For the first time since 2017, the Tallassee football team is going to the playoffs.
Tallassee beat Talladega, 34-0, on Friday night to punch its playoff ticket. The Tigers are now 4-2 with a 3-1 record in Class 5A, Region 4 play. With wins over Beauregard, Elmore County and Talladega, the Tigers are guaranteed at least the No. 4 seed in the region.
On the offensive side of the ball, Jalyn Daniels and Tyler Ellis starred for The Tigers.
Daniels had 15 carries for 109 yards and two touchdowns, while Ellis finished 7 for 10 passing for 93 yards and one touchdown. Ellis added two touchdowns on the ground.
To start the game, Daniels punched in his first touchdown of the game on a 26-yard run with 3:55 left in the first quarter to go up, 7-0. Three minutes later, Ellis scored on a 5-yard scamper to put the Tigers up, 14-0 before the first quarter ended.
As the second quarter came to an end, Ellis found the end zone on the ground again. He scored on a 10-yard run, but the PAT was missed and Tallassee took a 20-0 lead into halftime.
Tallassee got the ball to start the second half, and Ellis scored his third touchdown of the game through the air. He found junior Dontae Leonard open, and Leonard ran 55 yards for the touchdown.
Daniels finished off the scoring with his second touchdown of the game, a 7-yarder, to put Tallassee up 34-0 in the fourth quarter.
The Tallassee defense shined once again this week and earned its first shutout since the 2018 season. Tallassee’s defense is allowing only 13.8 points per game this year and has allowed only 17 combined points in its last three games.
The Tigers hit the road for the third consecutive week next Friday with a trip to Holtville. Both teams are 3-1 in region play. Holtille won last season’s matchup against Tallassee, 1-0, after the Tigers were forced to forfeit due to COVID.
