GRAY DEYOSports Writer

The Tullahoma Wildcats, after losing a heartbreaker at home in the 99th edition of the Coffee Pot, won the 100^th, and brought the historic rivalry trophy back to THS. A big second half gave the Wildcats a 57-23 win over the Red Raiders.

After an 11-yard touchdown run by the Red Raiders quarterback Kaysen Lowry, the Wildcats woke up and dominated Coffee County. The score by Lowry gave the Raiders a 17-15 lead over Tullahoma with 6:21 left in the second quarter. Lucas Reed and the Tullahoma offense orchestrated a scoring drive on the next possession, which was capped off by a 37-yard touchdown pass. On the following drive for the Red Raiders’ drive, Lowry was maneuvering around in the pocket and opted to try to scramble. He ran a couple yards past the line of scrimmage and was met by a pack of Wildcats. He was hit hard, resulting in a fumble that Tullahoma was able to recover and later turn into points. These points were scored in the form of a two-yard QB sneak by Reed that gave the Wildcats a 29-17 lead with 1:04 left in the half.

Reed had a great game, finishing with three touchdown passes for around 250 yards passing.

This brief sequence of events completely flipped the game and took the wind out of the sails for Coffee County. And Marvancy Johnson completely calmed the waters on the Red Raider sideline, with an 87-yard kickoff return touchdown on the first play of the third quarter.

Johnson had limited touches–10 in the game–but still had a major effect on the outcome of Friday night’s game. He had 190 yards of total offense–136 receiving and 54 yards rushing–and four touchdowns. Combining his total from the season opener against Shelbyville, Johnson now has eight touchdowns through two games and over 400 yards of total offense. If he continues down this war path of exceptional football, the Wildcats might not only be on their way to their best season since the 2020 season, but Johnson could put himself in serious contention for Mr. Football.

Another big Wildcat performer that stood out on the stat sheet was Zion Jeffery. He was on the receiving end of Reed’s 37-yard touchdown pass in the first half, and he, like Johnson, had a kickoff return for a TD. This came on the Wildcats’ first possession of the game, which countered an opening scoring drive from Coffee County.

On the defensive side of things for Tullahoma, Will Hyden was everywhere once again, and senior Sylas McGowen was making big plays. He had a sack, a forced fumble, and multiple tackle assists.

The Coffee Pot win for Tullahoma was their 64^th. They also submitted the highest-scoring total by the winning team, with their 57-point output in the bout. They will look to build off this stellar performance as they take on Cleveland High School at home this Friday. The opposing 6A Blue Raiders from Chattanooga are 0-2 to start their season, losing by an average of 22 points per game.