The Hopkinsville Tigers found themselves down 34-0 at the half Friday night at Paducah Tilghman, before falling 47-13. The Tigers struggled to create offense in their first full game without injured quarterback Jay Bland, and the defense was unable to slow down the Blue Tornado ground attack. Hoptown slips to 1-4 heading into an off week, followed by a trip to Madisonville to face the Maroons in each teams’ 1st District opener.
The Tigers’ opening drive stalled at the Tilghman 35 yard line and they turned it over on downs. The Blue Tornado immediately drove down the field, converting on a 4th and 1 before Damien Ford took a handoff 57 yards for a 7-0 lead after the first quarter.
After Hopkinsville once again turned the ball over on downs, Tilghman doubled its lead on a 2-yard touchdown plunge by Colbe Crim. After a high snap forced Tiger punter Mason Marschand to scramble to get a punt away, the Blue Tornado took over on the Hoptown 6. This time Jayden Freeman found the end zone from 4-yards out for a 21-0 advantage.
Tilghman took possession with 5:00 to play in the half and Ford was at it again, breaking off a 47-yard scoring run. Tiger receiver-turned-quarterback Ellis Dunn was intercepted on 1st down by Keyshun Curry and he returned it to the Tiger 8 yard line. Makel Askew took it in from there and after failing to convert on a 2-point conversion, Paducah Tilghman took a 34-0 lead into the break.
The Tigers looked to build some momentum coming out of the locker room as they forced a 3 and out on Tilghman’s first possession. However, Tayshaun Barker fumbled the punt and Mitchell Crouch came up with it to set up the Blue Tornado at the Hoptown 19. Askew would get the call again, taking it in from 14 yards to stretch the margin to 41.
On the ensuing kickoff, Jevon Leavell coughed up the ball and Tilghman covered it to take over 1st and goal from the 7. Dwight Ragland finished it off from 3 yards out and the Blue Tornado led 47-0 with just under 7:00 to play in the third.
The Tigers finally found some offense, with Dunn hitting Reece Jesse for 41 yards to the Tilghman 26. On 1st down, Barker got to the edge and scored to get Hoptown on the board with just under 5:00 left in the third.
In the fourth quarter, a bad snap on a field goal attempt led to a Tilghman turnover and the Tigers put together another scoring drive. A 17-yard run by Jordan Hopson and a 17-yard completion from Dunn to Jesse moved them down the field, before JaTorion Dillard scored from 13 yards for the final points. The Blue Tornado ran out the clock with a fair catch on the kickoff to end the game.
