Syrupmakers thump Blue Devils 31-13

The Syrupmakers held a dress rehearsal of sorts last Friday night at West Thomas Stadium in the form of a preseason scrimmage, but looked in midseason form as they defeated the Blue Devils of region 1-AAAAA 31-7 in three quarters of varsity action.
Highlighting the night were 31 first half points by the offense and a first half shut out of the Blue Devil offense by the Maker defense.
Defensively, Cairo allowed the visitors just 173 yards of total offense and six first downs.
Tift had 118 yards rushing and 55 yards passing, doing most of their damage in the second half against Syrupmaker reserves.
Offensively, the Syrupmakers were led by quarterback Steven Bench, who went 5-8 passing for 27 yards and directed four scoring drives in the first half, highlighted by big runs from junior back Damien Edwards, who had 8 carries for 155 yards, including a 77-yard touchdown scamper, and Drake Robertson who rushed three times for 86 yards, including an 80-yard touchdown run.
Taylor Donaldson made all four extra points and kicked a 25-yard field goal as time expired in the first half.
“We saw some good things, and also some things we need to work on.
Overall, it was a good night, our offense executed well, we had very few penalties and our defense had a shutout in the first half. We have a couple of weeks to get ready for our season opener and we will continue to work on things as we get ready,” said Cairo coach Tom Fallaw.
The Syrupmakers will open the 2011 season on Friday, Aug. 26, at home against Drew High School.