Demopolis claws back but falls to Northridge 38-34

The Demopolis High School Tigers put up a great fight but were unable to claw their way to victory in the 2026 season opener at Tuscaloosa’s Northridge High School Aug. 28.

The final score was Northridge Jaguars 38 and Demopolis Tigers 34. Northridge led by 10 points at one point in the game, but Demopolis closed to within 4 points with a touchdown by Christopher Taylor with 37 seconds left in the game. 

Demopolis, with Whit Goodwin at quarterback, scored first with a pass to Emonte Charleston late in the first quarter. Northridge responded with a touchdown and point after two minutes later, and they led for the rest of the game. 

Demopolis saw some good gains from Taylor and Aidan Burns, and Jamaun Watts recovered a fumble that stalled a Jaguar drive. 

But this was the first game of the season, and penalties plagued both teams, especially Demopolis. There were more false starts than an old MG and more holding penalties than at the last dance at closing time at Strawberry Jam. There were 33 penalties overall, 23 of which belonged to Demopolis. 

Demopolis saw an impressive field goal in the first quarter but missed all but one of its PATs. As noted by coaches in the after-game huddle, if those kicks after the touchdowns had been successful, the game would have been tied at the end of the fourth quarter and forced it into overtime.

After the game, Coach Dustin Goodwin told the Black Belt News Network on the field that when he took over the team this year, they lost 18 starters and had a lot of work to fill in that gap. 

“We weren't perfect - we made a lot of mistakes,” he said, and even after being down multiple scores, multiple times they “continued to fight and scratch and claw our way back into it.” 

“They’ve shown growth over the last two weeks,” he added. “You're never satisfied with losing, but we are proud of the effort.”

Demopolis faces Jemison next week in another away game. 

Publisher Cindy Fisher contributed to this report.