Jordan King had two TD catches

Teams leave field unable to finish contest

By Michael Butler

The Tallassee/Elmore County game on Friday night in Eclectic looked to be on its way to another fantastic finish. Then with 2:25 remaining in the third quarter, it ended.

After a timeout with a 14-14 score and Tallassee on offense with a third down and five at the Elmore County 26, Panthers coach Kyle Caldwell came across the field to talk to Tigers coach L.A. O'Neal. Seconds later, both coaches and their players began running to their locker rooms.

Those in attendance were then told to exit the stadium and go home.

"There were threats of guns violence," the Eclectic Police Department stated in a press release. "The actions taken by Elmore County school officials and law enforcement were necessary to keep people safe from this threat. Everyone was evacuated safely from the stadium and school premises without incident."

Intentions were to have players return to the field and finish the game with no imminent fear for their safety. Officials chose to cancel the game instead, according to Tallassee City Schools Superintendent Dr. Brock Nolin.

"There was a supposed Facebook threat made," said Nolin. "Unfortunately one bad actor on social media can ruin most anything with a foolish post."

It was another packed stadium at Burt-Haynie Field, customary in the matchup among rivals. The 63rd meeting in the series will now go down as no contest.

Tallassee fell behind 14-0 after two touchdown runs of 3 and 9 yards by the Panthers' Tyler Payton, but got back even on touchdown passes of 39 and 7 yards from Trent Morris to Jordan King, both in the second quarter.

Morris was 7-of-13 for 125 yards with no interceptions. King had five catches for 97 yards.

"I'm mad, disgusted and disappointed," said Tallassee head football coach L.A. O'Neal. "My kids practice hard all week for a opportunity to go out and play a game that they love, to compete in front of their friends and family, to enjoy the contest between rivals - all to have the actions of a few rob them of that opportunity. To see the disappointment and pain in their eyes is very heartbreaking.

"I say this Tigers, keep your heads up. Thank you for the swift response from authorities and thank you to law enforcement, the administration teams, support staff, parents and fans for ensuring that all the students, band members, cheerleaders, dance teams and athletes were safe and secure."

Tallassee goes to Munford for its first region game on Friday. Kickoff is 7 p.m. WTLS - Score 94.7/Hit 106.9 will have the broadcast with the video webcast on Tallassee Times TV on YouTube. Air time will be at 6.

*Facebook interview with Coach O'Neal regarding Friday's incident

*Photos by Kyle Thornton

GAME STATS
Tallassee Football vs. Elmore County
8/30/24, 7:00 PM
Regular Season