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Winterboro vs. TCCHS. Bob Crisp/The Daily Home
Winterboro (2-1, 2-0) found the spark it needed with nearly five and a half minutes remaining in the third quarter when Bacardy McClendon returned a punt 50 yards to set the Bulldogs up first and goal at the TC Central two yard line. Penalties pushed the Bulldogs back to the six-yard line, but quarterback Josh Taylor got Winterboro back to the two for third and goal. Troy Garrett rumbled two yards for the score to give Winterboro a 6-0 lead with 3:59 to go in the third.
The Tigers (2-1, 1-1) couldn’t get anything started on offense with fumbles, interceptions and penalties killing the home team’s momentum.
“Turnovers, like I said, was going to be the X-factor,” TC Central head coach DeShon Burney said. “But I tip my hat to them, they came out and they took Justin away in the first half. We came out in the second half and we made those adjustments, but still we just couldn’t get in rhythm. It was because of what they were doing and with the turnovers and the untimely penalties.”
The Tigers’ next possession featured the second of three interceptions thrown by senior Cameron Duncan. Winterboro’s Colby Maddox caught all three interceptions.
“All week they’ve been telling me to stay focused,” Maddox said. “That’s all I could do. We did it as a team. We were the underdog. Nobody picked us to win so we just came out here and did what we needed to do. We stayed together, did it as a team.”
Winterboro head coach Adam Fossett said Maddox has shown great poise as a first-year player for the Bulldogs.
“We talked that kid up all week,” Fossett said. “We told him we were going to put him in good situations if he hustled. The kid hustled and did what he was supposed to do. He’s done everything we’ve asked him to do. First year coming out, you couldn’t ask for a better teammate coming out and helping us out. Those interceptions were huge.”
The third interception set up Winterboro’s second score of the night. The Bulldogs started their drive from their own 20-yard line and endured several penalties before Taylor connected with Jay Vincent for a 78-yard catch and run resulting in a touchdown. Taylor completed a pass to McClendon for the two-point conversion to make Winterboro’s lead 14-0 with 4:52 to go in the ballgame.
The Bulldogs’ last score came after getting the ball on TC Central’s 12-yard line. Three plays later Garrett carried the ball into the end zone from five yards out. McClendon carried the ball across the goal line for the two-point conversion to give the Bulldogs a 22-0 lead with 2:18 to go in the game.
Garrett finished the game with 31 yards rushing and two touchdowns.
“Everybody doubted us, but we stayed together as a team,” Garrett said. “We played together and I’m just glad my teammates were here for me and glad we got a good region win. I just hope we go on and go deep in the playoffs.”
Both teams struggled with turnovers and penalties in the first half, which kept both teams from gaining any momentum.
“We just had to stop making dumb penalties,” Fossett said. “It was little things that are correctable that shouldn’t be happening in week 3. Things that you expect to happen in week 1.”
Winterboro looked ready to score midway through the first quarter when McClendon had a nearly 70-yard punt return. The junior fumbled the ball near the goal line and TC Central recovered at their own two-yard line.
The Bulldogs appeared to regroup after halftime while the Tigers continued to struggle. While it’s early in the season, both coaches believe this region game was a big one.
“This right here is huge because it puts us really two games behind them and we’ve still got a lot more good teams to play starting next week with Wadley,” Burney said. “This will motivate us. We’ll be ready to play.”
Fossett believes this game put Winterboro in charge of its fate in the region.
“Right now, this win sets the stage for where we go next,” Fossett said. “We can take this win and build on it. If we build on it and continue to come together as a team and get closer as a team and get stronger as a team, the sky’s the limit.
“These kids are special. These kids have put the time in; they’ve busted their butts. They want to win. They want to do what it takes to win.”
Duncan led all rushers with 87 yards on 10 carries. He completed five passes for 71 yards. Justin Isom led the team in receptions with one for 29 yards.
Winterboro hosts Donoho next week while TC Central travels to face Wadley.
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