For the first time since 2024, the Whitewright Tigers are headed to the playoffs after a convincing 41-10 victory over Wolfe City this past Friday night.
The Tigers (6-4, 3-3) earned the third seed in District 9-2A-Division I on a tiebreaker with Honey Grove, punching their ticket to the postseason with a strong performance on both sides of the ball.
Maddox Smart electrified the Tiger crowd right from the start, taking the opening kickoff 95 yards for a touchdown. Smart took the ball across the field to the right sideline and raced to the end zone, giving Whitewright an early 6-0 lead after the extra-point attempt was blocked.
The Tigers kept their foot on the gas.
Quarterback Colt Parker had a big night, carrying the ball eight times for 96 yards and two touchdowns. He also completed five of 10 passes for 62 yards and a touchdown.
Parker scored his first touchdown on a 1-yard run straight up the middle with 7:43 remaining in the first quarter, extending Whitewright’s lead to 12-0.
Later in the quarter, Parker broke loose around the right side for a 74-yard touchdown run. Smart added the two-point conversion to give the Tigers a commanding 20-0 advantage.
The Whitewright offense continued rolling in the second quarter.
Jacoby Brown punched in a 1-yard touchdown run through the left side with 9:43 remaining before halftime, pushing the lead to 27-0. Brown finished with two carries for five yards and a touchdown.
Wolfe City finally got on the scoreboard when Khalid Chavarria connected on a 30-yard field goal following the two-minute warning.
But the Tigers weren’t finished.
On the final play of the first half, Parker connected with Tyler Latimer on a 40-yard play-action touchdown pass as time expired. The score sent Whitewright into the locker room with a commanding 34-3 halftime lead.
The Tigers also received contributions from Austin Baio, who had three carries for 34 yards, and Adrian “Turbo” Garza, who made a key 12-yard reception from Parker to keep a Whitewright drive alive.
On the defensive side of the ball, the Tigers made outstanding plays when the game mattered most.
Nick Ulmer came up with one of the biggest defensive plays of the night, intercepting a Wolfe City pass deep in Wolves territory and returning it 33 yards for a touchdown in the third quarter.
It was Whitewright’s only score of the second half, but the Tigers’ defense made sure the lead was never in jeopardy.
Key interceptions and fourth-down stops helped seal the victory as Whitewright kept Wolfe City from mounting a comeback.
The Wolves (3-7, 1-5) scored their only touchdown when Daniel Guillen broke through for a 2-yard run with less than three minutes remaining in the game.
Wolfe City entered the contest needing a victory and a Trenton loss to Tom Bean to force a three-way tie for fourth place in the district. Instead, the Wolves missed the playoffs for the first time since 2011.
For Whitewright, the victory was especially sweet. After missing the postseason last year, the Tigers are back in the playoff picture and looking to keep their season alive.
Next up, the Tigers make the drive to the shores of Cedar Creek Lake in Mabank for a Class 2A-Division I Region III bi-district playoff battle against the Frankston Indians (8-1).
Kickoff is scheduled for 7 p.m. Thursday.
Whitewright head coach Roten knows the Tigers will face a tough challenge against a talented Frankston team.
“Frankston is very good,” Roten said. “They are very good in the skill positions. We need to play really hard and play mistake free. We also must do a great job of tackling.”
With a playoff berth secured and momentum from a dominant regular-season finale, the Tigers will look to carry that same energy into Thursday night’s showdown.
