It’s here. The Tazewell Bulldogs football season is upon us, and the Bulldogs are set to kick off the 2023 season with a Saturday home opener against the Riverheads Gladiators. The pigskin goes live at 1 p.m. at Bulldog Stadium. Tickets are $8.
The game can be heard on the Bulldog Radio Network with Chase Collins and Joe Beasley on the call. The game will stream live on the NFHS Network.
Saturday marks the fourth-ever meeting between Tazewell and Riverheads. The Gladiators are competing in Class 2A this season after winning seven straight Class 1A State Championships. Their campus is located 181 miles from Tazewell High School.
This is the latest in the year that Tazewell has started a football season since 1994. That year on September 2nd, the Bulldogs opened the season by winning a 20-16 contest over Christiansburg at Bulldog Stadium.
The Series
Record vs. Riverheads: 0-3
First Meeting: 2/27/21 Riverheads won 28-17 at RHS
Last Meeting: 9/24/22 Riverheads won 35-12 at RHS
Bulldogs In Season Openers
Saturday’s game marks the 97th season opener in Tazewell football history… The Bulldogs are 54-40-2 all-time in season openers and have gone 2-4 in such games under Coach J’me Harris.
Bulldogs In Home Openers
Tazewell is 66-27-3 in home openers . . . The Bulldogs under Coach J’me Harris are 5-1 in home openers. The Bulldogs are on a 4 game win streak in home openers… Tazewell has outscored opponents 163-63 during the span of the streak.
Game Notes
Quarterback Carter Creasy threw for 2,088 yards and 19 touchdowns in 2022 as a sophomore. He also rushed for 282 yards and a score.
Junior receiver Logan McDonald returns as the Bulldogs’ leader in catches. He caught 36 passes in 2022 for 495 yards and 7 touchdowns.
The Bulldogs return four of their top five tacklers from 2022. Kaizon Taylor (103), Brock Alley (91) Jashon Taylor (50), and Tyler Gillespie (40) are all on the field this fall.
Tazewell’s season captains are Brock Alley, Devon Young, and AyvRee Zeigler.
