Six of Darlington's varsity football players were named to the Rome News-Tribune All-Area Team.
Chase Butler, a senior linebacker, was named Defensive Player of the Year. This award comes just seven months after he was named the RN-T’s baseball Co-Player of the Year in June. Butler finished the season with 94 total tackles, two forced fumbles, three fumble recoveries, eight tackles for loss and two blocked kicks. He is the son of Lisa and Rhett Butler of Rome.
Tylon Garrett became the Tigers’ workhorse in the backfield this season as the senior ran for 1,362 yards and 16 touchdowns, even after switching from slotback to fullback after the first three games. He is the son of Rosalyn and Tim Garrett of Rome and Courtney Ferguson, also of Rome.
Tev’n Hamilton, a junior safety on the Tigers’ final four team, finished the year with 103 total tackles (70 solo), seven pass breakups, three interceptions and six fumbles forced. He also blocked one kick. Hamilton is the son of Vickey Page of Rome.
Thad Mathis, a senior, helped the Tigers to a region championship and three wins in the playoffs, playing through multiple injuries. Mathis finished with 44 solo tackles, eight TFL, 5.5 sacks and four forced fumbles. He is the son of Paula and Chris Mathis of Rome.
Arthur Pollard, a junior defensive end, finished with 101 total tackles and 11 TFL. He had seven sacks, four fumbles forced, five fumble recoveries and two hurries while also starting on offense at tight end. Pollard is the son of Mia Pollard of Brooklyn, N.Y., and Arthur Pollard, also of Brooklyn.
Alex Sentell, a senior, quickly emerged as a leader on the offensive line. Additionally, he is credited with giving freshman quarterback Brad Butler some piece of mind during the Tigers’ run to the Class A semifinals. Sentell is the son of Melody and Mark Sentell of Rome.
In addition, running back Cedric Spivey, offensive lineman Will Lester and placekicker Ben Davidson were named to Second Team Offense. Linebacker William Waters and defensive back A.J. White was named to Second Team Defense. Russ Arnold, Ivy Duggan, Cameron Gibson and Christopher Griffin received Honorable Mentions.
