LEWISBURG — A veteran group of players able to overcome adversity is the desire of any head football coach.
With the veteran group of Marshall County Tigers Thomas Osteen has on his roster, that mettle was put to the test in Friday night’s opener against Columbia.
The Tigers fell behind by two scores in the first quarter, but went on to outscore the Lions 41-7 the rest of the way and take the 41-20 season opener.
“I feel like we were able to one of their kicks to give us a short field. We could have folded after we got down two scores. We have an experienced, older group of kids that know how much they put into this and weren’t going to let a little adversity at the start of the game unravel our team. Really proud of the way we handled adversity at the start of the game,” Osteen said.
Marshall County moved the ball well on the game’s opening drive, but coughed the ball up on a fumble that Columbia returned to the Tiger 48-yard line.
Two plays later, Columbia’s Kayden McCoy punched it into the end zone for the first score.
Hoping to answer on the points after the turnover, the Tigers went to the air on the next possession, but were unable to move the chains and were forced to punt after a three and out.
Utilizing its quick-strike ground-attack, McCoy struck again, this time on a 64-yard jaunt, but the kick after failed.
With 5:52 left in the opening quarter, Columbia held a 13-0 lead and had out-gained Marshall County, 136-15 in total offensive yards.
But the return game for the Tigers continued to give Marshall County a short field to work with.
A return by Antomme Cowthorn to the Lions’ 36-yard line gave Marshall County prime field position to work with.
Five plays later, Demari Braden put the Tigers on the board with a two-yard run.
Seizing the quick turn in momentum, Jayden Randolph caught the Tigers off-guard and successfully converted the two-point attempt.
Special teams came through on the next defensive possession for the Tigers with a blocked punt, recovered at the 19-yard line, once again giving Marshall County prime field position.
Junior quarterback Silas Teat capped the drive with his first of two rushing touchdowns on a one-yard sneak with 1:32 left.
Even with a bad snap on the point after, Marshall County still led 14-13 after the first quarter.
The Tigers went on to pad their lead on another Lion mistake on the following drive, following another bad snap on fourth down that allowed the Marshall County to recover on the 22-yard line.
Two plays later, Teat connected with tight end John Morgan Thomas on a 20-yard touchdown pass, but again the kick after failed.
Columbia finally orchestrated an answer after the Thomas touchdown reception and orchestrated an 11-play drive that eventually stalled out around the 42-yard line.
Sophomore Aja Jones took the punt reception 83-yards to the house, giving Marshall County a 27-13 lead after a successful Wyatt Joyce kick, with 4:59 left.
That score held through the remainder of the half.
On the first drive of the third quarter, Columbia was able to successfully march the ball on the Tigers on a drive that spanned just shy of six minutes and went 80 yards to pull within one score after McCoy’s third score of the night.
Following the four-yard touchdown run by McCoy with 6:12 to go, the Tigers went three and out and prompted their second punt of the night.
Having seized the game’s momentum, Columbia again marched to the Tiger Red Zone and on fourth down, senior linebacker Montai Vaughn came up with perhaps the play of the game with an interception in the end zone to prevent the Lion score.
After snatching the momentum right back, Marshall County answered the Lions’ second-half surge and moved the ball well, including a key fourth-down pass to Randolph to keep the drive alive.
Teat capped the drive on his second rushing touchdown, coming from three yards out.
“Fourth and goal there, Montai Vaughn had the huge interception. And then the next drive, Jayden Randolph had a key conversion catch on the sideline,” Osteen said.
The Tigers took advantage of another Lion turnover when Thomas Beech picked off Lion quarterback Luke Uselton and Braden notched his second touchdown of the night to finish off the drive.
Braden led the Tigers on the ground and totaled 155 yards on 20 carries to go along with his two scores.
“Demari had a good night and we kind of leaned on him a little bit. I feel like our offensive line played a really good game. Columbia is huge on the defensive front. We’re still without a starter at right tackle. I feel like the offensive line were the unsung heroes of tonight’s game,” Osteen said.
As a team, Marshall County totaled 180 yards on the ground.
Teat completed 7-of-13 attempts for 60 yards and a score.
While the total production wasn’t there for the Tigers in the pass game, Osteen feels the best is yet to come from his junior quarterback and the talented group of receivers.
“We didn’t throw it and catch it the way I feel like we’re going to this year, but we did what it took to win the game against a team—Columbia is going to win a bunch of games this year,” he said.
One bright spot came in the return game from Jones, who provided the Tigers with prime starting field position all night.
He finished with 153 all-purpose yards.
While the first game of the season can carry sloppy play and uncharacteristic penalties, Osteen said for the most part he was pleased with how the Tigers played.
“We’ve got to limit some explosive plays. We missed some tackles, but that happens in a first game. All three phases can get better, but with that being said, all three phases worked together to get the win in the end,” he said.
The biggest concern for the Tigers’ defense was McCoy, who finished with three touchdowns and 232 yards on the ground.
“He was my biggest worry tonight. They have a bunch of good players, but he is so good. Hats off to coach sharp. I think they have a shot to win their region,” Osteen said.
The Tigers get just short week before facing their final non-region opponent on the schedule.
On Thursday night, Marshall County will travel to Shelbyville to take on the Golden Eagles, with a 7 p.m. kickoff.

Columbia 13 0 7 0 — 20
Marshall Co. 14 13 0 14 — 41

First Quarter
C — Kayden McCoy 5 run, (56 kick good), 9:25.
C — McCoy 64 run (kick failed), 4:17.
M — Demari Braden 2 run, (Jayden Randolph 2pt. run), 4:17.
M — Silas Teat 1 run, (kick failed), 1:32.
Second Quarter
M — John Morgan Thomas 20 pass from Teat, (kick failed), 11:13.
M — Aja Jones 83 punt return, (Wyatt Joyce kick), 4:59.
Third Quarter
C — McCoy 4 run, (No. 56 kick) 6:12.
Fourth Quarter
M — Teat 3 run, (Joyce kick), 7:40.
M — Braden 2 run, (Joyce kick), 3:29.