Dyer County, Dyersburg close preseason with jamboree wins

Dyer County's Jamin Gauldin (1) looks to free teammate Everett Kuykendall (21) from a Lake County tackler during the Choctaws' win over the Falcons on Friday night in the annual STAR Physical Therapy-West Tennessee Bone and Joint Clinic High School Football Jamboree at Dyersburg High School. Dyer County opens its season on Friday night when the Choctaws host Dyersburg at 7 p.m. in Newbern.

Photo/Jason Peevyhouse

By JASON PEEVYHOUSE

Sports Editor

With just a 30-minute delay to start the annual STAR Physical Therapy-West Tennessee Bone and Joint Clinic High School Football Jamboree at Dyersburg High School, the action heated up quickly as both Dyer County and Dyersburg closed their preseasons with wins at J.C. Sawyers Stadium on Friday night.

Dyersburg's Ty Seaton (16) looks to set a block for Trojan running back Necari Hall (6) during the Trojans' win over Obion County Central on Friday night in the STAR Physical Therapy-West Tennessee Bone and Joint Clinic High School Football Jamboree at Dyersburg High School. The Trojans travel to Newbern on Friday night as Dyersburg takes on Dyer County at 7 p.m. in Week 1 action.

Photo/Jason Peevyhouse

There were four games on the turf at Dyersburg High School on Friday night with each being played with two, 20-minute, running quarter halves.

Dyer County got the action underway, opening the quartet of games with a 21-8 win over Lake County.

Following the game, Choctaw Head Coach David Whittle admitted there is still a lot of work to do heading into the preseason.

“I saw some good things but I thought we've still got a lot of work to do,” Whittle explained. “We're not anywhere where we want to be.

“It's going to be a process. We're young in some spots but we've got some pieces that I really like. We've got some things to work on, too.”

The Choctaws got on the board early in the first quarter, capping a scoring drive with a six-yard touchdown run by Ja'bari Livingston. Tyler Fowlkes added the extra point to put the Choctaws up 7-0 with around 16 minutes left in the first half.

Livingston added a second touchdown later in the first half, breaking free for a 35-yard scoring run with just under eight minutes left in the half. Fowlkes added a second PAT to extend the Dyer County lead to 14-0.

Lake County was able to get on the board and cut into the Dyer County lead as Chance Estes hit Camden Chamberlain for a 65-yard touchdown pass. Chamberlain then added the two point conversion to cut the Choctaw lead to 14-8 early in the second half.

The Choctaws, though, were able to pull away later in the game with a 24-yard run by Korey Taylor for a touchdown. Daniel Johnson kicked the extra point through as the Choctaws took a 21-8 which held the remaining time on the clock to seal the win.

With four practice days this week heading into Friday night's season-opener at home against Dyersburg, the Choctaws' head coach said one goal is to get better every day.

“That's the main focus,” Whittle said. “When you open up with your county rival, you shouldn't have to motivate them or anything. I think the kids will show up Monday ready to go to work.”

Following a Crockett County 33-7 win over Brighton and a Munford 8-7 victory over Westview, Dyersburg took the field to close out the 2024 edition of the STAR Physical Therapy-West Tennessee Bone and Joint Clinic High School Football Jamboree.

The Trojans controlled things, too, taking a 27-0 win over the Obion County Central Rebels.

Dyersburg Head Coach Bart Stowe said he believed his team got better on Friday night.

“This week in practice we worked hard,” Stowe explained. “We addressed a lot of issues.

“We addressed defensive alignment and tackling. Offensively, staying low and not fumbling the football. We didn't fumble the football tonight.”

Just about five minutes into the game, Dyersburg's Necari Hall broke free for a 20-yard touchdown run. Elian Gonzalez added the extra point to put the Trojans on top 7-0 with 15 minutes left.

After a defensive stop by the Trojans, Dyersburg tacked on another score with a six-yard quarterback sneak by freshman Logston Morgan which saw the Trojan offense move the pile across the goalline. Gonzalez's extra point pushed the Trojan lead to 14-0 with just under seven minutes left in the first half.

The black and gold added to their lead in the second half, getting a 35-yard touchdown run by Jaden Harris with about ten minutes left in the game. The extra point pushed the Trojan lead to 21-0.

Dyersburg added a 15-yard run by Cortez Barbee on the final play of the game to seal the 27-0 win for the Trojans.

“Just really excited,” Stowe said following the win. “We had a good week of practice but it was a hard week of practice.

“The guys brought it here tonight.”

Stowe also wants to see his team improve over the next few days as the Trojans prepare to open the season with Dyer County.

“Be better next week than we were this week,” the Trojan head coach added. “Get better each day in practice and each Friday night.

“We've got a real young football team and they're hungry and working hard. We've got to keep moving forward.”

Dyersburg and Dyer County will open the season against each other on Friday night as the Trojans travel to Newbern to face the Choctaws. Kickoff time is set for 7 p.m. at Dyer County High School.