The Old Dogs had a few New Tricks

Defense was the name of the game last Friday night in Chickamauga when a group of forty former Trion Bulldogs took on a group of former players from Gordon Lee. Trion’s defense forced eight Trojan turnovers, and the Bulldog offense capitalized to outscore Gordon Lee 20-13.

Before the game began, all players were lined across the field and introduced. Legendary Trion coach and principal, Mr. Clarence Blevins, assisted with the coin toss. Gordon Lee’s honorary captain for the coin toss was former player and State Senator Jeff Mullis.

Scoring was opened up with a Gordon Lee pick six by Jordan Afman, who led the Trojan offense and defense. The Bulldog offense started slow and rusty with numerous penalties in the first quarter, giving the Dogs a 7-0 deficit at the end of the quarter.

With 8:57 left in the second quarter, Ryan Wilson broke through on a seven-yard score. Two carries by Daniel Calhoun put the Dogs in scoring position. The 2-point attempt was no good, leaving the Dogs still down 7-6.  A quick Cody Simpson interception put the Dogs back in scoring position. A dime thrown from Quarterback Garrett Brown to Simpson put the Dogs in front, 12-7 going into the half.

With 6:09 left in the third quarter, another Afman touchdown put the Trojans back in the lead 13-12, though it wouldn’t last long.  With 5:07 left in the fourth, Glenn Emery dashed from 58 yards out to put the Dogs back in the lead 18-13. The 2-point conversion ran by Cory Barnes, put the Dogs in the lead for good, 20-13.

Many Bulldog fans believed the game was in hand, but a late interception gave the Trojans life. As they threatened from the Bulldog 15 yard line, the Bulldog defense led by players like Adam Lee, Eric Brock, Morgan Stowe, Mitchell Peek, Chase Stoner, Justin Baker, Austin McGraw, Jim Brooks, and Mean Gene Callan held the Trojan offense out of the end zone.  On third down, Glenn Emery stepped in front of a Trojan pass and ran it all the way back for a pick six, although the officials said he stepped out of bounds. (The disputed run is in the video below and clearly he never stepped out of bounds.)  The Bulldogs took over on offense and kneeled on the ball to run out the clock on the first Bulldog-Trojan Alumni Game.

The event didn’t disappoint the many Trion fans who took the trip to Chickamauga. Since the first mention of the match with the old rivals, former Trion players and Gordon Lee players have been practicing to do one thing, win. Trion’s oldest player on the field was Randy Peace at the young age of 60, he was one of the “Four Horsemen” from the 1974 State Champion team.

Check out the highlight video from the epic game:

Trion cheerleaders had an outstanding run-through sign and cheered on the team the entire night. There were no pompoms shaking on Gordon Lee’s sidelines.

Another big highlight of the night was the outstanding performance of the Alumni Bulldog Band. There were one hundred former players in the stands and then on the field for an amazing half-time performance. It was an impressive sight to see former color guard, majorettes, and musicians come back together to play and march on a Friday night. An official from Southeastern Football Rivalry’s commented after the band’s halftime performance that, “there are high school bands that don’t sound that good.” Trion band director, Andy Cox went above and beyond to put together an amazing alumni band.