RINGGOLD, Ga. — Although Austin Crisp is in only his second season as the head football coach at Ringgold High School, he has seen enough of the Tigers’ series with Catoosa County rival Heritage to know two things.
No lead is really safe, and crazy things are always going to happen when the two meet.
The latest chapter came Friday night at Ringgold’s Don Patterson Field, where the Tigers built a 17-0 lead — only to have to hang on for a 17-14 win that wasn’t sealed until a 56-yard field-goal attempt in the final minute was missed.
In securing their second consecutive win in the series, which had been dominated in recent years by the Generals, Ringgold improved to 3-0 this season and may have found a pair of new go-to players to go with red-hot defensive back Cole Runion.
While Runion had his third big game in 2024 with two interceptions and a fumble recovery for a touchdown (giving him eight takeaways), Jeremiah Frost and Eli Pursley stepped up with career games.