Trion High School football coach Sean Patrick is an offensive guy, one who enjoys seeing his team move up and down the field with ease and score at will.
After Friday night's 28-0 home win over nearby rival LaFayette, Patrick had to tip his hat to the defense. The Bulldogs intercepted three passes and held the Ramblers to 262 total yards (97 before halftime) in the nonregion win.
It's a good thing the Trion defense, led by stalwarts Lucas Stoker, Logan Stokes, Cam Durham, Cohen Blaschke and Dillard Stricklin — a quartet that combined for 42 tackles — was on at Sam R. McCain Stadium, because the offense was not its usual self.
After scoring 56 points last week against Gordon Lee in a season-opening win and averaging nearly 40 points per game over the past two years, the Bulldogs were stymied early by a large and aggressive LaFayette defense that was determined not to let running back Toby Maddux and quarterback Kaden Smith — a pair that combined for more than 500 total yards last week — beat them.
(READ MORE: Final scores and photos from Friday night's Chattanooga-area prep football games)
While Maddux ran for two scores and Smith had a pair of touchdown passes Friday night, the two were held in check for the most part as Trion managed just 269 total yards.
Trion's first four possessions netted just one first down as the LaFayette defense, spearheaded by end A.J. Thompson, Ben Foley, Nicholas Whitefield, Bryson Roberts and Dawson Pendergrass, repeatedly penetrated into the backfield to keep Maddux in check and to pressure Smith.
Pendergrass intercepted a rushed Smith late in the first quarter to set LaFayette up at the Trion 48-yard line, but two plays later, Trion's Roberts intercepted Pendergrass and returned it to the 31. Six plays later — all runs — Maddux scored from the 1 with just less than nine minutes left in the second quarter.
Trion, its offense finally in a rhythm, put together a quick 61-yard drive on its next possession with Smith, after a first-down false start penalty, hitting Ethan Willingham for consecutive completions of 33 and 32 yards to the 1, where Maddux again powered in for a 14-0 lead three minutes before halftime.
The Ramblers (1-1) moved to the Trion 22 to start the second half, but a bad snap on third-and-3 resulted in a field-goal attempt that was missed. The Bulldogs, with Maddux ripping off 31 of his 93 yards, reached the LaFayette 41, where Smith broke loose for a 32-yard run. He later capped the touchdown drive with a 14-yard pass to Stokes.
Smith later ended the scoring with a 15-yard pass to Stoker and finished 7-for-14 with a pair of interceptions to go with his two touchdown passes. Willingham had three catches for 67 yards. LaFayette junior Khalas Finley had 137 hard-earned yards on 30 carries.
Christian Henderson and Garrett Mahan joined Roberts with interceptions for Trion, which held LaFayette to 5-of-16 passing and 61 yards.
Contact Lindsey Young at lyoung@timesfreepress.com.