Newton football coach Zach Grady said great players build their legacy in the playoffs.
Newton’s Tyreke Snow is certainly building a legacy for the Tigers.
Snow had 422 yards of total offense and an interception on defense to lead the Tigers to a 36-30 win over Mize in the first round of the Class 2A playoffs.
Newton improves to 8-3 on the season and will host Friday night to take on the Pisgah Dragons.
Newton coach Zach Grady said his defense played well as they shut out the Bulldogs in the second half.
“I thought the defense played well,” Grady said. “After we made our adjustments at halftime, I thought they dominated and played their best game of the year. I give Mize credit, they played really hard and got after us. They played hard for four quarters and played a clean, hard-hitting game. It was a dog fight, that’s for sure.”
Mize got the ball to start the game and the two teams swapped turnovers.
On their second drive, the Tigers then went 25 yards in five plays as Snow hit Isaiah Johnson on a 14-yard touchdown pass with 7:32 left in the first quarter. Snow ran in the two-point conversion and Newton led 8-0 early in the first quarter.
After a Mize punt, Newton went 63 yards in six plays as Snow hit Rayvion Nettles on a 14-yard touchdown pass with 2:49 left in the first quarter. Snow hit Kaleb Trailer on the two-point conversion and Newton led 16-0 late in the first quarter.
Mize got back in the game with a pair of big plays. The first was a 52-yard run that set up a 2-yard run with 37 seconds left in the first quarter. The try for two was good and Newton led 16-8.
After a Newton punt, Mize hit another big play in the running game, this time with a 60-yard run with 9:34 left in the second quarter. The try for two was good and Mize tied the game at 16-16.
“We got off to a good start and they responded,” Grady said. “They did a good job of executing and fought their way backs. We made some adjustments at halftime and were able to shut them down in the second half. They hit us for two big plays but that was it. I thought our kids played hard and stepped up.”
In the second half, it was the Tryeke Snow show. After holding Mize on their first drive, Newton went 53 yards in seven plays as Snow scored on a 2-yard run with 7:14 left in the third quarter. The try for two failed and Newton led 22-16, a score that held until the fourth quarter.
The Tigers made it a two-score game early in the fourth when the Tigers went 97 yards in five plays. Snow capped off the drive when he hit Nettles on a 77-yard touchdown pass with 9:31 left in the game. Snow hit Johnson on the two-point conversion and Newton led 30-16.
Mize responded with a 10-play, 60-yard drive and scored on a 2-yard run with 5:28 left to play. The try for two failed and Newton led 30-22.
The Tigers answered with another big play as Snow hit Nettles on a 44-yard touchdown pass with 5:19 left to play. The try for two failed and Newton led 36-22.
Mize added a late score for the final margin.
Snow finished the night with 322 yards passing on 16-of-27 passing and four TDs. He also had 110 yards rushing on 18 carries. On defense, Snow led the Newton defense with 11 tackles and an interception.
“I thought Tyreke had a huge game,” Grady said. “He had over 300 yards passing and 100 yards rushing. When you step up and make plays like that, it’s the kind of thing that builds your legacy. Your legacy is built in the playoffs and he really added to that on Friday night.”
Nettles had four catches for 145 yards and three TDs while Trexler had four catches for 50 yards. Johnson had three catches for 41 yards.
Keyshawn Lofton also had 11 tackles while Emmanual Robinson had 10 tackles. D’Anthony Darby had eight tackles Jamarveous Russell, Jaleel Bolton and Dontavis Lanier each had five tackles apiece.
