White County Wins First-Ever Region Championship In 35-15 Victory Over Upperman

By Michael Lindsay

The history books in Sparta added a new chapter on Friday as the White County Warriors (9-0, 4-0) defeated Upperman (6-3, 3-1) 35-15 to secure the first region championship in program history.

“I’m just so happy for these kids,” said White County head coach David Foster. “We were 1-0 tonight and that’s what we talked about.”

White County senior WR Bryson Hogg had four touchdowns to lead the Warriors including two punt returns for scores.

“Bryson made some incredible plays, and that’s what we’re counting on,” said Foster. “He’s just an absolute dog and I couldn’t be more proud of him.”

White County got on the board first as Hogg took a reverse 20 yards to the end zone, giving White County a 7-0 lead with 6:41 remaining in the first quarter.

Hogg found the end zone again less than three minutes later as he took a punt return 75 yards for a touchdown, extending the Warriors’ advantage to 14-0 with 3:44 left in the opening frame.

Upperman responded on their ensuing drive as Jude Fitzpatrick broke loose on a 38-yard touchdown run, cutting the Bees’ deficit to 14-7 after one quarter of play. Neither team found the end zone in the second quarter as White County led 14-7 at halftime.

The Warriors’ special teams unit struck again with 1:43 remaining in the third quarter as Hogg took his second punt return back 68 yards for a touchdown to make the score 21-7 White County.

The Warrior defense turned Upperman over on downs on the ensuing possession, setting Sparta up in Bee territory to start the fourth quarter. White County extended their advantage to 28-7 with 9:36 remaining as RB Cole Sims lined up in the wildcat and hit Hogg on a 38-yard touchdown pass.

White County wasn’t done there as Warrior DB Tristan Cavanah scooped up a Bee fumble on the first play of the ensuing drive and returned it 54 yards for a touchdown, making the score 35-7 Warriors with 9:05 left.

Upperman tacked on a touchdown with 1:12 left, making the final score 35-15 in favor of White County.

Up next for the Warriors is their regular-season finale at home agains Stone Memorial (3-6, 0-4) while Upperman travels to Macon County (8-1, 3-1) with the #2 overall seed and a home playoff game on the line.