Due to expected inclement weather from Hurricane Hanna, the Tigers' football game against Thomson has been rescheduled for tonight, September 4, beginning at 7 p.m. at Tiger Stadium.

TEVERRIUS JONES SCRAMBLES TO GET AWAY FROM LEOPARD DEFENDERS The sophomore quarterback rushed for 75 yards and passed for 178 yards against Banks County. Washington-Wilkes Tiger Head Coach Russell Morgan is feeling a lot better today than he was this time last year. With a respectable performance in the preseason Jamboree against Greene County in the books, the Tigers officially opened the 2008 season with a convincing win over AA Banks County.

The Tigers amassed a whopping 481 yards against the Leopards and held the lead throughout the game. Teverrius Jones led the team with effective passing and running in the first drive and capped it with a threeyard score halfway through the first quarter.

"Offensively, we kept them off balance and we have enough weapons to do that," Morgan said.

Eric "Can You Believe He's Just a Sophomore" Scott did not disappoint Tiger fans as he delivered were good enough to handle the Leopards.

DEON JACKSON RETURNED A KICKOFF FOR A TOUCHDOWN And he caught a 62-yard pass for a touchdown as well. "Our passing game looked good and we completed seven out of 11 passes," Morgan reported, saying that he was generally pleased with his team's play in the season opener.

"Offensively, as a whole, we did pretty good although we did have a few fumbles," he continued. "A lot of that had to do with the new offense we're running and because we are doing some different things. We hope to get that down before next Friday."

On the other side of the ball, W-W held Banks to two touchdowns, both the result of "big plays." Otherwise, the defense was quite effective when it needed to be although Banks did have some success with its passing game.

"At times, we maybe should have been a step closer on defense but, as a whole, I thought we did very well throughout the game," Morgan said.

But now it's time to focus on the old-time rivalry that's coming up this Friday. This is no time to break Rule No. 1 (Don't get cocky.)

"Our players are feeling good about themselves but at the same time we are being cautious in our attitudes about the Thomson game," Morgan said. "The Banks County game was pretty good for us but we still have a long way to go to be where we need to be.

"It's hard to say about Thomson," Morgan continued, "the only opportunity we've had to see them this year was their Jamboree with Lincoln County."

AAA Thomson, despite having something of a down year, is still impressive and has a good bit of size. One player to watch, according to Morgan, is their top linebacker, Lonnie Harris (No. 5), who is "very physical and can run."

As is usually the case for a team from a high school of 1,200+ students, very few of the Bulldogs will be playing both ways. Conversely, most of the Tigers will be playing both offense and defense.

"I hope we can build up a lead going down the stretch because most of their guys will be playing half a game while most of ours will be playing a whole game," Morgan said.

As for his particular strategy going in, all Morgan would give up was, "We're just going to try to score more points than they do.

"Thomson doesn't throw the ball much so if we can slow them down at the line, I think we'll be in good shape," he added.

The Thomson game has always been a kind of barometer for the Tigers. Being always out-of-region and at least one class higher, it is a good way to evaluate where Washington-Wilkes might stack up for the current year. "We always use this game as a measuring stick," Morgan said, "if we can play with Thomson, we can play with anybody in Class A."

With the looming chance of inclement weather, Morgan announced that Friday's game with Thomson has been rescheduled for tonight, Thursday, September 4, beginning at 7 p.m. at Tiger Stadium.