By Joey Grappe
The North Caddo Rebels defeated the Jonesborro Hodge Tigers 34-28 and claimed their first district championship since 2004. After a scoreless first quarter the Tigers would strike first and take the lead 8-0. It would take the Rebels less than two minutes to respond with an 8 yard run from Morris.
With 2:18 to go in the first half Jayden Carter would score on a 25 yard run and gave the Rebels the lead 14-8. The Tigers would score again with :41 seconds to go in the half and the two teams would go into the dressing room at the half locked 14-14. The Rebels recieved the ball first in the second half. The two teams would exchange possions until the Rebels Shawn Dixon intercepted the ball for a pick six putting the Rebels back on top 20-14. The Rebels would carry the lead into the fourth quarter.
With less than 9 minutes to go in the game the “Choppa Boys” would force the Tigers to punt from deep in their own territory. The kicker would muff the snap and the Rebles took over at the 18 yard line of the Tigers. Morris would take the ball 18 yards for the TD on the next snap giving the Rebels a 26-14 lead. The Tigers wouldn’t give up. They would close the gap with 5:13 to go in the game. With 3 minutes to go in the game the Rebels led the Tigers 26-20.
After a failed fourth down conversion by the Tigers Morris would take the ball 41 yards for his 3rd TD of the game. With 2:36 to go in the game the Rebels led the Tigers 34-20. The Tigers would score again with less than a minute and a half to go in the game but could not recover the onside kick. The Rebels would run out the clock and beat the Tigers 34-28. The Rebels are 6-2 overall, 2-0 in district and ranked #2 in class AA in Louisiana.
With the victory over the Tigers the Rebels seized a distric championship; their first since 2004. The Rebels travel to D’rbone woods next week for their last regular season game before post season begins. With their “stingy” defense agianst the run and their many offensive weapons the Rebels have proven they are deserving of being ranked #2 in class AA.