The Alcoa Tornadoes won a non-region contest 35-7 over Blackman on Goddard Field at Bill Bailey Stadium in Alcoa, Tennessee, on Saturday, Aug. 22, 2020. (Photo by Danny Parker)
By JESSE SMITHEY
ALCOA — The home- and season-opener for the five-time defending Class 3A champion Alcoa football team wasn’t going as planned midway through the third quarter Saturday night.
Offensive miscues and mistakes had plagued the Tornadoes’ debut. And with 8 minutes, 23 seconds, left in the third, visiting Blackman recovered and returned a fumble 35 yards for a touchdown to tie the game.
Nearly four minutes later, Alcoa fumbled again. Turnover No. 4.
The Class 6A school from Murfreesboro had all the momentum, and the uncertainty around Alcoa’s offense was swelling by the minute.
They were breaking in four new starting offensive linemen and two new quarterbacks in Week 1 of a season that didn’t feature 7-on-7 work or preseason scrimmages because of Covid-19 concerns.
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