Elizabethton skins Grizzlies behind stout defensive effort
Published 12:35 pm Monday, September 9, 2024
Star Correspondent/Ivan Sanders Justius Wallin heads to the house for a pick-six after an interception for Elizabethton.
Star Correspondent/Ivan Sanders CJ Mathes carries the football around the end for the Cyclones.
Star Correspondent/Ivan Sanders Defensive end Riley Jones (81) celebrates his sack for a safety while teammates Tucker Taylor (21) and Kyler McGovern (48) also celebrate the play.
Star Correspondent/Ivan Sanders Justius Wallin looks for the end zone after clearing the end for Elizabethton.
Star Correspondent/Ivan Sanders A Grizzlie defender gets just enough of the football to make it tough for Justin Whitehead to secure.
Star Correspondent/Ivan Sanders There is just nowhere for the Grainger quarterback to go, as Cyclone defenders have him totally surrounded. Justius Wallin (28), Landry Buckles (24), and Kyler McGovern (48) close in for the tackle.
Star Correspondent/Ivan Sanders Cyclone quarterback Rhett Slagle (8) follows the blocking of his center Braydon Rainwater (59) on his way for a Cyclone score.
Star Correspondent/Ivan Sanders Elizabethton head coach Shawn Witten is fired up after a Justius Wallin pick-six gets the Cyclones rolling against Grainger.
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STAR CORRESPONDENT
It was the Region 1-4A opener for both Elizabethton and Grainger Friday night at Citizens Bank Stadium as the Grizzlies were looking to gain their first win over the Cyclones in eight tries.
The outcome was the same as in the previous seven meetings as the Cyclones, behind a dominating defensive effort, left no question as to which team was better on this night with a convincing 57-6 victory.
Defense sets the tone early
It didn’t take long for the Cyclones to find the scoreboard as just 1:18 into the contest, the Cyclones’ Justius Wallin stepped in front of a Grainger pass and took it back 27 yards for a pick-six with Will Bowers booting the point-after attempt to make it 7-0 early.
The defense went on to add another pick-six 18 seconds into the second quarter when Justin Whitehead snared an Ashton Taylor pass and raced 42 yards to pay dirt.
Later in the quarter, defensive end Riley Jones sacked Taylor in the end zone for a safety as the defensive unit did their part in leading the Cyclones to the win.
Offense takes their turn at scoring
After the Wallin pick-six to open the game, the Cyclone offense showed off its strength as well behind quarterback Rhett Slagle as Slagle accounted for a six-yard scramble for a score to make it a 14-0 game before connecting with Zack Wallin for a 41-yard scoring pass just before the first quarter ended.
J-Train Wallin powered his way across the goal line with two minutes left in the first half and after the safety and ensuing kick, it was Slagle once again going to the airway as he connected with Jack Blevins on a 15-yard scoring toss.
The Cyclones led 44-0 at the intermission.
Slagle added his third scoring pass of the night in the third quarter when he found Whitehead on a 30-yard pass with 3:54 left.
CJ Mathes legged in the final score when he carried the football into the end zone with 8:53 remaining in the contest.
The only score for the Grizzlies came when Blake Bishop picked off Slagle and raced 70 yards for a pick-six score.
Kickers spot-on in contest
The kicking game was sharp and crisp all night as Will Bowers converted all six of his point-after attempts while Caleb Campbell converted one PAT.
But the most impressive stat for the kickers was the number of balls they were able to put into the end zone that were non-returnable by the Grizzlies, and the kicks that didn’t make the end zone landed within the 5 to 10-yard markers.
The Cyclones were so effective on offense that neither kicker was forced into a punting situation.
By the numbers
The statistics from the game were just as impressive as the score, as the Cyclones racked up 313 total yards on the evening, while defensive Elizabethton held the Grizzlies to only 45 total yards in the contest.
Elizabethton had 14 first downs to only three for Grainger, while Slagle recorded 138 yards passing on 8-of-11 passing with two interceptions and the three scores. The Grizzlies Taylor had a tough night completing 1-of-10 passing with four interceptions and only seven yards to show for his effort.
Grainger had 38 yards rushing on 22 attempts, while the Cyclones collected 175 yards on 17 carries. Neither team was penalized much in the contest, as Grainger had four penalties for 35 yards while Elizabethton collected three yellow hankies for 45 yards.
The Cyclones had four interceptions in the contest, with Bryson Rowland, Justius Zack Wallin, and Whitehead each recording one interception. Jones had two sacks in the contest, with Kyron Smalls and Billy Woodby each adding a sack.
Coach Witten’s game take
Elizabethton head coach Shawn Witten was pleased with the overall effort by his team as the Cyclones rebounded nicely from their opening-season loss to Science Hill and missed out on their game against Morristown West.
“Our defense really rallied to the football,” said Witten. “Justius Wallin, who is our leader on offense, got the great stop early and then it just became a contagious effort as Bryson, Justin, and Zack added interceptions. It was a tremendous effort, and it gave our offense a short field to work with.
“We want to keep improving as we have an opportunity to have a great season after a disappointing loss to start the season.”
Elizabethton – Cherokee game preview
The Elizabethton Cyclones will once again be at home Friday night as they welcome the Cherokee Chiefs for an early-season Senior Night contest.
It will be a tale of two teams coming off different finishes as the Cyclones (1-1, 1-0) easily handled Grainger in a 55-6 route while the Chiefs (2-1, 0-1) were bedeviled by Greeneville losing 46-0.
However, Cyclone head coach Shawn Witten will be the first to tell fans not to let that score deceive them, as Cherokee is a well-improved team.
“They had a huge win against Crockett, and Crockett just beat Boone,” said Witten. “They are a good team that likes to throw a lot of passes and spread the offense out.”
Meanwhile, the Cyclones look to continue to build off their big win over Grainger.
“We have a chance to build some great momentum,” Witten said. “We want to try and build on the positive things from Friday’s game. We know we are going to get Cherokee’s best effort.”
The Cyclones will be honoring their 11 senior players along with seniors from all fall sports.
Football seniors include AJ Campbell, Bryson Rowland, Landry Buckles, Billy Woodby, Kyron Smalls, Caleb Campbell, Ben Adams, Seth Campbell, Jaevin Morefield, Gavin Kodak, and Landon Hughes.
Senior recognition will begin before Friday’s kickoff, which is slated for 7:30 pm.
