Tyner stays perfect with rout of Soddy-Daisy

Staff file photo by Matt Hamilton / Tyner's football team is 5-0 after Friday's 36-14 home win against Soddy-Daisy, which fell to 1-5.
Staff file photo by Matt Hamilton / Tyner's football team is 5-0 after Friday's 36-14 home win against Soddy-Daisy, which fell to 1-5.

Tyner's football team was marginally below average Friday night at Bob Evans Field, but that was more than enough.

The Rams, who came in averaging 40 points per game, sprinted to the lead and cruised to a 36-14 rout of the visiting Soddy-Daisy Trojans. The nonregion win was Tyner's fifth in as many tries, while Soddy-Daisy slid to 1-5.

Tyner led 14-0 after one quarter and 28-7 at halftime, but the second half was on the mind of Rams first-year coach Scott Chandler.

"We've come out every game, really, except our first one against Howard, and gotten off to a fast start," he said. "I've got to do a better job getting us to come out in the third quarter - three straight weeks now, we've come out kind of flat and not done anything when we have a chance to blow it open.

"We're trying to get that mentality to not let people hang around, but we just have to work on it more and get that killer instinct."

(READ MORE: Final scores and photos from Friday night's Chattanooga-area high school football games)

The Rams will be less likely to get away with flat second halves for the next month or so. Tyner is home next week against reigning Region 3-2A champion Bledsoe County, then hits the road for three straight games: against sixth-ranked Marion County, top-ranked Meigs County and six-time reigning state champion Alcoa, the No. 1 team in 3A.

photo Staff photo by Matt Hamilton / Tyner football coach Scott Chandler has the Rams at 5-0 in his first season leading the program but is looking for more of a "killer instinct" in the coming games.

"We've got a four-game stretch like the SEC West," Chandler said.

Tyner's first score came on a 4-yard run by Javell Woodruff with 5:24 left in the first quarter. Barely four minutes later, on fourth down, Ram quarterback Joshua Jackson hit Travius Ruffin from 33 yards. Jackson ran for the 2-point conversion to give his club a 14-0 lead at the first break.

Soddy-Daisy answered when Tanner Whittenbarger found paydirt from 6 yards with 9:19 left in the first half. That was as close as the Trojans would get, though, as Tyner tallied twice more before halftime. Deonta Taylor went in from 4 yards with 6:51 left, and Jackson combined with Zashun Hubbard on a 78-yard touchdown with 5:19 remaining.

Each team scored once in the second half, and both came late. Tyner's Taylor went in from 6 yards with 3:57 left in the game, and Soddy-Daisy quarterback Slater Hickman threw 22 yards to Brandon Dodd to account for the final margin.

Tyner's Jackson completed nine of his first 10 passes and wound up 17-of-27 for 310 yards and two touchdowns. Woodruff rushed for 167 yards and a touchdown on just 16 carries. Hubbard caught five passes for 121 yards.

"I thought Woodruff ran the ball really, really well," Chandler said. "Jackson threw it well in the first half, and we're fortunate to have some guys who, when they catch it, are able to make some people miss. Taylor had some really good runs. We've got some really good backs who can do different things.

"Defensively, except for a few coverage busts, I thought we played well in the secondary and got good pass rush – [Hickman's] pretty good slipping around, and [Soddy-Daisy coach] Justin [Barnes] is a great coach. He does a good job scheming, and they're hard to play."

Contact Bob Gary at sports@timesfreepress.com.

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