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When Demetrius Tillman, or "Big D" for short, exited the Southern locker room last Thursday afternoon, he couldn’t help feeling a little down.
The 6-foot-3, 275-pound lineman had just closed out his high-school football career with a 53-8 loss to neighborhood rival Neumann-Goretti.
Yes, it was another ugly Thanksgiving Day defeat for the Rams, but Tillman preferred to put a positive spin on things. His team could’ve easily surrendered at halftime, when the score was 39-0, or when it was 46-0 in the third quarter, but it didn’t. The senior said he was proud of the way his teammates responded.
"We never gave up," Tillman said. "I told my teammates to show a little bit of pride and keep on fighting."
Finally, with 3:47 remaining in the third quarter, sophomore fullback Tyrell Cooper found the end zone on a 57-yard run, followed by a successful two-point conversion, making the score 46-8.
"We knew we weren’t going to win, but if we can’t do anything else, we should at least try and score," Tillman said.
His Rams faced their share of tough games this season, losing 36-0 to Edison and 28-0 to University City. In seven of the nine losses, his team scored eight points or less. But Southern coach Bill Edger said Tillman remained strong throughout.
"Demetrius was pretty solid all year," Edger said. "He held the team together in the tough times and kept everybody under control."
It was the Southern coaching staff that allowed him to step up as team leader and, fittingly enough on Thanksgiving Day, Tillman couldn’t but say thanks.
"I am just thankful that I had no injuries and that the coaches stuck me in there and allowed me to be the leader and show the guys the right way," he said.
Tillman is looking forward to continuing his football career on the college level. He is looking at Division III schools Delaware State, Delaware Valley College, Kutztown and Millersville.
"If anyone can play on the college level, it’s [Tillman] because he has the size and commitment," Edger said.
No matter how the future unfolds, Tillman will always have fond memories of his playing days at Southern. He might not have any playoff games or winning seasons to talk about, but he will leave Broad Street and Snyder Avenue with something few Southern football players have – a win over Neumann-Goretti. His Rams took last year’s contest 30-26, which was the team’s first since ’89 and 19th overall in the series.
"At least I was on the team that beat Neumann," Tillman said.
