The Cornersville Bulldogs got a chance to work out some kinks before the start of the 2013 football season when they battled the Cannon County Lions to a 7-7 tie on Friday night in the Marshall County Chamber of Commerce Pigskin Preview at Preston Hopkins Field.

With the contest lasting just one half, the Bulldogs failed to cash in on a couple of scoring chances in the first quarter before Cannon County took a 7-0 lead late in the second period on a 21-yard touchdown run by quarterback A.J. Daniel.

Tying run

Cornersville, though, managed to salvage a 7-7 tie when tailback Chance Dyer scored on a three-yard TD run with :35 left.

CHS outgained Cannon County 197-124, but were hamstrung by two turnovers.

"We had too many turnovers. At times we moved the ball well, but at times we had too many mistakes," said Cornersville coach John Denton. "I thought our effort was pretty good. If we don't turn the ball over in our own territory in the second quarter, we probably win."

The Bulldogs enjoyed consistent success on the ground and tallied 121 yards rushing on 23 carries. Dyer led Cornersville with 69 yards on 12 carries, while Stone Riner toted the ball three times for 38 yards. Devante Spencer also added 20 yards on six carries for the Bulldogs.

Bulldog stats

Cornersville quarterback Jamie Crowell completed 5-of-8 passes for 76 yards to go along with one interception. Justin Black and Riner both hauled in two passes for 44 and 21 yards respectively, while Zack Welch had one catch for 11 yards.

The Bulldog defense did a solid job against the run and limited Cannon County to 63 yards rushing on 20 carries.

A.J. Daniel paced the Lions with 22 yards on three carries and completed 2-of-5 passes for 61 yards. Wilder Mankin and B.J. Daniel each rushed for 15 yards as well on six and five carries respectively with Mankin also hauling in a 36-yard pass.

Dyer led Cornersville's defense with 10 tackles from his middle linebacker position, while Justin Black and Devante Spencer registered seven and four tackles respectively. Blake Tomlin and Jody Sullivan notched three tackles apiece for CHS as well.

Chance quashed

The Bulldogs had a chance to take the lead on their first possession of the game when they drove from their own 20 to the Cannon County 18 in six plays with the help of a pair of six yard runs by Dyer, receptions of 11 and 10 yards by Riner, and a 27-yard reception by Black.

Cornersville would come away empty handed, as B.J. Daniel picked off Crowell on the next snap and returned the interception 23 yards to the Lion 38.

Cannon County then advanced to the Bulldog 39 on six straight runs, but CHS limited the Lions to six yards on their next three plays before placekicker Simon Morey missed a 51-yard field goal attempt.

Starting their second drive at their own 20, the Bulldogs quickly advanced to the Cannon County 46 on the strength of a six-yard run by Dyer, an 11-yard reception by Welch, and a Black 17-yard reception. Dyer then picked up 26 yards on three straight runs to give CHS a 2nd and 1 situation at the Lion 20, but Cornersville ended up losing the ball on downs after Crowell sandwiched a couple of incompletions around a six-yard sack.

Cannon County then marched to the Bulldog 15 thanks to a 36-yard catch by Mankin and a Bo Bryson 25-yard reception, but the Lions lost two yards on their next three plays to go along with a five-yard delay of game penalty before Morey missed a 39-yard field goal attempt.

Lions pull ahead

Cornersville's defense would have to go right back out onto the field, as Cannon County recovered a Bulldog fumble on the next snap at the CHS 21. A.J. Daniel then raced around the left end for a 21-yard touchdown two plays later while Morey tacked on the extra point to give the Lions a 7-0 lead with 4:07 left in the contest.

The Bulldogs mounted an immediate response and marched from their own 20 to the Cannon County 35 in six plays, highlighted by runs of 12, 16, and 10 yards by Riner. Following a 13-yard scamper by Spencer, Dyer picked up six yards on a 4th and 6 run to give Cornersville a fresh set of downs at the Lion 12. Dyer then ploughed into the end zone from three yards out three plays later while Ivan Gutierrez converted the extra point to tie the score at 7-7.

On their final possession, Cannon County picked up just four yards on three plays before time expired.