Tigers manage to win despite injury setbacks
By JOHN LOVVORN
 | | TYRECE ASHMORE AND DAN WYLIE MAKE THE STOP. This week the Tigers will try to stop the War Eagles in Eatonton. |
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Last Friday night the Washington- Wilkes Tigers won a nail-biter over the Oglethorpe County Patriots 20- 18. The Tigers are now 3-1 in region play and 3-4 overall. Friday night's win, along with Greene County's loss to Morgan County, moved Washington into a tie for second place in the 8AA south sub-region.
The Tigers started the game on their 28-yard line. After two short gains by tailback Deon Jackson, quarterback Teverrius Jones hooked up with Dede Stewart for a 30-yard gain to the Oglethorpe 36-yard line. Several more short runs by Jackson and two by Jones, including a fourth down conversion, put Washington on the Patriot 15-yard line. Jackson got the handoff on first down and finished the drive, running 15 yards for the touchdown. Jackson was stopped short on the two point conversion, giving the Tigers a 6-0 lead with 6:00 left in the first quarter. Oglethorpe was forced to go threeand out on its first drive. Washington also went three-and-out, punting back to the Patriots. Oglethorpe started on its 44-yard line. On thirdand long, the Patriots completed an 11-yard pass down to the W-W 42-yard line. After two short runs down to the Washington 31-yard line, Oglethorpe's quarterback broke free for a 31-yard touchdown run. After two illegal procedures backed them up, the Patriots missed the PAT, tying the score at 6-6 with 49 seconds left in the first quarter. The Tigers got the ball on their 44-yard line after the kickoff. Two runs by Jackson over to the Patriot 39-yard line ended the first quarter.
 | | Tiger running back DeDe Stewart waits on the pass at the 10-yard line ... |
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Three plays into the second quarter, Jackson was stopped short on fourth down, turning the ball over to Oglethorpe on its 29-yard line. The Patriots moved all the way down to the W-W 20-yard line before the Tiger defense forced a fumble. Washington fumbled right back, however, with Oglethorpe recovering the ball on the Tigers' 43-yard line. The Patriots were forced to go three-and-out, punting down to the W-W 26-yard line. Runs by Jackson, including a 20-yard gain, put the Tigers on the Patriots 40-yard line. It looked like the drive would stall, but on fourth down Jones again found Stewart, this time for 15-yards and a first down. Jackson gained 14- yards on first down, and an offsides penalty against Oglethorpe left Washington on the Patriots six-yard line. Jones and Stewart hooked up again for the touchdown, regaining the lead for the Tigers. Jackson ran the ball in for the two point conversion, putting Washington up 14-6 with 1:12 left in the second quarter. Oglethorpe received the kick and ran three plays before the first half ended.
 | | then sprints across the five... |
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The Patriots started the second half with the ball. After not gaining any yards on first and second down, the Oglethorpe running back broke a 63-yard run down to the W-W seven-yard line. Three plays later the Patriots scored, cutting Washington's lead to 14-12 with 9:07 left in the third quarter. Dexter Norman ran the ensuing kickoff back 21 yards to the Washington 39-yard line. A 12- yard gain by Drew Wilson, followed by several short gains by Jackson and a short pass to Stewart moved the Tigers down to the Oglethorpe 12-yard line. A holding call and an illegal procedure against the Washington offense moved it back to the 27-yard line. Jones connected with Jackson on fourth down, but Jackson was tackled short of the first down, turning the ball over to the Patriots on their 15-yard line. Oglethorpe drove down the field to the W-W two-yard line with a few long runs. The third quarter ended with the Patriots poised to score.
 | | and powers his way through two Patriot defenders at the goal line for the second W-W touchdown. |
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Oglethorpe scored on the first play of the fourth quarter. The two point conversion was again no good, putting the Patriots ahead 18-14 just four seconds into the fourth quarter. Norman again had a big kickoff return, this time for 34-yards out to the W-W 47-yard line. The good field position was wasted, as the Tigers went three-and-out. Oglethorpe also went three-and-out, downing the punt on Washington's 35-yard line. Stewart got the handoff on a reverse on first down and ran 34 yards to the Oglethorpe 31-yard line before being brought down. Three carries by Jackson, the last one for 22 yards and a touchdown, put the Tigers back on top 20-18 with 6:39 left in the game. The Patriots started on their 19-yard line and quickly drove to the W-W 36-yard line. Washington's defense tightened up, forcing a turnover-on-downs at the Washington 48-yard line. Two runs by Jackson moved the Tigers over to the Oglethorpe 23-yard line before a fumble gave the ball back to the Patriots with enough time for a few desperation plays. The Tiger defense held strong, forcing Oglethorpe to lose yardage and turn the ball over on downs. The Washington offense came out and took a knee, running out the clock and sealing the victory.
 | | DEON JACKSON CUTS RIGHT EN ROUTE TO THE TIGERS FIRST TOUCHDOWN FRIDAY The freshman running back racked up 168 yards rushing and two TDs against the Patriots. |
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The Tiger offense put up 305 total yards against the Patriots, 233 yards rushing and 72 yards passing. Jackson was the leading rusher with 29 carries for 168 yards. Next was Stewart with one carry for 34 yards. Stewart also had four receptions for 60 yards, making him Washington's leading receiver. The Tiger defense was led by Wilson with fivetackles, six assists, one tackle-for-loss, and a sack. Next were Tyrece Ashmore with fivetackles, six assists, and a tackle-for-loss, and Lee Thomson with six tackles, three assists, and a tackle-for-loss. On special teams, Norman had three kickoff returns for 68 yards.
This Friday night the Washington- Wilkes Tigers travel to Eatonton to take on the Putnam County War Eagles. Putnam is 1-6 on the year. Offensively, Putnam County uses the I-formation. On defense, the Eagles base out of an eight man front. This is another important region game for the Tigers. Kickoff is at 7:30 in Eatonton.
Tigers vs. Oglethorpe (statistics compiled by Scott Chafin)
| W-W | OC | |
| First Downs | 16 | 12 | |
| First Downs Rushing | 12 | 10 | |
| Yards Rushing | 233 | 241 | |
| Yards Passing | 72 | 58 | |
| Passes | 5-13-0 | 2-5-0 | |
| Total Yards | 305 | 299 | |
| No. Penalties | 4 | 7 | |
| Yds. Penalized | 22 | 61 | |
| Fumbles/lost | 2/2 | 1/1 | |
| Punts/avg. | 2/22.0 | 3/27.6 | |
| Return yards | 82 | 25 | |
Score by quarters
Tigers 6 8 0 6 - 20
Oglethorpe 6 0 6 6 - 18
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