Dunnellon tops North Marion

Dunnellon’s Iterrean Mitchell (15) leaps in the air to make the catch away from North Marion defenders, but couldn’t hold on during a football game at North Marion High School in Citra, Fla. on Friday, Oct. 10, 2025. Dunnellon won the game 28-6. [Bruce Ackerman/Ocala Gazette] 2025.

Dunnellon junior tailback Tony Tanner rushed for 174 yards and scored three touchdowns, and the Tigers’ defense forced five turnovers in a dominating 28-6 win over North Marion Oct. 10.

The Class 3A-District 5 victory evened Dunnellon’s record at 4-4 overall and 1-1 in district play.

“It was a good win,” said first-year Tigers coach JB Bynum. “We wanted to be 1-0 this week and get back to 500 overall and in the district. We played complimentary football tonight. Our defense forced turnovers and the offense turned them into points. We were good in all three phases. We ran the ball well and when Tony is rolling it makes us so much more dynamic and harder to defend. He demands so much attention that it gives other kids a chance to make big plays.”

The loss dropped North Marion to 2-6; 0-2 on the season.

The Colts opened the game with an impressive drive as senior quarterback Matthew Dial connected with several receivers on short passes to move the ball to the Dunnellon 30-yard line. The drive stalled when Dial, who completed 11 of 18 passes for 62 yards, was sacked by junior Ayden Cox on fourth down.

Both defenses dominated on this rainy night until midway through the second quarter when North Marion fumbled and Dunnellon’s Frederick Mathis recovered the ball at the Colts’ 22. Tanner swept around left end and raced into the end zone untouched. The extra point by Jayliana Lopez-Neumann gave the Tigers a 7-0 lead.

North Marion picked up a couple of first downs on its ensuing possession, but Dial was intercepted to end the threat.

Dunnellon opened the second half with a methodical 12-play, 70-yard drive featuring the powerful running of Tanner, who ripped off chunks of yardage against the Colts defense. Tanner capped the drive with a 12-yard scoring scamper. The point after made it 14-0 with 5:07 left in the third period.

North Marion struggled to find any kind of consistency against a swarming and aggressive Dunnellon defense. The Tigers forced a Colts punt and marched 57 yards in nine plays with Tanner blasting his way into the end zone from 2-yards out. The extra point gave Dunnellon a commanding 21-0 lead early in the fourth period.

North Marion crossed midfield but the Tigers, who had six sacks on the night, tackled Dial in the backfield to end the drive. Dunnellon sealed the game with another touchdown as junior running back Kameron Wheeler broke through the North Marion defense for a 21-yard scoring run. The extra point made it 28-0 with 8:57 left in the game.

North Marion showed a lot of resolve by marching down the field as Dial showed his elusiveness by scrambling away from pressure and picking up several first downs. Dial was banged up on a hard tackle and junior Isaac Smith came in to replace him. Smith completed four of eight passes and found junior wide receiver Damir Williams for a 12-yard touchdown pass. The point after was no good to leave the Colts trailing by a score of 28-6 with 2:27 remaining to play. That’s the way the game ended.

This kind of win gives Dunnellon a lot of confidence heading into its next game against Hawthorne.

“This win is a testament to the hard work the boys have been putting in,” said coach Bynum, who played running back and graduated from Dunnellon in 2002. “This is the second time this season that we’ve won back-to-back games and I like what I see from this team. We know Hawthorne is a good team and coming in hungry, so we need to have a good week of practice and be ready to play.”

Dunnellon Defeats North Marion 28-6

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