quickly move downfield with a scoring drive. Relying on the legs of QB Tripp Pinion and running back Demarious Dowell, the warriors moved 11 plays to the DeKalb 16-yard line. There, on a fourth and five play, a pass to Gage Stephenson was good for the touchdown. A Noah Skeith kick was good for the extra point and with 6:22 left in the first quarter White County claimed the 7-0 lead.

The Tigers would get off to a slow start. A squib kick would give DeKalb the ball at the 39, but the Tigers would struggle. A Briz Trapp keeper was good for nine yards, then a handoff to Malachi Trapp, then a lateral to Briz and a pass to Ryon Lyons, was good to the White 41. Another keeper was good for five more, but then a pass to Malachi was caught for a five-yard loss. A pass to Marquez Chalfant would fall incomplete and the Tigers would be forced to punt.

The Warriors would get the ball at their own 22, but the Tigers defense would step up. A Pinion keep was good to the 33, but a hold put the ball back to the 12. There, a keep gained only two, then a pair of pass plays were stuffed for no gain. After some unsportsmanlike penalties, the Warriors would punt from their own nine-yard line.

DeKalb would return to their own 47, where they would finally put points on the board. Malachi Trapp would run to the White 48, where a fumble would luckily be recovered by the Tigers. A pass to Jon Hendrix would take the ball to the Warrior 13, then an illegal shift penalty put DeKalb back at the 20. There, Malachi Trapp was handed the ball and was in for the first of many touchdowns on the night. Adrian Prater’s extra point kick was good, and with 34 seconds left in the first, the game was tied, 7-7.

The celebration wouldn’t last long on the Tiger side of the field, and soon DeKalb would find themselves down two scores. The Warriors would return the kick to the 40, where they would mount another scoring drive. A Pinion keep was down at the DeKalb 42, then two runs by Dowell were good to the seven. Dowell was handed the ball again and was in for the score. The extra point kick hit the upright and was no good, but White County had reclaimed the lead 13-7 with 11:22 left in the half.

Things seemed bleak for DeKalb and their next drive would go nowhere. Returning the squib back to their own 37, the Tigers would gain only seven yards before having to punt.

The ball would roll dead at the White 32, and at first it looked like the Warriors were in trouble. A fumbled snap ended in a sack back at the 29, then a hold on the next play backed them up to the 19. It was then that a Pinion pass to Darvon Richmond connected for the 81-yard touchdown. The extra point was good, and with 7:49 left in the half, the Warriors commanded a 20-7 lead.

It was at this point in the game that the Tigers kicked into high gear and would score four unanswered. Another squib kick ended with DeKalb falling on the ball at their own 28, and from there would mount another scoring drive. A pass to Chalfant was good to the 40, then a toss to Malachi Trapp was down to the 18. A Briz Trapp keep was good for six more yards, then runs by Malachi and Briz were good to the five. Malachi was handed the ball again and dove for the touchdown. The extra point was through, and with 5:37 left in the half, the Tigers had cut the lead, 20-14.

The action wouldn’t heat up again until late in the third quarter. The Tigers would start the half at their own 28, and would drive downfield, but on a deep pass to Jordan Parker the Warriors would come away with an interception at their own 43.

The Tigers’ D-line again stepped up their play, and aided by a holding penalty, White County would have to punt on a fourth and 22.

DeKalb would return to the 37, but plagued by their own penalties they would reach the 50 before they would have to punt on a fourth and 15 play.

White County would let the ball roll dead to the 19, and then the Tigers got a bit of luck. A handoff to Dowell ended in a fumble with the Tigers falling on the ball at the 24.

DeKalb would waste no time. A pair of Malachi runs were stopped for no gain, then a Briz keeper was good to the 11. Another Malachi run was good to the five, then another was stopped at the line. He was handed the ball one more time, this time in for six. With the extra point, the Tigers took the lead, 21-20 with 3:23 left in the third.

The Tigers were fired up and momentum definitely swung in DeKalb’s favor. White County would begin their next possession at their own 22, and would get a first down at the 33 where Pinion would be sacked by Kevin Ahlgard at the 30. The Warriors would only reach the 41 where on a fourth and two they would roll the dice. The keeper was stuffed and the Tigers took over on downs.

Starting at the 42, it was all Briz and Malachi. A pair of Malachi runs were good to the 34, then a pair of keeps had the ball down to the 20. Malachi was handed the ball three more times, one to the five, another for no gain, then in for the touchdown. With the Prater extra point, DeKalb was up, 28-20 with 8:45 left in the game.

As it would turn out, the Warriors would have only one more possession in the game. Returning to the 30, they would go five plays, only reaching their own 44, before again having to punt.

The Tigers would start at their own 20, and again put points on the board. A Malachi run was good to the White 40, then two more were good to the 36. A pass to Ryon Lyons was good for a first down at the 27, then Ari White carried to the 25. Another Malachi run was good to the 20, but a personal foul on the Warriors put the ball at the White County 10. There, a Briz Trapp keep was down at the nine, then another Malachi run was stuffed at the line. Malachi was handed the ball one more time, this time in for the touchdown. With the extra point, DeKalb commanded a 35-20 lead with 2:33 left in the game.

A fumbled return on the kickoff ended with DeKalb falling on the ball at the White 40, and from there the Tigers rans a few plays to run out the clock. The Tigers earned the 35-20 victory.

The Tigers move on to face the unbeaten Upperman Bees next Friday, on the road for the final regular season game.