The Ethel Tigers opened their season Friday night in a high-intensity battle against J.Z. George, ultimately falling 28-20 in a game filled with explosive special teams plays and defensive standouts.
J.Z. George scored early on a first-quarter safety and added a 47-yard fumble return in the second quarter. Ethel answered immediately when Dante Bailey returned a kickoff 75 yards for the Tigers’ first touchdown of the year. After J.Z. George responded with a 20-yard touchdown pass, Caleb Merritt fielded the next kickoff and raced 75 yards for Ethel’s second house call of the night. Quarterback Taylon May punched in the two-point conversion to pull the Tigers within 22-14 at halftime.
J.Z. George extended its lead in the third quarter with a 45-yard fumble return. Ethel mounted a late rally in the fourth quarter capped by a 20-yard touchdown run from Zantavious Clark to bring the score to 28-20, but J.Z. George held on in the final minutes.
Reflecting on the performance, Ethel head coach Junior Graham noted the execution mistakes while pointing toward the big picture.
“I felt like our fans paid to watch 3 Jr. High games this week based on the level of execution Friday,” Graham said. “We had some bright spots and plenty of positives to build on.”
Ethel compiled 183 total yards of offense, led by Clark’s 42 yards rushing and May’s 82 passing yards on 6-of-15 completions. Caden Merritt was the top receiver with 36 yards, while Charles Pender and C. Irving paced the defense with 7.5 tackles apiece. May added an interception, while M. Renfro and J. Teague each recovered fumbles.
Coach Graham and the Tigers will look to clean up the details and build on those positive steps as they prepare for next week’s matchup against St. Andrews.
