Tigers finish a perfect 10-0 regular season

By John M. Ayers
The Trenton Tigers celebrated following the 46-6 chopping of the Chiefland Indians to remain perfect in the 2011 regular season. It’s been 34 years since the Trenton Tigers have recorded a perfect 10-0 record.
The 1977 Tigers under Coaches Leonard Allen and Jim Surrency recorded a perfect season with a win over Bronson. The Tigers went on to play FAMU in a regional playoff in Tallahassee losing 27-0. The 1977 Tigers finished a great year with a 11-1 record. A few of the starters on that team were: guard Wesley Deen, tackle Valdeen Fletcher, linebacker Rex Shearin, linebacker Wayne Stalvey, running back Steve Henley, defensive end Todd Troyer, tight ends Roger Grover and Jerome Perry, defensive tackle Clayton Harris, running back Lester McGee, cornerback George Stapleton and quarterback John Rutledge. Underclassmen on this team were Mike Burnett, Herman Sanchez, Jr. and Mark Wilson just to name a few.

The Trenton Tigers celebrated their 10-0 perfect season Friday night in front of the scoreboard that displayed the 46-6 victory over the Chiefland Indians in The Jungle. Photo by Jason Myers #31.

The Chiefland Indians had little resistance to the Tigers Friday night as a freezing evening put the Tigers’ offense in a running mood as the Indians stood in the path of a perfect season. Trenton notched over 500 yards of offense as sophomore quarterback Stephen Smith rushed for four scores and connected with Brandon Stone on a 15-yard pass to lead the Tigers in stride. In the opening minutes of the second period, Cedric Stokes continued to run for scores as he notched his 20th touchdown of the 2011 season. He came right back as he dashed through the Indians’ defense for a 2-point conversion and 21-0 lead. With seconds remaining in the first half, Smith threw a strike to Stone, and the senior running back took the Tigers down inside the Indians’ 25 for a first down. Stokes followed the Tigers’ lead on back to back plays to put the Tigers on a first and goal from the 1 yard line. The quarterback went in for the score, and Stokes added the kick as the Tigers held a 28-0 lead at intermission.
Trenton High School and hundreds of fans honored the Veterans attending the senior night game as they walked down onto the field during the ceremony. These Veterans were honored during a halftime ceremony by the playing of Amazing Grace on a Scottish bagpipe by J. D. Perryman and a message of thanks for their service was announced as the fifteen Veterans stood on the host side facing the Tiger fans. The Chiefland High School band under the direction of Sarah Heaton presented a halftime performance for the fans attending the game. The Trenton High School marching band also presented a halftime performance with the playing of their instruments and marching before a supporting crowds of fans.
In the third period the Tigers’ defense rose to the challenge as the Indians took the opening kickoff and tried to establish an offensive drive. The Indians got just inside the Tigers’ territory as they faced a fourth and 13 from their 48-yard line. The Indians appeared to punt on forth down, but a fake punt sent the punter up the Indians’ sideline striving for the first down marker. The Tigers’ defense were again on the mark as they stopped the poorly executed fake for a 1-yard gain.
The Tigers’ offense setup on the Indians’ 49 and was set to go the distance for another score. Brandon Stone and Cedric Stokes made quick work of this drive as they moved behind a front line that was knocking the Indians off the football. With 6:02 remaining in the third period, the tempers on the field were beginning to flare as Stone caught the pass and eased into the end zone as the Tigers expanded their lead to 34-0. As the third period was winding down, the Tigers tacked on another score when Smith dashed along the Tigers’ sideline for a 40-0 lead. The Tigers had begun to substitute on both sides of the football in the final period. Chiefland’s Melvin Adams put the Indians on the scoreboard on a 5-yard run. As the Tigers were moving ever so close to that perfect season, the offense continued to move the ball on the Indians. Trenton’s Kenny Deen got the handoff with 2:37 left in the game when he dashed into the end zone for the touchdown. The Tigers just had to hold onto their 46-6 lead for the perfect season.
The Tigers had completed just one of their goals for the 2011 season. Coach Andrew Thomas and staff took the time as the team celebrated the win and the perfect regular season in the center of the field. He challenged the Tigers to enjoy the moment and, said let’s move on to our next goal.
The Tigers will now begin the State Playoffs on Friday night as Lafayette County, the runner-up in District 5 1A, will travel to Trenton for the challenge. The Tigers and Hornets met in the first game of the regular season September 2 in Mayo. The Tigers escaped with the win within the last minute of the game. This will be a good game as Trenton strive to win a state football crown. The game will kickoff at 7:30 p.m. in Trenton.