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Fans piled into the stands with blankets, jackets and heaters to watch the Commanders and Rebels battle in a win-or-go-home environment, but Friendship only needed its offensive firepower to stay warm.

The Rebels tallied the first points of the game on a 35-yard Nix Fullen rush, but this touchdown would end up being the only Tipton-Rosemark score in the game.

After going down 7-0 on the first possession of the game, the Commanders answered with three first-quarter touchdowns. Jayden McGowan was responsible for the first two touchdowns of the night, coming on 16- and 7-yard rushes. Then the Commanders aired the ball out. Blake Waldorf connected with D Boone for a 25-yard passing touchdown to end the first stanza of scoring.

Hours before kickoff, the TSSAA Mr. Football Semifinalists were announced for each classification. Fullen made the short list for DII-A, rushing for 1,886 yards and 29 touchdowns through the Rebels’ 10-game regular season. However, the Commander defense held him to only 105 yards and Tipton-Rosemark’s lone touchdown.

After stymying the Rebel offense, Friendship Christian stepped on the accelerator. Waldorf showed his ability to improvise and escape the pocket. He rushed for a pair of TDs in the second quarter. By halftime, the Commanders distanced themselves from the Rebels by 28 points.

The second half proved to be much of the same from both teams. The Rebel offense continued to sputter. Miscues and the Commander defense forced Tipton-Rosemark to give the ball away a number of times, notably two fumbles recovered by the Commanders and a few turnovers on downs.

In the third quarter, Waldorf connected with George Dayton on a swing pass that Dayton took 37-yards to paydirt, bringing the score to 42-7. At this point, the Commanders began rotating several underclassmen onto the field, providing a glimpse into the future of a program with a rich history.

Only seven points were scored in the final 12 minutes of play, likely due to the running clock of mercy rule and the stellar performance from the Commander defense. Freshman quarterback Brock Winfree punctuated the total of 49 unanswered points with a 9-yard scamper into the end zone.

The Commanders trailed for only three of the 48 minutes of game play -he first three minutes of the game. From there, the onslaught of offensive prowess paved Friendship’s path to the quarterfinals.

Waldorf was selective, yet effective in the pocket. He only threw the ball 13 times on the night, but eight of thosewere completed, totaling 143 yards and a pair of touchdowns. He added 73 yards and two more scores on the ground, giving him a quartet of scores on only 22 touches.

McGowan totaled 81 rushing yards on 12 carries, also accounting for two touchdowns. Boone hauled in five passes for 77 yards and a touchdown, Dayton’s touchdown was his only reception of the night, and the rest of the receiving core tallied 29 yards.

The Commanders travel to Murfreesboro to battle the East Region 1-seed Providence Christian next Friday. The game will take place at Middle Tennessee State University, and kickoff is scheduled for 7 p.m. at Floyd Stadium.

Friendship Christian 49, Tipton-Rosemark 7

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Friendship Christian|21|14|7|7—49

First quarter

Tipton-Rosemark—Nix Fullen 35 run (Collin Corbitt kick).

Friendship Christian—Jayden McGowan 16 run (Wilson Boyd kick).

Friendship Christian—McGowan 7 run (Boyd kick).

Friendship Christian—D. Boone 25 pass from Blake Waldorf (Boyd kick).

Second quarter

Friendship Christian—Waldorf 3 run (Boyd kick).

Friendship Christian—Waldorf 4 run (Boyd kick).

Third quarter

Friendship Christian—George Dayton 37 pass from Waldorf (Boyd kick).

Fourth quarter

Friendship Christian—Brock Winfree 9 run (Jack Vander Pol kick).

Team statistics

|T-R|FC

First downs|10|17

Rushes-yards|32-106|29-166

Passing yards|25|144

-Comp.-Att.-Int.|7-12-0|10-16-0

Fumbles lost|2|0

Penalties-yards|6-57|4-25

Individual statistics

RUSHING—Friendship Christian: Jayden McGowan 12-81, Blake Waldorf 9-73, Brock Winfree 4-12, Ryder Wolcott 3-3, Asher Rose 1-(-3).

PASSING—Friendship Christian; Blake Waldorf 8-13-0—143, Brock Winfree 2-3-0—1.

RECEIVING—Friendship Christian: D. Boone 5-77, George Dayton 1-37, Brody McCue 2-19, Karson Moss 1-14, Knox Tenpenny 1-(-3).