HONAKER (Sept. 11, 2026) – Avery Rose, wide open on the left flat, caught a pass from Tyler Shupe for a two-point conversion with just over a minute to play, lifting the War Eagles to a 31-30 victory over Honaker on Friday. Rye Cove (3-0) remained undefeated, securing a quality road win in a wild, high-scoring battle at EMATS Stadium.
“You know what? Kudos to Honaker,” said Rye Cove coach Gary Collier. “They come ready to play. You think a team loses their quarterback (Honaker’s Parker Lowe to injury), they’ll back off a little bit, but man, we weren’t ready for what they gave us. I think they beat us up front and in all aspects of the game.
“At halftime, we made a few adjustments, attitude and effort, and talked about how big those two points or extra points are to win ball games. I’m proud of our kids for not giving up.”
The game saw five lead changes, with momentum shifting back and forth. The two teams combined for eight touchdowns, nearly 600 yards of total offense, and more than 160 yards in penalties.
Quarterback Levi Honaker plunged into the end zone from one yard out to give the Tigers a 22-15 lead with less than 10 minutes to play. A bad snap ended any hope of a conversion, and it proved costly.
After the ensuing kickoff, on the third play, Shupe passed to Avery Rose in the right flat with a screen pass, and Rose sprinted 87 yards for a score. Tyler Barnette added the two-point conversion to give the War Eagles the lead.
Did anyone think Rye Cove, known for a ground-and-pound offense, would turn to the pass?
“Let’s back up a little bit. If you told me 10 years ago, I’d run the ball as we do, I’d say you had lost your mind,” Collier noted. “We do what works for us. We can throw it around a little bit. The screen pass—we hadn’t run it all night long, and I thought it was a good time because they were going to be flying to the football to stop us, and it worked. It worked really well.”
With Rye Cove clinging to the 23-22 lead, the Tigers moved 69 yards in 10 plays. Kam Beavers made a tremendous leaping catch over a defender in the end zone for a 31-yard scoring strike from Levi Honaker. Levi Honaker then sprinted around the right end for the two-point conversion, putting the Tigers up 30-23 with 3:41 to play.
“The kids played hard, and we had a great game plan,” Honaker coach Aaron Lowe said. “Our kids executed. We were up with two minutes to go, even with our turnovers. We kept fighting.
“The defense made plays tonight. We just came up short at the end. We had Rye Cove on the ropes and let it slip away. But the effort from our kids tonight was tremendous.”
The Eagles took over at their 21-yard line with just over three minutes remaining. On their second play, Shupe threw to Will Darnell for a 49-yard gain. On the next play, he hit Darnell with a 26-yard TD pass. Shupe then passed for the decisive two-point conversion.
“It’s a good win,” said Shupe. “Honaker is a tough team. They had a lot of good players. We just scraped it out.
“We’re a run team. Everybody knows that. But the pass is there if we need it.”
Honaker (1-2) had a minute and a half remaining. They moved the ball into Rye Cove territory. An interception by Aiden Rose ended any chances for the Tigers.
Shupe completed only three passes for a remarkable 162 yards and two TDs.
“I’m always on Shupe. You don’t have to win ballgames; you have to manage them,” remarked Collier. “He made a couple of bad decisions early, but I asked him to keep trucking. Then at the end of the game, he made the plays, and that’s all we ask of him. The kids worked hard; they are tired; they laid it on the line, so they did a good job.”
The Eagles played for a state title last year. They are off to a good start in 2026.
“We have a lot of stuff we need to work on to get better,” Collier said. “But right now, we were trying to survive, and we survived this, and we can move on from it. But great, great ball game. Great ball game.”
Although a loss, the Tigers know they can hang with the best.
“We can line up and play with anybody. You just have to have the mindset to do it,” commented Lowe. “We were ready to play tonight. We had a good week of practice, and when you practice hard and prepare, it carries over to Friday night.”
Levi Honaker was 10-of-16 passing for 147 yards. Tyler Hubbard rushed for 114 yards. Keaton Smith (nine tackles) and Kam Robinson (eight tackles) led the defense.
Honaker (1-2) needs a win when they travel to Holston Friday for their first Hogoheegee District contest.
“Holston is a good football team, well coached by Coach Akers,” Lowe stated. “We’ll have to be ready. We have a 1-2 record, and we’ve got a lot of injuries. We’ve got guys out here playing through injuries, and they’re fighting through it. We’ve got to be ready for next week. It’s a district game. We’ve got a three-game road stretch ahead of us, so we’ve got to get our cards in order and be ready to play.”
Rye Cove 31, Honaker 30
Rye Cove015016—31
Honaker76314—30
First Quarter
HON—Hubbard 59 run (Beavers kick), 0:36.
Second Quarter
RC—Barnette 7 run (Cress kick), 7:48.
RC—McElroy 25 interception return (Barnette run), 4:22.
HON—Honaker 4 run (run failed), 0:48.
Third Quarter
HON—FG Beavers 23, 4:20.
Fourth Quarter
HON—Honaker 1 run (run failed), 9:51.
RC—Rose 87 pass from Shupe (Barnette run), 7:59.
HON—Beavers 31 pass from Honaker (Honaker run), 3:41.
RC—Darnell 26 pass from Shupe (Rose pass from Shupe), 1:32.
RCHON
First downs1121
Total Net Yards255340
Rushes-yards31-11235-196
Passing 143144
Comp-Att-Int3-9-010-16-3
Fumbles-Lost2-11-0
Penalties-Yards8-958-69
Punts2-35.50-0
