The Russellville High School varsity football team (10-1) got a career night from senior running back Tarus Davis on Friday as the Golden Tigers picked up a 42-33 playoff victory over Pell City High School (4-6) in a back-and-forth affair.
Davis put in a memorable performance, rushing for 290 yards on 29 carries and scoring six touchdowns. Both totals marked career highs for the senior, who proved to be too much for the Panthers to handle throughout the contest.
The Golden Tigers opened the scoring on a one-yard touchdown run by Davis, giving Russellville an early 7-0 advantage. Neither team managed another score in the opening quarter, which featured a punt by the Panthers and a turnover on downs by RHS.
Early in the second quarter, Pell City evened the score with a one-yard touchdown run. The two teams then traded turnovers with the Panthers recovering a Russellville fumble before sophomore defensive back Drake Ergle picked off a pass to regain possession for the Golden Tigers.
Russellville capitalized on the opportunity created by Ergle’s INT as a long run by junior Darren Jones helped set up Davis for his second touchdown of the night. This time, Davis found the end zone from two yards out with 4:35 remaining in the first half to put the Golden Tigers ahead 14-7.
However, Pell City answered with a touchdown pass with 2:16 left before halftime to tie the game 14-14. And then another Russellville turnover gave the Panthers an opportunity to take the lead, which they did, hitting a 27-yard field goal before the break to go up 17-14.
To start the second half, Russellville wasted no time reclaiming the advantage.
The Panthers received the ball to start the third quarter, but up by three points, Pell City, for reasons unknown, attempted a fake punt from its own 19-yard line. The decision shocked most but didn’t fool the Golden Tiger defense, which promptly brought down the ball carrier. Pell City’s gamble threw open the door for Russellville and Davis took advantage, scoring his third rushing touchdown of the evening on a 19-yard run to put the Golden Tigers back in front, 21-17.
Pell City responded with a six-yard touchdown pass to regain the lead at 24-21, but Davis had another answer: With 4:27 remaining in the third quarter, the senior running back crossed the goal line for the fourth time on an eight-yard run, giving Russellville a 28-24 advantage.
On Pell City’s ensuing drive, the Panthers were able to move the ball down the field, but threw an interception to Jones in the endzone. Jones picked off the pass and, in an attempt to return it, made a mental mistake. The junior playmaker established himself just outside the goal line, but then decided to step back into his own endzone and go down, hoping for a touchback but instead resulting in a safety. That cost the Golden Tigers two points and cut their advantage to two points, 28-26.
The Panthers got the ball back after the safety, but the Golden Tiger defense came up with an important stand, forcing Pell City to punt and giving Russellville an opportunity to extend its advantage.
Davis didn’t waste the opportunity. With just 59 seconds remaining in the third quarter, he broke loose for an 88-yard touchdown run, his fifth of the night, to give Russellville its biggest lead of the contest at 35-26. The run was Davis’ second-longest of his career.
Pell City refused to go away quietly, though, cutting the deficit to 35-33 on a 26-yard touchdown with 10:48 remaining in the fourth quarter.
But a couple of key defensive stops by the Golden Tigers helped shift momentum back to Russellville and gave the offense an opportunity to put the game away.
Once again, Davis delivered.
The senior capped his career night with a 10-yard touchdown run, his sixth of the game, pushing Russellville's lead to 42-33 and putting the finishing touches on the Golden Tigers' victory.
“It was one of those wild, crazy games,” Russellville head coach Darrell Higgins said on a local radio program following the game.
“We had a lot of adversity tonight, and we just had to keep overcoming it. (The players) never checked up and played some really good football.
“(Pell City) has a really good team, and we’re just excited to come out with a win,” he added.
Davis finished the night with 290 rushing yards and six touchdowns on 29 carries, setting new career highs in both categories while powering Russellville to an impressive nine-point win.
“He’s one of the best guys I’ve ever coached,” Higgins said of Davis.
The victory in the Russellville football program’s 40th playoff appearance gives the Golden Tigers a 32-8 record in first round games. It also sets RHS up with a huge second round showdown on the road against the No. 2-ranked team in Class 5A, Parker (10-1). The Golden Tigers and the Thundering Herd are set to kickoff at Major Brown Memorial Stadium at 7 p.m. on Friday, November 13.