By Ron Barry
Managing Editor
Dyersburg – Leanthony Cathey has been waiting 11 months to carry a football again.
And when given a chance to do so on the very first play of Crockett County’s Dyersburg Jamboree game with Brighton last Friday night, he quickly signaled his return to Cavalier football by dashing 70 yards straight up the middle for an untouched touchdown.
That play was the impetus to Crockett’s 24-13 drubbing of Brighton and sends Coach Kevin Ward’s Cavs into this week’s regular season opener with Dyer County on an extremely positive note. The teams face off Friday night in Cavalier Stadium at 7:00 to officially kick off the 2022 football campaign.
No one will be more excited than Cathey, who was understandably all smiles after his Jamboree performance. Cathey suffered tears of both the ACL and MCL ligaments in his right knee early last season, and has had to simply watch from the sidelines as his friends competed in the athletic events in which he would usually play a part.
“Getting back on that field was one of the biggest moments of my life,” Cathey said after the contest. And what went through his mind when he took that handoff from quarterback Haydn Moten and immediately saw the hole created by his offensive linemen?
“I was taking it to the crib!” he laughed.
Cathey broke a couple of other sizeable runs during the abbreviated game, and Moten also scored on a lengthy option play covering more than 50 yards. Brylei Newcomb tallied on a short rush late in the game after Alex Nolen had given the Cavs a 17-6 halftime advantage with a field goal on the first period’s final play.
“I thought our offense executed pretty well,” Ward said after the game. “It was great to have Lee back in there with us. He’s worked really hard, and he’s still not really 100% in football shape yet, but he gives us a boost.”
Ward was cautious not to read too much into the victory in a Jamboree, however, as he told his team at the game’s conclusion.
“This didn’t really mean anything,” he said, “and I would have told you guys that even if we had lost. But now the score is 0-0. Everything starts all over from scratch Friday night with Dyer County. It’s been a while since we’ve beaten them.”
The team itself was positively pumped and showed a contagious enthusiasm as they exited the Dyersburg field. They knew that Dyer County had lost in the Jamboree’s opening game to local power USJ 21-7, but they also knew the Choctaws handled the Cavs by a 39-13 count a year ago when running backs Bralyn Taylor and Ja’bari Livingston both ran wild. And that duo is still on the Dyer roster for Friday night.
“We still have some things to shore up on defense,” Ward said. “We got out of position a couple of times, and our pass defense was still spotty. But we saw some good things offensively, and some good things to build upon.”
Most notably impressive for the Cavs was the performance of the offensive line, which has been bolstered by the return of senior tackle Braden McCanless, who missed all of last season with an injury. Center Joseph Gould, guards Landyn Gibson and Preston Vernon, and tackle Jordan Rainey combined with McCanless to give the backs running room all night long against Brighton. Crockett also received some powerful blocking from Carson Pruitt, who sometimes lined up in the backfield in front of Cathey or Newcomb as a fullback.
They were successful enough as a unit that Moten didn’t need to pass, although he did complete one throw to wide receiver Preston Lambert. And always looming as an offensive threat is the accurate leg of Nolen, who was perfect on all three extra points and his lone field goal attempt.
Friday night’s battle with Dyer County is the first of two home games that will begin the season for Crockett. Next week, the Cavs host Ripley in a Thursday night 7:00 game at Cavalier Stadium.
This week’s opener will also be the first official game played under the new LED lighting system at the Alamo field.
