Waynesville (5-3) showed its resiliency on Friday with a come-from-behind 28-24 win over Glendale (4-4) on the road. Things could not have started worse for the Tigers, as they fell behind 16-0 midway through the first quarter.

First, the Falcons took an early 8-0 lead. Then, Glendale fought through the protection and blocked a Waynesville punt in the end zone for the safety, as the Falcons extended the lead, 10-0. On the Falcons’ next possession, they scored on a 39-yard touchdown, and were in control. And then the Tigers defense went to work. The Tigers front seven had had enough, as they dug their cleats into the turf, came off the ball, and found themselves pounding the Falcons’ QB and WRs like a jack hammer on the street.

With the defense crashing the backfield and showing discipline on gap assignments — especially on all of the slip screens, bubble screens, and slot screens being utilized by Glendale — it was time for special teams to go to work.

After setting up textbook blocking, and a proactive approach by the punt returner, Danyl McCullough sprinted to the ball, juked defenders and scampered his way 35 yards for the Tigers’ first score at the 3:11 mark of the second quarter. Glendale went 3-and-out on its ensuing possession, giving added life to the Tigers. So, Tigers JR QB Michael Lewis called his own number. Lewis took the rock off-tackle, evading defenders as he sprinted for the 54-yard touchdown — showing great field vision and awareness and patience as he hit the open lanes.  The Tigers refused to relent, as they went into halftime down 16-14.

With one minute remaining in third quarter and still down two points, once again, the Tigers defense came up big, as Deron Anderson intercepted the Watts pass, and weaving down the field 70 yards to the Glendale 6-yard line. Lewis called his number again, going off-tackle left for the score, as the Tigers had their first lead of the night, 21-16.

With the team needing to move the chains at two separate occasions down the stretch, again, the Tigers were open to the challenge. With six minutes remaining, the Tigers arranged a nine-play drive, capping with Soph RB Eric Richardson’s 44-yard touchdown run on 4^th down and 6. The Tigers defense forced another Glendale turnover six plays later, as SR DB Leroy Lane came up with the pass deflection on 4th down. As the Tigers looked to close out the win, they needed one more play as they were facing a 4th-and-5 from the Glendale 35-yard line. The Tigers called on Freshman RB Evander Bradford to seal the game. Bradford was briefly stopped in his tracks in the backfield, paused, and then busted through 7 Glendale defensive players and gained the first down.

Glendale came into the game averaging 37 points per game, and the Tigers defense shut down one of the area’s more prolific offenses. The Falcons outgained gained the Tigers on offense, 323 yards to 306, but the Tigers came up with three turnovers and scored on special teams: balancing out the Week 8 attack and complementing the offense.

Next up for the Tigers is a SR Night regular season finale as Waynesville (5-3) hosts the Parkview Vikings (1-7). Friday October 25, 7 pm kickoff.

Other Top Performers

Soph DL Jamarion Fane – 9 total tackles, 3 sacks, 5 QB hits

Fresh DL JaShawn Mabry-Lyles – 9 total tackles, 2 sacks, 5 QB hits

SR DB Deron Anderson – 8 total tackles, 1 INT, 3 pass break ups

SR LB Ian Williams – 8 total tackles, 2 sacks, 5 QB hits

SR DB Kevin Poinsette – 12 total tackles, 3 tackles for loss

JR QB Mike Lewis – 10/11 passing for 81 yds, 12 carries 64 yds 2 TDs

Soph RB Eric Richardson – 6 carries 41 yds 1 TD

SR WR Jaylen Andrews – 5 receptions 54 yds