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2016 Year in Review – Middle School and High School Football
As we have turned the page on 2016, Thunder Radio Sports looks back at some of the highlights of the calendar year for each of the 12 prep sports. Today we look back at a highlight from the prep football teams. The highlight for the local teams has to be the 2nd straight Coffee Pot win by the Central High School team over Tullahoma on August 19th.
Thunder Radio reported on that big win with a story we published on August 20th.
Coffee County celebrates a Coffee Pot Win
If Alontae Taylor circled the Coffee Pot game on his calendar, who could blame him? The Coffee County junior quarterback had his 2nd straight HUGE game against the Wildcats in a 49 to 10 Red Raider win over Tullahoma on Friday night at the Wildcat’s home field at Wilkins Stadium. The Tennessee commitment used big play after big play to lift the Coffee County Raiders to the second straight rivalry win over Tullahoma. If is the first time since 1982 that Coffee County has claimed back to back wins in the series.
Taylor contributed to all five of Coffee County’s first half touchdowns as Coffee County built a 35 to 3 lead at the intermission. Taylor connected on a 32 yard TD pass to Tyrese McGee on the Raiders first drive before rushing for touchdowns of 48 and 64 yards before the end of the first quarter. After a Tullahoma field goal, Taylor caught a 43 yard touchdown pass from Colton Prater and rushed for another 14 yard touchdown before the half. Taylor added a 36 yard rushing score in the 4th quarter and Prater added a 26 yard touchdown pass to Andrew Mahaffey to close out the Raiders scoring. The win is the largest margin of victory for the Raiders in the 91 year history of the rivalry.
Alontae Taylor receives the player of the game trophy following the Great American Rivalry Series win. (Photo by Brock Freeze)
Taylor finished the night with 291 yards rushing on 10 carries and 4 TD’s. He also had 1 pass for 32 yards and a TD and 2 receptions for 48 yards and his 6th TD. Prater was 5 for 9 passing with 100 yards and 2 touchdowns. For his outstanding night, Taylor was named the Thunder Radio/Crazy Daisies Most Valuable Player and also received the Great American Rivalry Series Player of the Game honors.
Coffee County travels to Hendersonville on Friday to take on Pope John Paul II. Thunder Radio will bring you that broadcast beginning with the Friday Night Thunder Pregame show at 6 PM. Coach Ryan Sulkowski will break down the Raiders big win on Wednesday night’s Ryan Sulkowski Show hosted by West Main Brick Oven and sponsored by Coffee County Bank heard exclusively on Thunder Radio.
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The Westwood Middle School Rockets were much improved in 2016 as they opened the season with a 2 and 2 season record. The 2nd win of the year was a dominant shutout win over their arch rival Liberty on August 25th.
Thunder Radio reported on that big win with a story we published on August 26th.
Reynaldo Ramirez of Westwood football
A pair of big plays in the first quarter lifted the Westwood football team to a 12 to 0 win over their arch rival Liberty on Thursday night at Dyer-Bouldin Field. The Rockets scored on a 69 yard touchdown run from Trenton Thompson and a 39 yard touchdown run from Reynaldo Ramirez to salt away the win. Ramirez’ touchdown was set up by an interception from the Rocket’s Caiden Mullican.
Coach Chad Dyer used his running game to pound the football against Liberty as the Rockets racked up 220 total yards in the first half. The win improves Westwood’s record to 2 and 2 on the season. Westwood will travel to Unionville next Thursday for a 6:30 game with Community.
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The Coffee County Middle School closed out their season winning 2 of their last 3 games under new head coach Bryan Morgan. The Red Raiders closed out the season on September 27th with a 30 to 26 win over White County on 8th Grade Night.
Thunder Radio reported on that big win with a story we published on September 28th.
CCMS running back Marshall Haney(#12 in red) (Photo by John StClair – www.JohnStClairPhoto.com
The Coffee County Middle School football team ended their season on a high note with a 30 to 26 win over White County on Tuesday night at Carden-Jarrell Field. The win also secured a win on 8th grade night as the Red Raiders closed out the season winning 2 of their last 3 games. Marshall Haney had 2 rushing touchdowns, 1 passing touchdown and three 2 point conversions to lead the Red Raiders.
After a scoreless 1st quarter, Haney scored from 10 yards out and added the PAT to give the Raiders an early 8 to 0 lead. After a White County score and missed PAT, Kyle Farless caught a 58 yard touchdown pass from Haney and Haney added the 2 point conversion. A late White County touchdown cut the margin to 16 to 12 at the half. In the 2nd half, Haney rushed for a 2 yard touchdown but the PAT was no good and Coffee County led 22 to 12 with 9 minutes remaining. A pair of White County touchdowns gave the visitors from Sparta a 26 to 22 lead with 7:14 left. But a resilient Coffee County team scored the winning touchdown on a 53 yard touchdown pass on 4th and 11 as Conner Shemwell hit Farless for the winning score. Haney added the 2 point conversion to put the Raiders on top for good with 5:45 remaining. The defense made the stops they needed in the final 5 minutes to earn the win and close out the season on a winning note.
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We conclude our year in review on Tuesday as we look back at the year in prep basketball.
Titans End Season with 24 to 17 Win Over Texans
The Titans ended the 2016 season a high note on Sunday.
The team’s 24-17 victory over the Houston Texans gave the franchise its first winning season since 2011. The win also closed out a season when the Titans tied the largest single-season turnaround in franchise history.
The Titans finished 9-7, a year after ending the 2015 season with a 3-13 mark.
And while no one was satisfied with the end result – the Texans clinched a playoff spot and will represent the AFC South as the division winner in the playoffs – it’s impossible to deny the progress in coach Mike Mularkey’s first full season on the job.
The Titans finished the season 5-3 at Nissan Stadium, where they ended the year with four straight wins. They finished second in the division behind the Texans, and ahead of the third-place Indianapolis Colts (8-8).
Titans quarterback Matt Cassel, playing in place of an injured Marcus Mariota, completed 16-of-26 passes for 150 yards with a touchdown and an interception on Sunday.
Running back Derrick Henry led the Titans with 65 yards on 16 carries, and a touchdown run. DeMarco Murray finished with 21 yards on 11 carries.
Receiver Rishard Matthews had a team-high nine catches for 114 yards, and a touchdown. He had a 50-yard catch that also set up another score.
The Titans had four sacks on defense, including two by Pro Bowl defensive lineman Jurrell Casey.
The Titans started with a bang – on defense.
Linebacker Sean Spence forced a fumble when he sacked Texans quarterback Tom Savage, and defensive lineman DaQuan Jones recovered it in the end zone for a touchdown to give the Titans a 7-0 lead with 9:57 remaining in the first quarter.
It was part of an impressive early showing by the Titans defense. In the second quarter, safety Daimion Stafford sacked Texans quarterback Brock Osweiler on fourth down to end another drive. Osweiler replaced Savage early in the second quarter after the starter left while being checked for a concussion, and he finished the game.
The Titans jumped out to a 14-0 lead when Cassel completed a two-yard touchdown pass to receiver Rishard Matthews with just 23 seconds left before the half. It gave Matthews his ninth touchdown of the season.
The Titans held the Texans to just 57 yards of total offense in the first half, and to only six first downs.
The Texans drove the length of the field to start the second half, however, and capped off the 13-play drive with a four-yard touchdown pass from Osweiler to tight end C.J. Fiedorowicz, which made it 14-7.
But the Titans quickly answered back, driving 55 yards on 10 plays and capping it off with a two-yard touchdown run by Henry, who picked up 30 yards on the drive on his own. The touchdown stretched the lead back to 21-7 with 4:44 left in the third quarter.
The Texans then cut it to 21-10 on a 26-yard field goal by Novak before the Titans answered back with a 35-yard field goal from kicker Ryan Succop to make it 24-10 with 8:30 left in the contest.
The Texans cut the lead to 24-17 on a one-yard touchdown run by Osweiler with 3:11 left.
The Titans held the Texans on their final possession, and celebrated the win.
Commissioner asking for Wayside Sewer System Debt be Forgiven
County Commissioner Margaret Cunningham who is also a member of the Coffee County Wastewater Treatment Authority has made a request for the debt for paying off the loan on the Wayside Sewer System to be forgiven.
The request to forgive the nearly $280,000 was made during the most recent budget and finance committee meeting. Cunningham made the request with the hope that if the financial situation of the sewer system looks better, an entity separate from the county would agree to start operating the system.
The homeowners using the system have been penalized unnecessarily, said Cunningham.
In November, members of budget and finance committee agreed to pay off the loan, provided that the 58 owners who currently use the system will pay the county back in ten years. This would mean their rates would almost double.
The next meeting of budget and finance is set for 5 p.m. on Jan. 3.
Man Arrested after he’s Caught Driving on Revoked License 8th Offense
David Andrew Melton… Photo provided by the CCSD
A check of the man’s driving privileges revealed his status to be revoked, eighth offense and records further indicated Melton to be a habitual motor vehicle offender, second offense.
Ray arrested Melton and booked him in the Coffee County Jail under a $32,000 bond and a court date was set for Feb 28, 2017.
Deadly Fire in Warren County
Authorities in Warren County say a 47 year old man is believed to have died in a house fire Thursday morning in the Mt. Zion Community.
A body, believed to be that of 47 year old Troy Lavalley, was recovered from the house. The identity has not been confirmed.
Lavalley was the owner of the home.
A woman and her 7-year old twins were able to escape the fire unharmed.
Witnesses said Lavalley was sleeping in an upstairs bedroom when the fire broke out.
Civil Ouster Trial set for April for Rutherford County Sheriff
Rutherford County Sheriff Robert Arnold… Photo from WGNS Radio
The Daily News Journal of Murfreesboro reports that Davidson County Chancellor William Young decided that Rutherford County Sheriff Robert Arnold’s two-day ouster trial would take place in his Nashville courtroom on April 10.
The ouster trial would not occur if the jury finds Arnold guilty in the criminal case, since he would already have been removed from office.
The plaintiffs in the ouster lawsuit convinced the chancellor to suspend Arnold without pay from his duties last month, pending the outcome of the ouster trial.
A Republican elected in August 2010, Arnold is in his second four-year term.
A Tullahoma Thank You
The Tullahoma Board of Mayor and Aldermen and the Tullahoma High School National Honor Society is pleased to host a luncheon to thank and recognize all of the workers who helped Tullahoma recover from the tornado damage. The luncheon is scheduled Tuesday, January 10 from 11:30am to 1:00pm at D.W. Wilson Community Center.
“I want to express our sincere gratitude to all of the organizations that helped the City of Tullahoma recover,” said Mayor Lane Curlee. “The response from the area to help the people of Tullahoma has been tremendous. Many public agencies from the area have been part of the response efforts, along with several faith-based organizations who are putting their faith into action. Our heart-felt appreciation goes out to the many hundreds who have come to the aid of Tullahoma and who have put in long hours of hard work.”
The community is asked to show their gratitude by providing desserts for the luncheon. Desserts can be dropped off at D. W. Wilson Community Center, 501 North Collins Street on Tuesday, January 10 from 7:00am to 11:00am.
Preds Shut Out St. Louis on Friday Night
Juuse Saros made a strong case for more playing time Friday night.
The 21-year-old from Finland got his first career shutout, Filip Forsberg had a goal and an assist and the Nashville Predators beat the St. Louis Blues 4-0.
Saros made 25 saves and impressed Predators coach Peter Laviolette.
“He made some important saves throughout the game and he made some big saves at the end of the game,” Laviolette said.
Saros, playing in just his seventh career game, won for the second time on the road. He’s allowed more than one goal once in six games this season and could begin to push veteran Pekka Rinne for a greater share of the team’s starts.
“Coming into the season, I didn’t know that much about him, but he’s proven it every game and given us a chance to win,” defenseman Yannick Weber said. “I think the last time he played (against New Jersey) he deserved that shutout, and I’m happy he got it this time. He might look small in net, but he’s outstanding. When Pekka isn’t going for us, he definitely gives us a lot of confidence.”
Weber, Viktor Arvidsson and Colin Wilson also scored. The Predators have won three of their four meetings against the Blues this season and snapped a five-game losing streak on the road against St. Louis.
Mike Ribeiro had a pair of assists to run his points streak against the Blues to five games.
Jake Allen allowed three goals on 14 shots before giving way to Carter Hutton to start the third as the Blues fell to 14-3-4 at home. They entered the game with points in 16 of their last 17 at the Scottrade Center.
The Blues outshot the Predators 9-6 in the first period but couldn’t convert on a pair of power plays. Saros stopped Jaden Schwartz’s shot from the slot on the Blues’ first man advantage and followed that with a blocker save on Vladimir Tarasenko.
Saros kept the Blues off the board with a glove save on Robby Fabbri’s shot with five minutes left in the second, and he stopped Kyle Brodziak on a breakaway midway through the third.
“It’s kind of like, they’re not going to give up easily so you’ve got to stay sharp to the end,” Saros said.
Weber snapped a shot past Allen to put the Predators up 1-0 at 4:52 of the second period. It was Weber’s first goal in 80 games, dating to April 9, 2015 against Arizona.
“It was a nice pass play by (Craig) Smith,” Weber said. “If you get that opportunity you’ve got to put in the back of the net.”
Forsberg gave Nashville a 2-0 lead, banging in a rebound from Ribeiro’s shot on the power play at 7:26. It was Forsberg’s fifth goal in six games.
“It seems like once they scored that one goal or two, for some reason it took the life out of us, which I don’t know why it does that,” Blues center Paul Stastny said. “We’ve got to be better within a group of 20 guys to find that energy, especially on home ice.”
Arvidsson used some nifty stick-handling to get around Jay Bouwmeester to score his 10th goal, making it 3-0 Predators with 2:24 left in the second. It was Arvidsson’s first goal in nine games.
Wilson scored Nashville’s second power-play goal of the game in the third.
The Blues haven’t won back-to-back games since Dec. 1.
“We’re going to have to have way better 5-on-5 play than what we’re playing right now,” Blues coach Ken Hitchcock said. “We’re sitting there relying on our power play, relying on our penalty kill to win hockey games. We’ve got to create more and we’ve got to give up less. Our 5-on-5 play in the second half of the season drives the bus.”
NOTES: The Blues re-signed D Robert Bortuzzo to a two-year contract extension worth $2.3 million. … Predators D P.K. Subban (upper body) missed his seventh game. … Predators F James Neal was in the lineup after leaving Thursday’s game against Chicago with an upper-body injury.
Predators will host Montreal on Tuesday night at Bridgestone Arena. Faceoff is set for 7 PM< THunder Radio will bring you live coverage on the Nashville Predators Radio Network immediately following Coffee County basketball.
1/2/17 — Irene Dean Uselton
Graveside services for Ms. Irene Dean Uselton, age 96, of Hillsboro, TN, will be conducted at 1:00 PM on Monday, January 2, 2017 at Hillsboro Methodist Cemetery. Visitation will be held on Monday, January 2, 2017 from 11:00-12:30 PM at Manchester Funeral Home. Ms. Uselton passed away at her residence surrounded by her loved ones on December 30, 2016.
Irene was born in Estill Springs, Tennessee, the daughter of the late Charles Dean and Nancy Tuck Dean. She worked as a homemaker for most of her life. Ms. Uselton was an active member of The Cross Roads Baptist Church of Estill Springs, Tennessee. She enjoyed sewing, cross-stitching, and gardening.
In addition to her parents, Ms. Uselton is preceded in death by her husband, James “Jack” Uselton; brother, Dan Dean; two sisters, Audrey Boguski and Mary Wimcon and son-in-law Tony Ashby. She is survived by her brother, Willie Dean of Texas; sister, Georgie (Bobby) Reed of Manchester; four daughters, Mary (Howard) Tennison of Kentucky, Mildred Ashby of Estill Springs, Linda Hill (John Steioff) of Normandy, and Patsy (Ronnie) Speck of Murfreesboro; nine grandchildren, Cheryl Lee, Nancy Lasly, Barbara Rogers, Sandra Davis, Tina Hoots, Michael Hill, Robin Cobb, Lori Lynn, and Glenn Finney; nine great-grandchildren; six great great-grandchildren.
The family of Ms. Irene Uselton would like to thank Alive Hospice for their love and compassionate care given to their mother.
MANCHESTER FUNERAL HOME IS HONORED TO SERVE THE USELTON FAMILY
1/1/17 — Dorothy J. Luna
Dorothy J Luna, a longtime resident of Tullahoma, passed away Thursday,
December 29, 2016 at Horizon Health and Rehab in Manchester at the age of
76 years. Funeral Services are scheduled for Sunday, January 1, 2016 at 2
PM at the Daves-Culbertson Funeral Home Chapel with Bro. Joe Hill
officiating. Burial will follow at Concord Cemetery. Visitation with the
family will be Saturday, December 31, 2016 from 5 – 8 PM at
Daves-Culbertson Funeral Home.
A native of Winchester, she was the daughter of the late Odie Glenn David
and the late Florence Hawkins David Jernigan. Mrs. Luna graduated from
Franklin County High School and worked at Acme, SAS and Genesco for many
years. In addition, she was also a certified nursing assistant. She was a
member of Calvary Apostolic Church of Tullahoma. She enjoyed reading,
knitting, watching cooking shows on TV and doing crossword puzzles. She
also enjoyed spending time with her grandchildren and great grandchildren.
In addition to her parents, she was preceded in death by her husband, Leroy
Luna; one sister, Mary Frances Kennedy and one grandson, Jeffrey Wade
Chandler.
She is survived by two sons, Jeff Chandler and his wife, Jennifer of
Tullahoma and Anthony Finney and his wife, Jenny of Twainhart, CA; one
daughter, Lavonda Smith and her husband, Ricky of Manchester; two brothers,
John David of Manchester and Jim Jernigan and his wife, Laura of Estill
Springs; sisters, Edith Chandler of Manchester and Annie B. Keller of
Winchester; good friend, Ines Lewis of Lynchburg; eight grandchildren,
Corey Chandler and his wife, Cynthia and Autumn Brooke Chandler, both of
Tullahoma, Travis, Jacob and Hannah Grace Finney, all of Twainhart, CA and
Nicole, Michael and Sarah Smith, all of Manchester and three great
grandchildren, Keenan Wade and Aiden Isaiah Chandler and Bryson Smith.
In lieu of flowers, the family requested memorial donations be made to
Hospice of the Highland Rim, 110 E Lauderdale St, Tullahoma, TN 37388.
Daves-Culbertson Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.