Rasheed Jones caught two touchdown passes, returned a kickoff for a touchdown and forced a fumble that was returned for another touchdown as the Mustangs dominated Paducah Tilghman 49-21 Saturday night in front of an overflow crowd at McRight Field.
It’s the first time a McCracken County school has ever beaten Paducah Tilghman in varsity football. Tilghman entered Saturday’s game with a 31-0 record against county schools (28-0 vs. Lone Oak, 2-0 vs. Heath High and 1-0 vs. McCracken County.)
Tilghman jumped on the scoreboard first, thanks to a seven play, 69-yard drive. Jesse Dunigan connected with Sayveon McEwen on a 17-yard touchdown pass to put the Blue Tornado up 7-0 with 6:27 left in the first quarter.
On the ensuing kickoff, Jones returned it 90 yards for a touchdown to tie the score at 7-7. McCracken took its first lead when Jones caught a 52-yard touchdown pass from Zy’aire Hughes with 2:43 left in the first quarter, putting the Mustangs up 14-7.
Tilghman tied the game at 14-14 on a 34-yard touchdown run by Aaron Draw with 3:44 left in the first half. But McCracken put another seven on the board right before halftime when Elijah Macklin scored on a 46-yard touchdown pass from Hughes.
The Mustangs really flexed their muscles in the second half. A 19-yard pass from Hughes to Morgan Alexander put McCracken up 28-14 with 8:47 left in the third quarter.
The lead grew even bigger when Jones hit Dunigan in the backfield, forcing a fumble. The ball was picked up by Carter Holland and returned 26 yards for a touchdown, giving the Mustangs a 35-14 lead with 1:38 left in the third.
Tilghman answered with a 63-yard touchdown run by Dunigan, cutting McCracken’s lead to 35-21. However, the Mustangs put the game away midway through the fourth quarter when Cash Jones scored on a 9-yard run.
McCracken finished with 360 yards of offense while Tilghman had 349 yards. The passing yards were in favor of the Mustangs, 288-47. The rushing yards were in favor of the Blue Tornado, 302-72.
Hughes finished 11-of-16 for 212 yards passing with three touchdowns. He also rushed seven times for 62 yards. Jones had nine receptions for 181 yards and two receiving touchdowns. Macklin had four receptions for 102 yards. Aaron Draw led Tilghman with 84 yards rushing.
McCracken County (1-0) hosts Mayfield (1-0) Friday night. Tilghman (0-1) hosts Evansville Reitz, IN (1-0).
