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The Wildcats came back in the second half, but a 24-yard field goal by Coffee County did them in with just 13 ticks left on the clock.

Tullahoma went down eight points in the second quarter. They took a touchdown lead into the fourth quarter but could not find a way to score.

Coffee County had the pigskin to begin the game and drove the ball into Tullahoma territory, but Sylas McGowen made a tackle for a 4-yard loss that ended the drive, forcing a punt. Marvancy Johnson took a handoff on the first play and gained 12 yards. After a false start, Lucas Reed hit Khani Johnson on a screen pass for a gain of 8. K. Johnson was the target on second down over the middle and he made the catch through some contact at the Coffee County 49-yard line. He got the ball again the next play on another screen for a gain of 31. M. Johnson got another carry for 3, but a facemask moved it to the 11. M. Johnson ran left for a gain of 4 and made it first and goal. The first down run gained no yards, the second down pass was incomplete, but the ‘Cats found pay dirt on third down when Will Hyden made a strong catch over the middle. An encroachment penalty moved the ball to the 3, then Reed hit Hyden across the middle on the slant for the TD. The 2-point conversion failed leaving the score 6-0 with 4:55 left in the first quarter.

The Red Raiders first play picked up 20, but was brought back for holding. Ryan Denby made a tackle for loss, then a pair of runs gave Coffee a fresh set of downs. Trey Palmer stopped the next run for just a yard gain. They ran a toss right that picked up 6, Hyden made the tackle. Denby stayed home on the next play, stopping it after just a yard to force a punt. M. Johnson carried up the middle and picked up 5. He got it again, going right for 3 to end the first quarter with Tullahoma leading 6-0.

M. Johnson got the ball again going right, he made one cut to take it to the Coffee County 39 for a gain of 23. After an incomplete pass, a quick pass to K. Johnson got the ball to the 20. Reed was sacked back at the 27. A middle screen got the ball to the 26, on third down Reed had to scramble away from pressure to get the throw off, but it was incomplete. The 44-yard field goal attempt was no good, leaving the score set at with 9:48 left in the first half.

A toss right gained 7 before a host of ‘Cats got the ball carrier down. An incomplete pass and then a bad snap made it fourth and 18 at the 12. A personal foul flag backed Tullahoma back up to their own 38 to start the next drive. M. Johnson ran left for a gain of 2 to start it off, then Reed hit K. Johnson down the left sideline for a gain of 36. After a 1 yard run, the Wildcats went back to the air, this time unsuccessfully as the pass was intercepted and returned to the 33. Reed’s intended target, Alex Bobo and the cornerback had their feet tangled and Bobo fell, leaving the ball uncontested for the safety.

The Red Raiders ran the ball seven straight times and with the help of a facemask penalty, they scored with 3:07 left. The extra point is good so they took the 7-6 lead.

Reed hooked up with Bobo on the next Wildcat drive for a gain of 18. Then a swing right to M. Johnson got another 7 yards. A toss right picked up 3 for another first with 1:38 left in the half. A pass left was incomplete, but a flag for illegal touching made it second and 15. Reed was hit on the next two throws that were incomplete. Tullahoma’s short punt bounced back and was picked up and returned for a touchdown with 49 seconds left, giving the boys from Manchester a 14-6 lead.

On the next Wildcat drive, a quick pass left to Bronson Bunch picked up 3. Reed hit K. Johnson on a swing pass to get it to the Coffee County 40 with 27 seconds left. Another swing pass left to K. Johnson picked up 10. A screen to M. Johnson got the ball to the 18 with 9 seconds left. Tullahoma called a timeout. A pass was incomplete, the field goal unit came out with 5 seconds left. An encroachment moved it to the 13. Chase Dodson’s 30-yard try was good as time expires. The Wildcats trailed 14-9 at halftime.

M. Johnson ran right for a gain of 11 to start the second half. A screen left to K. Johnson gained 9. After a short gain then a fumbled handoff was recovered at the Tullahoma 41. Tullahoma’s punt was returned to the 40. Robert Tatum made a pair of plays on the next drive to force a three and out, including his quarterback hurry on third down. The punt was downed at Tullahoma’s 37. On third and eight a swing pass to K. Johnson got the ball to 44 for the first down. M. Johnson got it going wide left and gained 5. The drive stalled there, then Sam Bobo punted and it was downed at the 2. A quarterback keeper gained 4, another run got 2. The quarterback keeper on third down was stopped short by Palmer. A flag for unsportsmanlike conduct on Coffee County backed the ball to the 4. The snap flew over the punter’s head out of end zone for a safety. The score was 14-11 with 2:91 left in the third.

M. Johnson got the ball on the resulting drive and went left and then cut inside the left tackle and sprinted into the end zone for the 50-yard score. The extra point kick was good, Wildcats led 18-14 with 1:51 left.

The kickoff was muffed at the 1, and Jakoby Hill jumped on it at the 11. M. Johnson got it going right, but the turf monster got him for a loss of 3. The rollout pass left was deflected and the screen right on third lost 2. After a false start, Dodson came out for the 38-yard try and it was money. Tullahoma led 21-14 with 25 seconds left in the third. Coffee County ran for six yards and took it to the fourth quarter.

The Raiders started their drive off with a counter run to open the quarter and got the ball to the 37. A reverse moved the ball to the Tullahoma 44. A run right, the carrier bounced off of a couple defenders before Hyden brought him down at the 24. A facemask moved the ball to the 16. Another counter got the ball to the 10. Hyden stopped the first down run after 3, Palmer tackled the ball carrier on second down after a gain of two. The ball carrier lunged into the end zone to avoid being stopped at the 1 on third down. The extra point kick was good 21-21 with 8:03 left.

Tullahoma went three and out on their next drive and had to use a time out to avoid a delay of game. The punt was returned to the Tullahoma 49. A sweep right was stopped by Hyden and Bunch make the tackle after a gain of 3. The next run picked up 14. They ran two more straight times for five total yards. The third and five play was a sweep right that got the ball to the 19. A run up the middle for 2 yards was ended by Creed Adams. A quarterback keeper gained 3, the ball was then at the 15. A run for 3 set up fourth and 2 at the 12. The Red Raiders went for it and picked up 4 on a run right. A 12-men-on the-field penalty moved the ball to the 3. An illegal motion flag moved it back to the 8. The next play was a run for 4, then Tullahoma called a time out with 1:45 left. The Raiders ran up the middle to the 2 with 1:35 and counting left. The third down sweep left was stopped back at the 7. Coffee County ran the play clock down and called a timeout. The 24-yard field goal try was good with 13 seconds left, giving the Raiders a 24-21 lead. K. Johnson returned the pooch kick to the Tullahoma 49. Reed’s pass was tipped and picked off with 1 second left. Coffee County won 24-21.

The Wildcats will be back at home this Friday hosting Rockvale with a 7 p.m. kickoff.