Demopolis Tigers pounce on inexperienced Sumter Central Jags

Fri. October 12, 2012 at 11:48 p.m. | By Jeremy D. Smith

DEMOPOLIS | Demopolis punctuated its homecoming festivities with a 42-6 thumping of region foe Sumter Central on Friday night. 

“I think our leadership on this football team did a great job handling that,” Demopolis coach Tom Causey said. “I didn’t even notice it was homecoming week this week the way that our kids handled it.”

The Tigers amassed 152 of their 251 yards of total offense in the first quarter, building a 21-0 lead in the process before adding two quick scores at the beginning of the second quarter to put the game out of reach. 

“That was a great team tonight. They’re strong and physical. We’re just trying to get to that level,” Sumter Central coach Christopher Raymond said of his Jaguars, which fell to 1-6. “The thing about it is we only had six kids who had varsity experience. We’ve got a lot of young kids playing. We’re just trying to get better one day at a time, one game at a time. It’s a process. The ultimate goal is to get to where Demopolis is and where Jackson is.”

The Jaguars’ first possession turned disastrous when the punter fielded a high snap and got tackled at his own 20 to put Demopolis in the red zone for its opening offensive snap. 

Two plays later, Tucker Jones went over the top to Demetrius Kemp for a 16-yard touchdown strike, the only pass the Tigers would throw all night. 

On the ensuing possession, the Tigers drove 84 yards on eight plays, scoring on a 48-yard run by Jones, who then hit Kemp for a two-point conversion strike. 

Kemp found the end zone again with 2:10 to go in the game’s opening frame when he recovered a fumble he created and returned it 12 yards for a touchdown. 

Roderick Davis scored on a one-yard plunge just 22 seconds into the second quarter before finding the end zone again on a one-yard run, cashing in on an opportunity created by a 40-yard interception return by Tyler Oates. 

After pulling its starters, Demopolis got its final touchdown with 8:42 to play in the second quarter when D.J. Howell took an Oates pitch 31 yards for a score. 

Sumter Central got its lone score of the night on a 31-yards run by Jemarkus Thompson with 1:30 to go in the third quarter. 

Sebastian Hale led the Demopolis defense with nine total tackles and two fumble recoveries. 

Demopolis (7-0) will travel to Satsuma next week while Sumter Central (1-6) hosts Selma.