CELINA-With a dominating 38-6 win over Cornersville last week, the Clay County Bulldogs remained undefeated on the season and ranked as the AP #9 team in Class 1A heading into their first region contest here Thursday night.

The 3-0 Dawgs are set to host Jo Byrns (2-2) this week and a win over the Red Devils is the first step towards their goal of winning the program’s first-ever region title.

“If you don’t win this one, you don’t have a shot at winning the region,” head coach Bruce Lamb said.  “It’s a huge game for us and it’s a Thursday night game, so it is a short week and a quick turnaround for us.

“They are going to be a tough opponent.”

Lamb explained Jo Byrns had a “good tailback and a good receiver,” along with a quarterback “who is very shifty and throws the ball pretty well.”

They are also led by one of the state’s longest tenured coaches in the form of veteran Tom Adkins.

“It’s going to be tough, but I think our guys will be ready,” Lamb said.

The Dawgs left no doubt about whether or not they came to play last Friday night against Cornersville, as they took it to their opponent from the opening buzzer.

“We came out and jumped on them,” Lamb said of his team, who physically dominated the game throughout.  “They were fired up and ready to go.”

In front of a good crowd assembled at Joe Neal Eads Stadium, Clay County stifled the Cornersville attack early behind inspired play from Levi Garrett, who led the Dawg defensive charge and finished as the team’s leading tackler.

“He’s not overly big or overly fast, but he is 110% a football player,” Lamb said of the senior linebacker, guard, and kicker.  “He’s our vocal leader and you can’t ask a kid to do more than he does—he never comes off the field.

“He’s that kind of kid a coach dreams about.”

Garrett made the stop on the opening kick off and almost single-handedly forced a Cornersville three-and-out on their first possession of the game, which resulted in points just four Clay County plays later.

Seniors Keaton Arms and Alec Kerr both broke free for big runs, before their classmate Joseph Marcom capped the 52-yard scoring drive with a 25-yard rushing touchdown.

Kerr then added a two-point run and Clay County led 8-0 with 8:37 left in the first quarter.

“Those guys are nice to have,” Lamb said of the trio of Arms, Kerr, and Marcom.  “I thought they did a great job setting the tone with that opening drive and I will take our kids (over any others) any day of the week.”

The next Cornersville drive also ended abruptly, as did all of their first-half possessions, and the Clay County offense continued clicking.

Arms set Marcom up for his second rushing touchdown of the night with a 44-yard run down to the three-yard-line, and sophomore Nate Adams ran in the two-pointer to surge the Dawgs ahead 16-0 with just over two minutes left in the opening period.

Marcom then tacked on one for good measure before intermission and the 45-yard scamper to paydirt sent Clay County into the break up 24-0, after Adams found Marcom for the two-point conversion.

Arms, who ran for over 100 yards on the night, then opened the second half with another long run to put the Dawgs in business again, and he also showed off his passing skills by finishing the drive with a 38-yard touchdown pass to senior wideout Jimmy Burchett.

Kerr ran in his second conversion for two points to invoke the TSSAA mercy-rule running clock, as Clay County vaulted ahead 32-0 with over 16 full minutes left to play.

Cornersville did find the end zone later in the period on a 90-yard rushing touchdown, but the Dawgs immediately answered on their ensuing drive, as Arms hooked up with Kerr for a 66-yard scoring strike to account for the final margin.

“It was a good win against a team that will be in the playoffs,” Lamb said of the victory, which was his first on John Teeples Field in front of Bulldog Nation.  “I was a little nervous, I wont lie to you, but our kids didn’t disappoint.

“It was a good crowd and I loved the atmosphere.  I loved everything about it and if we can win this region, we are going to have a lot of games here this year,” Lamb added.  “We are getting better, but I don’t think we are hitting on all cylinders yet.

“We are getting close and hopefully we can continue to improve.”

Stats

The Dawg defense held Cornersville to just 45 first-half yards and 90 of their 132 total yards in the game came on one play after Clay County went up 32-0.

Garrett’s seven tackles was the most recorded by any Bulldog defender, while Marcom (TFL), Kerr, and their classmates John Hamilton (TFL) and Ricardo McElroy all recorded four stops each.

Arms (TFL), Burchett, and fellow senior Hunter Kyle; juniors Weston Birdwell, Parker Smith, and Ben Maxfield; and freshman Nolan Adams (TFL) all also made two tackles apiece.

Clay County racked up a total of 399 yards on 43 offensive plays (5 TDs/4 2PTs), including 28 carries for 253 yards rushing (3 TDs) and 146 yards (2 TDs) on 5-of-15 passing.

Arms was the leading rusher (13/117 yds.), while Marcom (10/96 yds./3 TDs), Kerr (4/34 yds./2 2PTs), Nate Adams (1/3 yds./2PT), and Nolan Adams (1/3 yds.) also had carries.

Arms (4/13 for 143 yds./2 TDs) and Nate Adams (1/2 for 3 yds./2PT) were responsible for all of the Dawgs’ passing yardage.

They threw completions to Kerr (1/66 yds./TD), Burchett (2/64 yds./TD), and Marcom (2/16 yds./2PT).

For more from coach Lamb and to hear the Dawgs next action, tune into Thursday night’s game with Jo Byrns on the Horizon Sports Network at dalehollowhorizon.com.  Coverage starts at 6 p.m. with the Carquest Pregame Show, followed by kickoff at 7 p.m.