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)