Calhoun City was no match for Taylorsville Saturday evening at Veterans Memorial Stadium in Jackson.
Taylorsville dominated from start to finish, scoring 28 points in the first half en route to a 42-0 shutout victory over the Wildcats in the Class 2A State Championship.
Taylorsville has now won eight titles in school history — its third in four seasons (2017, 2019, 2020).
"It feels great right now," said Taylorsville head football coach Mitch Evans with a smile. "But our fans will be asking what's next tomorrow, so we have to move on to the next one, I hope."
As Taylorsville's quarterback, Evans led the Tatars to state titles versus Calhoun City in 1994 and 1995. He now has two as its head coach and one against the Wildcats.
"It's really not about me," said Evans. "It's about these seniors. This group of seniors willed us to victory week after week for four years. That's that special group, and I can say enough about them. If you look at our plays tonight, a majority of them were made by seniors."
The big play of the first half was a 97-yard touchdown run up the middle by senior running back Jeffery Pittman. The long-run gave Taylorsville a 21-0 advantage after a successful two-point conversion. Taylorsville's defense held Calhoun City on four and goal, forcing a turnover on downs to set up the scoring play.
"It's what he does every week," said Evans. "The colleges that are overlooking him need to check themselves."
Pittman praised the offensive line for his night.
"Offensive line," said Pittman. "I can't say it enough. The offensive line did what they are supposed to do. It's easy for anybody with an offensive line like we have."
Pittman finished with 167 yards on 12 carries. He also caught a 30-yard touchdown pass from Ty Keyes midway through the third quarter. Pittman was named the game’s Most Valuable Player.
Keyes threw for 217 yards on 13 completions and three touchdowns. Starting as a freshman in 2017, Keyes has racked up 14,555 yards through the air and 155 touchdowns — a Taylorsville stat for the record books.
Keyes also dived in for a score from the ground in the first quarter on a one-yard rush.
"It's awesome," said Evan when asked about sending Keyes off with a state title. "And not just Ty, but the whole group of seniors. Ty is a once in a lifetime player. If we didn't have COVID, I do not doubt that Ty would have broken every record in the state."
Keyes was on pace to break the record books in passing and passing touchdowns held by Dylan Favre, but COVID and the shortened 2020 season hampered such a feat.
"I want to thank the fans, coaches, and players," said Keyes. "Without them, nothing would have been possible."
On Saturday evening, Keyes' go-to receiver was senior Tyrese Keyes. Keyes caught three passes for 61 yards and two touchdowns — both of which came in the first half.
Senior Travis Keyes got in on the action as well, scoring on a rush from five yards away in the fourth quarter.
Taylorsville ends the 2020 season with a 12-1 record.
