SOUTH PITTSBURG, Tenn. – The white brace wrapped around his left arm was the only reminder that Kyree Pryor had missed nearly half this season.
After sitting out the previous four games with a separated elbow, the South Pittsburg senior ran wild in his return, leading Class 1A’s fourth-ranked Pirates to a resounding 52-19 nonregion win over 2A’s No. 9 Boyd-Buchanan.
“I had some making up to do, for sure,” said Pryor, who finished with 130 yards on just nine carries and scored two touchdowns. “I couldn’t wait to get back out there. It felt really good. This team, we’re going somewhere.”
The Bucs opened the game with a big play, when Jeremy Borders intercepted a pass on the first snap and returned it 25 yards to the Pirates’ 2, then covered those final yards on the next play.
But South Pittsburg wasted no time in responding, with Joseph Lilly returning the ensuing kickoff 84 yards for a touchdown. It was a sign of big things to come from the Pirates’ special teams as Dylan McQueen later brought back a punt 76 yards for a first-half score and set up a late TD with a 58-yard return to the Bucs’ 8. McQueen averaged 46 yards on four punt returns.