RHS loses to Deshler in opening thriller
The football rivalry between Russellville and Deshler added another chapter to open the 2025 season on Friday night in Tuscumbia. Deshler earned a hard-fought 15-14 victory during the game that went down to the final minutes of the fourth quarter.
The two teams had a close battle throughout the contest with Russellville leading 14-7 with less than three minutes left in the final quarter. Deshler then scored on a 21-yard touchdown pass. The Tigers chose to go for two points and the lead. The plan worked as quarterback Price Thornton threw a backward pass to Garrett Reid, who then ran the ball into the end zone.
Russellville started the game with a thrilling opening kickoff return by Ben Pounders that went the distance, but a penalty on the Golden Tigers nullified the touchdown. On the following opening drive, RHS used a 34-yard pass from Whit Goodwin to Daniel Aycock to setup the first scoring play of the evening. Goodwin found an open Connor Devaney and the receiver scored on a 7-yard TD pass. David Tomas added the extra-point kick to make the score 7-0.
Russellville’s offensive line readies for the snap against the Deshler Tigers. PHOTO BY BRANNON KING
Deshler answered quickly when Thornton raced to the end zone on a quarterback keeper on the first play from scrimmage for the Tigers. The 71-yard TD was followed by a successful extrapoint kick. The next Russellville offensive play from scrimmage resulted in an interception by DHS, but the defense of the Golden Tigers quickly forced a punt.
Later in the first quarter, Russellville’s Braxton Duncan recovered a Deshler fumble. Two plays later, the Golden Tigers scored a touchdown when a Goodwin pass was deflected by Devaney into the hands of Keifer Hallmark for a 5-yard scoring play. The Tomas extra-point kick made the score 14-7.
Both teams were able to make big stops on defense, which held the score at 14-7 until late in the contest.
Russellville’s Darron Jones intercepted two Deshler passes during the game, and the DHS team got a boost when Russellville missed a 38-yard field goal attempt during the fourth quarter.
Goodwin completed 21 of 30 passes for a total of 215 yards. The RHS sophomore quarterback had two TD passes and two interceptions. Russellville’s Tarus Davis carried the ball 16 times for 47 yards and Devaney was the top RHS receiver catching nine passes for 94 total yards and one touchdown.
“We came out and had a good game plan, but credit them for making some adjustments and making us sputter offensively,” Russellville head coach Dustin Goodwin said. “Defensively, I thought we played well enough to win most of the night. We made a ton of mistakes offensively that ultimately kept us from moving the football and sticking it in the end zone after coming out to a great start. We’ve got stuff to work on.”
Russellville’s Connor Devaney heads to the end zone for the first touchdown of the season.
PHOTO BY BRANNON KING
The Golden Tigers are back in action for the home opener on Aug. 29 versus the Mars Hill Panthers.
