Elliot Cook made a smashing debut as the new head football coach of Lewisburg Middle School, as his LMS Tigers hammered Whitthorne Middle School 35-0 on Thursday night at Preston Hopkins Field.

After crushing Whitthorne 70-20 last season en route to attaining a perfect 9-0 record, the Tigers once again ran roughshod over WMS and built a 35-0 lead through the first two quarters of play before calling off the dogs in the second half and cruising to their 14th straight victory.

'It feels good'

"It feels good. I was going to be satisfied with a win, but we shut them out so that makes it even better," said Cook. "I'm nervous before every game whether I'm the assistant or the head coach. If you're not nervous, you don't care."

Led by fleet footed running backs Caleb Fields and Kamron Liggett-Hightower, Lewisburg piled up 270 yards of total offense overall. The Tigers did almost all of the damage on the ground and churned out 262 yards rushing while averaging a gaudy 10.9 yards per carry.

Fields provided the Tigers with a big play almost every time he touched the ball and rushed for 163 yards and three TDs on just six carries to go along with a 67-yard fumble return for a touchdown.

"Caleb is a great football player, but he's a better kid. He's a leader on the field and in the school," said Cook. "I expect that kind of performance from him because I see it every day at practice."

Liggett-Hightower also tallied 86 yards on nine carries, while Wesley Walker toted the ball three times for 28 yards. Quarterback K.J. Johnson added a two-yard touchdown run as well and completed his lone pass attempt of the game for eight yards with Liggett hauling in the throw.

Dominant defense

The Lewisburg defense turned in a dominant performance and limited Whitthorne to a mere 45 yards of total offense with the aid of four sacks.

Hunter Cummings led LMS' defense with seven tackles and 1/2 a sack, while Noah Adams (1 1/2 sacks), Joseph Freeland (1 sack), Jacob Autry (1 sack), and Wesley Walker each recorded four tackles. Fields, Dave Roberts, Billy Cheek, Jamaria Perkins, and Camryn Ruiz also notched three tackles apiece for the Tigers.

Tre Davidson paced Whitthorne's offense with 26 yards rushing on three carries, while Andrew Owens toted the ball three times for 23 yards.

Lewisburg set the tempo on their opening drive of the game, as they marched 83 yards to the end zone on 10 plays to take an 8-0 lead.

Powerful drive

Liggett-Hightower sandwiched runs of four and 16 yards around a 21-yard jaunt by Fields to help the Tigers advance to the WMS 42. Fields had a 42-yard touchdown scamper erased by a holding penalty, but Walker picked up 10 yards on the next play before Liggett-Hightower ripped off consecutive runs of 13 and eight yards to move the ball down to the Whitthorne 21. After Fields broke loose for a 13-yard gain, Johnson scored on a two-yard touchdown plunge on 3rd and goal while Fields ran in the two-point conversion.

Whitthorne went three and out on their opening possession before LMS put together a three-play, 56 yard scoring drive, capped by a 28-yard TD run by Fields, to open up a 14-0 advantage with 1:10 left in the first quarter.

Following a WMS punt, the Tigers found pay dirt again when Fields caught a lateral from Johnson and raced 62 yards for a touchdown. Liggett-Hightower then ran in the two-point conversion to give Lewisburg a 22-0 cushion early in the second quarter.

Rout continues

Lewisburg forced another Whitthorne punt before Fields stretched LMS' lead to 28-0 by scoring a 35-yard touchdown run after catching a lateral from Johnson and completely reversing field to cap a seven-play, 66-yard drive.

Fields then punctuated his amazing first half by scooping up a fumble by WMS running back Timothy Bailey and weaving his way for a 67-yard touchdown while Caleb Estes tacked on the extra point to stake the Tigers to a 35-0 lead late in the first half.

In the second half, Whitthorne was once again forced to punt on their opening drive of the stanza before the Lewisburg reserves stopped WMS on downs twice in the fourth quarter to keep the shutout intact.