2025-2026 Sports Schedules
Cross Country - Center (JH), Center (HS), Joaquin, Timpson
Football - Center, Joaquin (V), Joaquin (JH,JV), Shelbyville, Tenaha, Timpson,
Tennis - Center,
Volleyball - Center, Center Christian Academy, Shelbyville (JV,V), Shelbyville (JH), Timpson (HS), Timpson (JH),
January 5, 2018 - Tenaha Holiday Hoops Classic awards a $200 Post-Secondary Scholarship to one team member from each participating team in the tournament. The scholarship is awarded to the senior player with the highest GPA on the team.
Kyle Dodd-Tindol received the scholarship award for Shelbyville.
January 5, 2018 - Shelbyville Dragon Coach Charles Tindol congratulates his football players who received Academic All-State Football recognition for the 2017 Season.
The following boys received recognition for the 2017 season: Justin Harbison, Kyle Dodd-Tindol, Christian Schlider, and Logan Jefferson. This is a big honor, due to the fact it is an honor given and recognized by the state of Texas.
To receive this award you have to meet certain criteria: (1) Be nominated by your head coach, (2) Have a certain GPA, (3) Class Rank/ percentile, and (4) Certain required ACT/SAT score..
1st Team - Academic All-State: Justin Harbison
2nd Team - Academic All-State: Kyle Dodd-Tindol
2nd Team - Academic All-State: Christian Schlider
Honorable Mention Academic All-State: Logan Jefferson
We are so proud of these boys!
December 29, 2017 - The all-new Toyota ShareLunker program will feature four levels achievement. Here's a synopsis of the program categories:
*Lunker Legacy Class: Open for anglers who loan a 13 pound or larger bass during the Jan. 1 - March 31 spawning period. Entrants will receive a Toyota ShareLunker Catch Kit containing branded merchandise and fishing tackle items, a 13-pound-plus Legacy decal, VIP access to awards programing at the Toyota Bassmaster Texas Fest, a replica of their fish. Entrants also will be entered in the year-end ShareLunker Prize Drawing to win a $5,000 shopping spree and an annual fishing license. These anglers will also be entered into the Legacy Class Prize Drawing for a $5,000 shopping spree and an annual fishing license at the end of the spawning period March 31. Additional prizes may be included in both of these prize drawings prior to their entry deadlines.
*Lunker Legend Class: Open for anglers who enter 13 pound or larger bass Jan. 1 through Dec. 31. Entrants will receive a Toyota ShareLunker Catch Kit, a free replica, decal and an entry into the year-end ShareLunker Prize Drawing for a $5,000 shopping spree and an annual fishing license. Additional prizes may be included in the prize drawing prior to its entry deadline.
*Lunker Elite Class: Open for anglers who catch double-digit largemouth bass 10 to 12.99 pounds Jan. 1 through Dec. 31. Entrants will receive a Toyota ShareLunker Catch Kit, decal and an entry into the year-end ShareLunker Prize Drawing for a $5,000 shopping spree and an annual fishing license. Additional prizes may be included in the prize drawing prior to its entry deadline.
*Lunker Class: Open for anglers entering largemouth bass at least 8 pounds or 24 inches Jan. 1 through Dec. 31. Entrants will receive a Toyota ShareLunker Catch Kit, decal and an entry into the year-end ShareLunker Prize Drawing for a $5,000 shopping spree and an annual fishing license. Additional prizes may be included in the prize drawing prior to its entry deadline.
ShareLunker entry criteria and photo requirements
Photo instructions are as follows:
Big bass program unveils new format hoping to hook more anglers
December 29, 2017 - Big changes are coming for Toyota ShareLunker on Jan. 1, more than three decades after Lake Fork fishing guide Mark Stevenson turned over the program's very first entry in November 1986.
In hindsight, Stevenson's 17.67 pound former state record provided a pivotal jump start for the spawning and genetics research program, which is founded on giant Texas bass and the anglers who catch them.
ShareLunker has since taken in 569 additional entries weighing upwards of 13 pounds from more than 60 public reservoirs scattered around the state while operating under a format that rewards participating anglers with cool prizes and widespread recognition through press releases and social media.
In exchange, TPWD scientists get the green light to pair the big female bass with hand-picked males in hatchery raceways for spawning. The idea is to produce armies of baby bass with shared big bass DNA.
The ShareLunker prodigy are stocked back into Texas lakes or used for research. TPWD hopes to revamp its entire Florida bass hatchery program using ShareLunker offspring within the next few years.
Often billed as one of the most successful public relations programs ever launched by the state agency, ShareLunker has generated a wealth of interest in Texas bass fishing while spurring some really neat findings in fish science along the way.
Not surprisingly, the program has undergone a passel of policy changes over the years, both good and bad. It has also met with a few bumps in the road in recent times that have caused angler support and participation to wane.
Rekindling Interest
New leaders within TPWD's inland fisheries division have been looking for ways to rekindle public interest, restore angler trust and boost participation in ShareLunker for more than a year now. They are hopeful a new format to be launched on New Year's Day will breathe new life into the program and ultimately bring it out of the slump.
According to Craig Bonds, TPWD inland fisheries director, the program was in need of some changes. He and his staff gave it more of a facelift, instead.
"Program enhancements were shaped and implemented using a team approach, including perspectives and contributions from across our inland fisheries disciplines, as well as from a diversity of talented teams within information technology and communications divisions. We solicited and received input from our Texas Freshwater Fisheries Advisory Committee and surveys of targeted bass anglers, such as a subsample of past ShareLunker participants. Our programmatic review began well over a year ago and teams of experts have been working diligently on implementation over the past six months. We're excited about it and we are hopeful that the anglers will be excited about it, too."
Outlining the Changes
ShareLunker has always centered on anglers donating big Texas-caught bass for spawning purposes. Since day one, the minimum size required for entry has been 13 pounds.
Those fish are still considered the heart and soul of the Jan. 1 - March 31 spawning phase of the program under the revised structure. However, TPWD is expanding the format to allow anglers to gain recognition by entering bass as small as eight pounds in other categories year-round.
The idea behind adding more levels of achievement is to drum up more entries while providing researchers with data that will help them get a better grip on trophy bass distribution across the state.
TPWD is putting plenty of bait on the table to spur angler interest, too. Among the incentives are automatic chances to win $5,000 shopping sprees to an outdoor retailer, fishing licenses, ShareLunker branded merchandise, fishing tackle packages, etc.
The expanded format also includes simplified ways to enter. While 13 pounders used for spawning must be approved on site by TPWD biologists, other entries (including 13 pounders caught outside the spawning window) will be accepted using the new Toyota Sharelunker mobile application or online via the program's new website, texassharelunker.com.
The latter entries must be accompanied by digital photos of the fish being weighed on a digital scale or measured on a rigid measuring board. Fish caught during a tournament must be accompanied by a weigh-in slip or website links for documentation, if photos are not available. TPWD reserves the right to deny any questionable entry.
Another noteworthy change is one that gives anglers the opportunity to become citizen scientists by submitting scale samples from their fish for DNA testing. Testing will be performed at TPWD's genetics lab in San Marcos at no cost to the angler.
"We'll be able to run the scales to determine the genetics of individual fish at our lab," Bond said. "This will not only satisfy the curiosity of the angler, but it will also provide us with valuable data about the genetics of our wild populations of large bass around the state.
"As we move from stocking ten of thousands of selectively-bred offspring to tens of millions in the future, then hopefully we'll start seeing some of these fish show up in scale samples that are submitted to us by the anglers," Bonds added. "It's a citizen science partnership we hope to establish with anglers that will allow them to contribute to the management of largemouth bass in Texas and make it bigger and better."
The newly designed ShareLunker website provides detailed instructions on scale removal, proper handling and entry criteria. Beginning Jan. 1, there will an link on the website that will allow anglers to download the mobile entry app to their smartphones, as well as instructions for submitting digital entry applications and photos online.
Cool as it all sounds, TPWD isn't exploring unchartered territory with its expanded ShareLunker format. The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission runs a similar catch and release program called TrophyCatch.
Founded in 2012, the program has several different prize tiers. Every angler who enters a fish that meets program requirements earns a reward. The TrophyCatch program also has a random drawing for a Phoenix bass boat at the end of each season. More than 5,000 entries have been submitted to the program over the last five years.
"The Florida program has been really successful," Bonds said. "It started off with just a few entries the first year, but it has grown exponentially since then. We already have some brand awareness and recognition with the ShareLunker program, but we have no idea how the first year will go. We don't know if we'll shoot out of the starting gate with a lot of entries or if it will grow through time."
It's going to be interesting to how things shake out, for sure.
Matt Williams is a freelance writer based in Nacogdoches. He can be reached by e-mail, mattwillwrite4u@yahoo.com.
Thursday, December 28, 2017 –
Ninth Annual Tenaha Holiday Hoops action started on Wednesday and has now moved into the second day of action. Teams are battling it out to eventually narrow the field, of 20 boy’s teams, and 19 girl’s teams, down for tomorrow’s final round of elimination play.
A Thursday morning game at Joaquin High School saw the Shelbyville Dragons defeat the Oakwood Panthers Varsity Boys Basketball Team by a convincing 65-33 final score. Shelbyville jumped out to an 18-10 lead in the first period and led 26-14 at halftime.
Jordan Boykin and Cole Ferguson teamed up for 14 points in the third period which helped the Dragons take a 51-20 lead into the final quarter.
Oakwood was led by Tuddy Jones who had a 14 point day. The Dragons were led by Cole Furguson with 15 points. Teammate Jeron Boykins had nine points on the day. The Dragons, coached by David Schmitt and Assistant Kyle Tindol, are now 13-3 for the season.
The Timpson Bears Varsity Boys Basketball fell to the Queen City Bulldogs by a 69-50 score at Panola Junior College Gymnasium. Timpson trailed Queen City 16-7 at the end of the opening stanza. The Bears were behind 34-23 at the midway intermission. Easton Fincher and Dylan Scott combined for 19 points during the third quarter to give the Bulldogs a 61-37 lead going into the fourth frame. The Bears outpaced the Bulldogs 13-8 in the fourth period by it was too-little-too-late as Queen City took home the 19-point win.
The Bears were led by Brock Behrens with 17 points. Teammates, Jordan Osby, and Dustin Pledger each had eight points. Fellow Bear Gannon Braddock added six points, Jaden Johnson 5, three Bears: Cody Hodge, Trey Keggler, and Komareious Johnson each had two points.
Queen City was led by Easton Fincher with 18 points.
Wednesday, December 27, 2017. Joaquin Rams Gymnasium –
The Shelbyville Lady Dragons Varsity Basketball Team suffered a lopsided 66-31 loss to the Martinsville Lady Pirates, Wednesday at the Ninth Annual Tenaha Holiday Hoops Tournament opening round game, played at Joaquins’ Rams Gymnasium.
The Lady Dragons struggled offensively and two 3-pointers by Lady Pirate Haley Moon, and eight second-quarter points by teammate Kara Revill gave Martinsville a 31-15 lead by the midway point of the contest.
Martinsville eventually took the 66-31 win. They got 21 points from Kara Revill and 17 from Hannah Choate. Shelbyville freshman forward Kouja Gates had six points in the final quarter en route to posting a team high 14 point outing.
The Joaquin Rams Boys’ Varsity Basketball Team opened up their Tenaha Holiday Hoops Tournament play with an early Wednesday game with the White Oak Roughnecks. The game was close throughout but White Oak eventually took a narrow 44-42 win.
The first quarter was a defensive battle and White Oak held a tight 4-3 lead at the end of the opening period. Scoring picked up in the second period. Ellie Huerta hit a 3-point basket from outside to pull the Rams to within 16-8 with two minutes left before halftime. Ram Matthew Silvey sank a basket just before the midway intermission and Joaquin trailed the Roughnecks 20-12 going into the third frame.
Joaquin scored eight unanswered points to start the second half and tied the game at 20-20 by the 6 minute mark of the third stanza. Joaquin led 30-29 at the end of the third quarter.
White Oak’s Chandler Benson caught on fire early in the final period and he helped the Roughnecks take a 38-32 lead by midway through the fourth period. Tray Wilkerson scored eight points for Joaquin in the final period but Joaquin couldn’t get the final two points to tie the game near game’s end.
Elli Huerta led the Rams with 15 points. Tray Wilkerson scored eight for Joaquin, Conner Bragg 6, Lorenzo Lane 4, Nick Matthews 4, and Matthew Silvey score two points. Cameron Bates was high-point man for the Roughnecks with 14 points.
The Joaquin Lady Rams Girls Varsity basketball team found themselves trailing the Grapeland Sandiettes 61-36 going into the final period of Wednesday’s opening round game at Joaquin High School.
Lady Ram Eboni Adams opened up the fourth period with a 3-point bomb but Grapeland went on a run which would see the Sandiettes lead balloon to 74-43 just five minutes later. The final score was Grapeland 77 Joaquin 50.
Joaquin was led by Day’Za Lane with 27 points and Desere’ Cooper with 11 points. Hannah Chipman and Tiera Jones each had 20 points for the Sandiettes.
The Tenaha Lady Tigers took a 17-7 lead by the end of their first round game with the Cushing Galkats, at Tenaha’s Special Events Center, on Wednesday. By halftime Tenaha had ballooned their lead to 34-13.
Eventually Tenaha would have three players contribute a double-figure performance and the Lady Tigers took a 68-33 win. High scorer for THS was Arlicia Roland with 18 points, Bianca Davison had 13, and JoJo Thompson added 11 points. Kristin McCormack had 18 points for the Galkats.
The Lady Tigers followed their win over Cushing with a second round tournament win, later on Thursday, with a 42-28 win over the Edgewood Lady Bulldogs. Tenaha jumped out to a 14-4 lead in the first quarter. By halftime Tenaha led 25-16 and the third period saw THS leading 33-20.
The Tenaha Tigers Boys Varsity team took a 53-42 win over the Port Aransas Marlins to open up their Holiday Hoops opening round action on Thursday. The Tigers led 16-13 at the end of the first period. They grew their lead to 28-16 by halftime, and took a 42-26 lead by the end of the third period.
Trai Gardner led the Tigers with 25 points. Teammate Hayden Jenkins added eight points to the THS tally sheet. Leading Port Aransas was Zach Brown with 17 points.
The Timpson Lady Bears fell to the LaPoynor Lady Flyers by a narrow 49-45 final score at Tenahas’ SEC on Thursday. Timpson led 16-10 at the end of the opening period. At halftime THS led 24-20.The Lady Bears trailed 35-38 by the end of the third stanza.
Te’Aire Hambrick led the Lady Flyers with 24 points. Timpson was led by Jasmine Rogers with 14 points, Brylee Behrens added 12, Ja’Karia Deckard 9, LaitonBraddock 7, and McKenzie Burgay chipped in three points.
December 22, 2017 - John Idrogo has learned a lot about the dos and don'ts of deer hunting over the years. In hindsight, the 48-year-old hunter from Tyler claims the most valuable - and toughest - of those lessons is one he had much rather forget.
Shift to the 2014 deer season. It was a dreary day during the Thanksgiving holidays and Idrogo was sharing a Henderson County box blind with his young son, J.J. Only eight years old at the time, J.J. had never taken a crack at a deer before and he was anxious to get blood on his hands for the first time.
The woods had been particularly quiet and the two hunters hadn't seen much other than squirrels and songbirds. Idrogo had grown so bored in the blind that he reached for his cell phone to check e-mails while his son peered out the window looking for any signs of movement.
That's when the wake up call came.
"We were just sitting there and J.J. yelled 'look dad, it's a buck!'" Idrogo recalled. "I'm like, yeah, right. When I looked up, there he stood. It was a really nice 10-pointer. He was broadside to us, probably 70 yards away."
What happened next hatched into a nightmare that has haunted J.J.'s father ever since.
Rather than handing the .223 to his son, Idrogo grabbed the rifle and hastily shot at the deer himself. J.J., meanwhile, just sat there and watched as the buck ran away and melted into the brush.
Realizing the crappy deed he had just carried out, Idrogo said he was instantly stricken with guilt and grief.
"I felt terrible about it," he said. "What I did was very selfish. I didn't even hand him the gun. I shot at the deer myself and I felt guilty as heck about it. I told J.J. right then that I was sorry - that I'd never do that to him again."
Indrogo eventually got a little redemption when J.J. shot his first doe, but the shameful feeling of having robbed his son of the opportunity to shoot the buck lived on in the back of his mind until last month. That's when J.J., now 11, finally brought his dad's conscious some serious relief in a really big way.
Hunting on a 1,200-acre low-fence lease in Smith County on opening weekend, the youth hunter shot a whale of a buck that may be the highest scoring open range non-typical whitetail ever shot in the county. It is by far the biggest Smith County non-typical ever reported to the Texas Big Game Awards, a hunter recognition program run jointly by the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department and the Texas Wildlife Association since 1992.
Idrogo's buck, a massive 17 pointer, was originally scored for TBGA at 190 6/8 gross and 178 net B&C by TPWD wildlife biologist Larry LeBeau of Tyler. LeBeau said he had some questions regarding a few of the measurements on the freak antlers, so he invited fellow biologist and official B&C scorer Billy Lambert of Hearne to do a re-score. The official green gross score before 60 days drying stands at 186, Idrogo said.
The 5 1/2-year-old buck will fall well shy of the 195 net score required for non-typical entry to the B&C all-time record book, but you won't hear J.J. complaining about it. The Brown Elementary 5th grader is much too busy soaking up the attention and learning all he can about his newest passion.
"I used to watch Netflix a lot, but now I watch the Outdoor Channel and hunting videos on You Tube all the time," the youth hunter said. "I'm learning a lot about deer hunting and all the different products out there. It's pretty neat."
One aspect of the game that Idrogo has become particularly obsessed with is horn rattling during the rut.
Understandably so. Witnessing a giant buck coming to the sounds of a buck fight is a rare sight that just about every deer hunter dreams about, but only a handful are fortunate enough to experience in a lifetime of hunting. For an 11-year-old kid to see such a thing can have life-changing implications.
"My dad rattled and next thing we knew there he was, looking for a fight," J.J. said. "I'll never forget it."
Indeed, there was some serious mojo dancing in the air along the Sabine River bottom during opening weekend of the 2017 deer season. To hear John Idrogo tell it, he believes the big buck his son shot on the morning of Nov. 5 was truly a Godsend.
"I remember laying in my cot the night before," he said. "We had just finished eating soup I had warmed over campfire when a friend texted sme an Internet link to a story about a giant typical buck that a guy (Bryan O'Neal of Quitman) had killed in Smith County last year. After I read that story I put my hand on my Bible and thought to myself how great it would be if J.J. could kill a big buck like that. I swear, that was the last thought I had before I went to sleep."
The Hunt of a Lifetime
Opening weekend turned off unseasonably warm and muggy across eastern Texas but the Idrogos decided to head to the lease anyway. They made it to their stand well before sunrise on Sunday morning and saw the first signs of activity about 7 a.m.
Their stand is positioned between several blinds on a woodline at the edge of a long pipeline, providing a clear view for several hundred yards to the left and right.
"The first deer we saw was a pretty nice buck," John Idrogo said. "I looked at him through my binoculars but he was way too far to shoot, probably close to 400 yards. He disappeared and we never saw him again."
Nearly an hour passed with no action and Idrogo could tell his son was beginning to get antsy. That's when he decided to reach for the rattle bag in his pack.
The Magic of Rattling
A rattle bag contains several hard plastic cylinders that are bound in a loose cluster. Placed between two hands and rubbed side-to-side the cylinders create clashing, tickling noises intended to emulate the sounds of two bucks in a sparring match. The idea is to stir the curiosity of other bucks and bring them closer. The trick doesn't always work, but when it does it can be like magic.
"I've been hunting for 32 years and fooled around with rattling off and on," Idrogo said. "I've never had much luck doing it, but I've always been intrigued by it. I'd been seeing quite a bit of buck activity driving to work that week. I thought they might be chasing does, so I thought what the heck and gave it a try."
Idrogo said he placed the rattle bag outside the stand window and rubbed it vigorously for about 30 seconds.
"J.J. sort of perked up after that," he said. "We were both watching the pipeline when all of the sudden this buck stepped out, probably 150 yards away. I had no idea how big he was at first, but when I looked at him through the binoculars I could tell he was really thick and tall. He had something hanging off on one side that looked like a drop tine, but it turned out to be a vine from tearing up the brush."
J.J. is convinced the sounds from his dad's rattle bag had put the buck in the mood to brawl.
"He was walking across the pipeline, sort of looking back and forth like he was looking for a fight," he said. "He slowed down a little bit and that's when I took the shot. At first I thought I'd missed because he didn't do much. His tail didn't twitch or anything. He just kept walking for about 20 yards. Then he just fell over."
John Indrogo said it wasn't until they walked up close to the buck that he realized the true majesty of the animal his son had taken.
"He was huge," he said. "The grass on the pipeline was pretty tall, but we could see antlers sticking up everywhere. He was giant body-wise, too. I'm guessing he weighed at least 225 pounds. J.J. was jumping up and down like he'd just won the lottery."
In reality, he had.
Bucks like this one don't come along on open range very often. And when they do, it sometimes comes a total surprise to everyone involved.
According to Idrogo, the buck his son shot came as a complete shock to everyone else on the lease.
"There are eight members on our club and four of them hunt pretty seriously," he said. "Nobody had ever seen this deer before. No game camera pictures or anything. He just showed out of nowhere and I'm so glad he did. I handed J.J. the gun instantly. I don't care if he had 100 points. I'd do it all over again."
Matt Williams is a freelance writer based in Nacogdoches. He can be reached by e-mail, mattwillwrite4u@yahoo.com.
Center High School. December 20, 2017 –
On Wednesday morning, Jaterious Evans signed a college letter of intent to play football, next year, for Stephen F. Austin State University in Nacogdoches, Texas. The senior is looking forward to getting a shot at contributing to the team’s need at the safety position.
Evans played on offense, defense and special teams for the Center Roughriders during his high school career. His brother, Octavius Evans played for Boise State this season and travelled home for the signing.
Jaterious was a big part of Center’s upset win in basketball, on Tuesday night, when the Center Roughriders defeated #1 ranked Silsbee High School 76-74.
‘Riders Head Football Coach Barry Bowman was on hand for the ceremony and said, “ We are of proud Jaterious he is a great athlete and carries himself well, and is also a great person and student.”
Evans plans to major in business. He said, “ Im glad to take my talents to SFA. I like the University being close to home and I’m hoping to get a lot of playing time here!”
Evans had a great senior year in 2017 as a football player. He scored 12 touchdowns, had 32 tackles, 61 receptions for 1078 yards, and had 9 punt returns for 346 yards. He also made four 2-point conversions.
Center Roughriders’ Gymnasium. December 19, 2017 –
The Center Roughriders Varsity Basketball team defeated last year’s state champion Silsbee High School by a narrow 76-74 score. Center is currently ranked #5 and Silsbee #1 in the Texas Association of Basketball Coaches Poll for December 18, 2017. This will likely change after Center’s win.
The Roughriders held a narrow 18-13 lead at the end of the first quarter led by Kaleb Parks and Jaterious Evans who each had six points during the opening frame. The second period saw the Silsbee Tigers claw their way back into the contest and tie the score at 35-35 by the halftime intermission.
Three scores by Jaterious Evans in the third period saw the Roughriders edge out a 49-43 lead by midway through the quarter. By the end of the third quarter, Center’s lead was cut to just three points and the Roughriders led 56-53 going into the final period.
Silsbee tied the game at the beginning of the fourth frame when Braelon Bush hit a 3-pointer early to tie the game at 56-56. Silsbee would gain a five point lead but Center’s Kaleb Parks hit a half-hook shot which tied the game at 66-66 with 4:25 remaining. Parks later scored on a fast-break assist from Evans and gave Center a 74-72 lead with 1:30 left in the contest. Silsbee later tied the game at 74-74 and got the basketball back after an offensive foul was called on the ‘Riders.
Jaterious Evans later sank two free-throws with 15 seconds left and gave CHS a 76-74 lead after Center stole the ball back with just nine seconds left in the contest. Evans soon after stole the ball back and Silsbee was not able to regain possession before time expired.
High scorers for Center were Kaleb Parks with 32 points, Jaterious Evans 24, Reggie Daniels 12, Kameron Elmer 10. Jakavian Calhoun and Jaydon Hicks each had three points apiece.
Silsbee’s record now stands at 9-6 for the pre-district season. Center has improved their season mark to 14-1. They are currently on a seven game winning streak.
The Varsity Roughriders are scheduled to host the Hudson Hornets on Thursday, December 21, 2017 at Center Roughriders Gymnasium at 1:30 p.m.
Crockett High School, Monte Jack Driscoll Stadium -
The Tenaha Tigers Varsity Football Team took a convincing 60-22 win over Burton High School in the Class 2A DivisionII State Semifinal round game played at Crockett on Thursday night.
The Tigers will now face a #3 ranked Muenster team on Thursday, December 21, 2017, at AT&T Stadium in Arlington. Kickoff is slated for 11 a.m. Muenster eliminated Wellington on Thursday by a 31-28 score. Both Tenaha and Muenster have perfect 15-0 season records.
Tenaha used a 418 yard to 166 yard advantage in rushing during the game to get a 60-22 scoring advantage by game's end. The Tigers also intercepted three Burton Panther's passes during the contest. The Tigers' sole turnover was a fumble.
Tenaha passed for 158 yards completing 4 of 6 attempts. Burton completed 15 of 22 attempts for 171 yards.
The Tigers won the coin toss and elected to kick the ball to the Burton Panthers to start the game. Burton turned the ball over on downs after just four plays and Tenaha took over at the Panther's 38 yard line early in the game. Moments later, Onterio Thompson scored on a 4-yard run with 8:31 left in te first quarter. Tenaha took a 6-0 lead after a failed extra point kick.
Tenaha took a 13-0 lead when Trai Gardner returned a Panthers' pass 96 yards for a score with 4:53 left in the opening stanza, and Christian Castillo added an extra point kick conversion.
Gardner broke up a pass on fourth down during Burton's next offensive drive and Tenaha took over with 1 1/2 minutes left in the opening stanza. Gardner took a pass from Tigers quarterback CJ Horn and raced 71 yards to the enzone to give THS a 20-0 advantage near the end of the first period of play.
Panther Tristian Brantley got Burton on the board with a 39-yard field goal with 8:43 left in the first half. Tenaha lost a fumble to Burton moments later and the Panthers' DeMonderick Winters capped a 31-yard scoring drive with a 1-yard touchdown run to cut Tenahas' lead to 20-10 with 5:31 left in the second quarter. This score held up until halftime.
After a touchdown on the opening kickoff return was called back, Trai Gardner scored on a 70-yard touchdown to give THS a 26-10 advantage to start the third quarter. He then extended the Tigers' lead to 33-10 later, with 4:41 left in the third stanza with a 56-yard touchdown reception from Horn.
Burton scored on a kickoff return during the ensueing kick. Tenaha answered just one minute later with a 55-yard Onterio Thompson scoring run which gave THS a 40-16 lead with 3:29 left in the third frame. Thompson scored again on a 28-yard touchdown run with just over one minute left in the third stanza. Tenaha took a 46-16 lead into the final period.
Thompson added a 73-yard rushing score score early in the fourth quarter and Castillo added the kick needed to give THSa 53-16 lead with 11 minutes left in the contest.
Burton scored with 10 minutes remaining, capping a 55-yard drive which cut the THS lead to 53-22.
LaDarrius Garrett scored the game's final touchdown on a 17-yard run with 6:33 left in the contest. This proved to be the final score and gave Tenaha the 60-22 State Semifinal Class 2A Division II win. Tenaha last went to the state title game in 2012. They last won the title in 2011 and 1998. The Tigers were state runners-up in 1996.
