Staff Reports

HOKES BLUFF – Cherokee County and Hokes Bluff are no strangers to playing tight football games. The Eagles have held the edge of late in the series, winning three of the last four meetings. All of those contests were decided by a touchdown or less, including their last – a 28-27 double-overtime classic back in 2019.

It may have taken five years for the Warriors to get revenge, but they did so on Friday night.

Senior running back Tae Diamond ran for 152 yards on 18 carries and three scores, and sophomore quarterback Adam Griffith completed 8 of 9 pass attempts for 155 yards and touchdown in leading the third-ranked Warriors to a crucial 35-21 victory in Class 4A Region 6 action on Friday.

The win keeps the Warriors (7-1, 5-0) atop the region standings. They host another rival, the Alexandria Valley Cubs (5-2, 4-1), in another key region clash next Friday.

Tristan Brown put the Warriors in front with his 25-yard touchdown run in the first quarter. Ben Frampton’s extra point made it 7-0.

Frampton caught a 74-yard touchdown pass from Griffith in the second, and Diamond delivered a 4-yard touchdown run later in the quarter to give the Warriors a 21-0 edge.

But the Eagles (5-2, 3-2) battled back. Bryce Whitaker scored on a 4-yard run before halftime to make it a 21-7 game. Blaine Barron pulled Hokes Bluff even closer in the third quarter with his 1-yard score, bringing the Eagles within a touchdown at 21-14.

Diamond accounted for both Warrior scores in the second half on runs of 1 and 51 yards late in the third and in the fourth quarters to help keep the Warriors ahead. Barron also scored on a 1-yard run for Hokes Bluff’s final touchdown in the fourth.

Whitaker led Hokes Bluff with 82 yards on 18 carries and a touchdown. He also completed 9 of 16 pass attempts for 64 yards for the Eagles, who travel to Ashville on Friday.

Frampton finished with six catches for 115 yards and a touchdown for the Warriors.