Tucker's David Davis (27) and his Tiger teammates won the Region 4-6A title with a 31-0 win over rival Stephenson last Friday night. (File photo by Mark Brock)

Tucker’s David Davis (27) and his Tiger teammates won the Region 4-6A title with a 31-0 win over rival Stephenson last Friday night. (File photo by Mark Brock)

The third Battle of the Big Cats was not near as close as the previous two meetings as the Tucker Tigers posted a 31-0 victory over the Stephenson Jaguars to clinch the Region 4-6A title on Friday night at Hallford Stadium.

The only two previous meetings were decided by a total of 10 points as the two perennial DeKalb playoff teams gave fans a pair of thrilling games with each winning once.
On Friday night, however, it was all Tucker from the moment defensive lineman Aaron Sterling recovered a Jaguar fumble early in the first quarter. Chris Broadwater cashed it in quickly with his touchdown run and Adam Lippy hit the point after kick for a 7-0 lead for the Tigers.
Lippy tacked on a 32-yard field goal later in the period for a 10-0 Tucker advantage.
Just before the end of the first half Tiger wide receiver Josh Vann hauled in a 24-yard pass from quarterback Xavier Shephard and Lippy’s PAT sent Tucker to the locker room up 17-0.
Samuel Bryant and Broadwater would both score second half touchdowns for the final of 31-0.
Vann finished with 5 receptions for 105 yards and the touchdown while Taurean Taylor went over 1,000 yards rushing on the season with 15 carries for 129 yards.
The Tigers (9-1) earned a home date with Bradwell Institute (3-5-1), the No. 4 seed from Region 2 in the first round of the Class 6A state playoffs. Tucker hosts the game at Adams Stadium with kickoff set of 7:30 pm.
The Stephenson Jaguars (6-4) are the No. 3 seed from Region 4-6A and travel to take on Region 2 No. 2 seed Effingham County (7-3) at 7:30 pm on Friday.
Cedar Grove 47, Redan 7
Jelani Woods threw four touchdowns and Israel Spivey contributed three to lead the No. 4 ranked Cedar Grove Saints to a 47-7 victory over the Redan Raiders to end the regular season.
Woods connected twice with Spivey and two more times with Dennis Bell. Spivey would add a 65-yard punt return while the Saints got a rushing touchdown from both Demetrius Tharpe and Devyn Smith.
The Saints (8-2) move into the Class 3A state playoffs as the No. 2 seed from Region 5-3A and host Union County (8-2) at Godfrey Stadium on Saturday with kickoff set for 5:00 pm. The Raiders finish the season 3-7.
Quarterback Robert Hatchett III threw a 55-yard hail Mary to Marquez Randle to propel the Lithonia Bulldogs to a 20-18 upset of the Arabia Mountain Rams. (File photo by Mark Brock)

Quarterback Robert Hatchett III threw a 55-yard hail Mary to Marquez Randle to propel the Lithonia Bulldogs to a 20-18 upset of the Arabia Mountain Rams. (File photo by Mark Brock)

Lithonia 20, Arabia Mountain 18
Robert Hatchett III’s 55-yard pass to Marquez Randle as time ran out propelled the Lithonia Bulldogs (5-5) to a 20-18 upset of No. 8 ranked Arabia Mountain (8-2) in a Region 5-5A showdown on Saturday night at Hallford Stadium.

Samad Noble’s touchdown run completed an Arabia rally from a 14-3 deficit with a touchdown with 58 seconds to play into an 18-14 lead.
The Bulldogs completed a pair of passes out to their 45, but were facing a second down with 8 seconds to play when Hatchett dropped back and scrambled free to throw the game-winning pass as time ran out.
The win for Lithonia forced a three-way tie for the Region 5-5A title with Arabia Mountain and Southwest DeKalb, a 43-14 winner over Columbia on Friday. The Rams won the tiebreaker for the No. 1 seed with Southwest getting the No. 2 and Lithonia the No. 3.
First time playoff team Arabia Mountain hosts Villa Rica (5-5) on Friday at 7:30 pm in Hallford Stadium as the Class 5A state playoffs kickoff. Southwest DeKalb (5-5) plays host to Kell (8-2) at Godfrey Stadium on Saturday with kickoff time set for 7:30 pm. Lithonia (5-5) travels to Carrollton (9-1) for a 7:30 pm Class 5A state playoff game.
In another Region 5-5A playoff deciding game the Miller Grove Wolverines (4-6) defeated the Chamblee Bulldogs 33-0 to earn their first ever state playoff berth. The No. 4 seeded Wolverines travel on Friday to face the Rome Wolves (8-2) at 7:30 pm.
DCSD WEEK 12 FOOTBALL SCHEDULE
Thursday, Nov. 3
GODFREY STADIUM
Lovett (7-3, 5-2) 35, McNair (3-7, 1-6) 13
Friday, Nov. 4
ADAMS STADIUM
Druid Hills (4-6, 2-4) 16, Salem (5-5, 2-4) 9
AVONDALE STADIUM
Miller Grove (4-6, 2-3) 33, Chamblee (2-8, 1-4) 0
GODFREY STADIUM
Pace (6-4, 4-3) 27, Towers (4-6, 3-4) 6
SW DeKalb (6-4, 4-1) 43, Columbia (2-8, 0-5) 14
HALLFORD STADIUM
Tucker (9-1, 7-0) 31, Stephenson (6-4, 5-2) 0
NORTH DEKALB STADIUM
Westminster (8-2, 7-0) 43, Stone Mountain (1-9, 0-7) 12, 7:30 pm
AWAY GAMES
Douglass (7-3) 56, Clarkston (1-9) 14
Brookwood (7-3, 5-1) 56, Lakeside (5-5, 2-4) 20
Johns Creek (8-2, 7-1) 35, Dunwoody (2-8, 1-7) 7
Mt. Zion-Jonesboro (4-6, 3-4) 9, M.L. King Jr. (2-8, 0-7) 6
Saturday, Nov. 5
GODFREY STADIUM
Cedar Grove (8-2, 6-1) 47, Redan (3-7, 2-5) 7
HALLFORD STADIUM
Lithonia (5-5, 4-1) 20, Arabia Mountain (8-2, 4-1) 18
DCSD FOOTBALL STATE PLAYOFF SCHEDULE
FRIDAY, NOV. 11
HOME GAMES
CLASS 6A
ADAMS STADIUM
Bradwell Institute (3-5-1) vs. Tucker (9-1), 7:30 pm
CLASS 5A
HALLFORD STADIUM
Villa Rica (5-5) vs. Arabia Mountain (8-2), 7:30 pm
GODREY STADIUM
Kell (8-2) vs. SW DeKalb (5-5), 7:30 pm
AWAY GAMES
CLASS 6A
Stephenson (6-4) at Effingham Co. (7-3), 7:30 pm
CLASS 5A
Lithonia (5-5) at Carrollton (9-1), 7:30 pm
Miller Grove (4-6) at Rome (8-2), 7:30 pm
SATURDAY, NOV. 12
CLASS 3A
GODFREY STADIUM
Union Co. (8-2) at Cedar Grove (8-2), 5:00 pm