PUBLISHED NOVEMBER 15
By Martin Edwards Staff Writer
The Tioga Bulldogs completed their undefeated district winning streak with a dominant 62-0 win over the Nocona Indians on Nov. 8.
The Bulldogs bullied their way to over 400 yards of total offense, nine touchdowns and collected their first shutout to punctuate their district championship season.
“It was a good way to end the regular season,” said Zach Birdwell, Tioga athletic director and head football coach. “Being able to cap off a 6-0 district season was big for us.”
It was all Tioga from the open- ing whistle, with quarterback Rocky Urich connecting with receiver Austin Norwood for a 51-yard bomb on the first play from scrimmage.
Senior athlete Johnny Dorpinghaus followed up the touchdown by carrying the ball into the endzone for a successful 2-point conversion, giving the Bulldogs an 8-0 lead in the opening period.
The two teams traded turnovers on the next few drives before Tioga found paydirt again with a goal-line run by Dorpinghaus, pushing their lead to 16-0.
Tioga’s defense stymied Nocona’s offense all night, while the Bulldog’s offense would continue to pour it on, adding seven more touchdowns to take the 62-0 victory.
“They’ve grown every single week,” Birdwell said. '… They’re clicking at the right time, [and] they’re comfortable in the scheme. The biggest thing is we’re starting to play violently, and when we have 11 guys flying to the ball, looking to be violent, good things are going to happen.”
Senior middle linebacker Landon Bingham cited the team’s preparation for the defense’s strong performance.
“We were fired up all week,” he said. 'We had great practices, and we watched film of their previous games. We saw that their QB liked to scramble a lot, so we knew to watch out for that, and it paid off.”
Bingham and defensive back Jake David set the tone on defense, combing for 16 total tackles, while linebacker Kyson Kirkland and defensive back Slade Babbitt both nabbed an interception.
Urich finished the night 28 of 39 for 422 yards passing and seven touchdowns, with leading receivers Norwood and Dorpinghaus finding 202 yards and four total touchdowns.
Dorpinghaus lived up to his nickname “Johnny onthe- spot” yet again, adding a third touchdown after forcing and recovering a fumble and returning it 34 yards to the house.
Birdwell remarked that the win was extra special as a sendoff to one of the most accomplished senior classes in program history.
“It’s a special group, and they bought in from day one,” he said. “They knew what they wanted to accomplish this year and the first thing they wanted to do was leave as district champs, … but that was just the first box on the list, and we still have more to check off for them.”
Senior offensive tackle J.D. Quintin, who missed last season because of health issues, echoed his coach’s sentiments for his senior class.
“It’s great to be back and play with these guys,” he said. “We’ve all been together since elementary school, and to have such a great season and go undefeated in district has been truly [amazing].”
