It was a night the D’Iberville community won’t soon forget.
Tyler Hunter, football manager and student with a disability suited up for the Warriors’ JV team on the final game of the season and scored twice against St. Martin.
Hunter, a 10th grader with an intellectual disability, was called on to convert a two-point try in the third quarter. He punctuated the score by spiking the ball into the turf — his favorite celebration — at Buddy Singleton Field.
“I’m the best football player in the world,” Hunter said after the play.
He provided more proof on the final play of the game when he took a hand off 35 yards to the house.
Hunter’s teammates mobbed him in the end zone after the play, hoisted him onto their shoulders and carried him off the field.
“It’s hard to have a bad day around Tyler,” D’Iberville coach Josh Ladner said. “I don’t know that I’ve seen anything that’s more rewarding than what I saw tonight.”
Running back is Hunter’s favorite position and Monday wasn’t the first night he had scored as a tailback.
As an eighth grader on the middle school team, Hunter scored against Ocean Springs and capped that play with a spike as well.
“It felt good,” Hunter said about his scoring plays. Football is his favorite sport and he says he watches it on TV and on his phone.
The response from his teammates came from years of dedication Hunter has displayed to the Warrior football program.
“The team, the coaches, everybody loves him,” his mother Ebony Hunter said. “He brings the whistle home. He’s dedicated to his team, his school and football.”
Hunter has two years left in school, which means two more years he’ll be impacting the Warriors in a positive manner.
“Tyler is a Warrior,” Ladner said. “We’re lucky to have him.”
The Warriors won the game, 34-6.
Tyler Hunter, the student manager for D’Iberville’s JV football team, hypes up the crowd before taking the snap in a game against St. Martin at Warrior Stadium in D’Iberville on Monday, Oct. 9, 2023. Both teams made accommodations so that Hunter, who has an intellectual disability, could get playing time. Hannah Ruhoff Sun Herald
Tyler Hunter, the student manager for D’Iberville’s JV football team, hugs his mom after playing in a game against St. Martin at Warrior Stadium in D’Iberville on Monday, Oct. 9, 2023. Both teams made accommodations so that Hunter, who has an intellectual disability, could get playing time. Hannah Ruhoff Sun Herald
Tyler Hunter, the student manager for D’Iberville’s JV football team, celebrates with his teammates after scoring during a game against St. Martin at Warrior Stadium in D’Iberville on Monday, Oct. 9, 2023. Hunter, who has an intellectual disability, suited up for the team’s final game and scored two touchdowns. Hannah Ruhoff Sun Herald
Tyler Hunter, the student manager for D’Iberville’s JV football team, poses with D’Iberville’s cheerleaders D’Iberville’s junior varsity team took on St. Martin at Warrior Stadium in D’Iberville on Monday, Oct. 9, 2023. Hannah Ruhoff Sun Herald
Tyler Hunter, the student manager for D’Iberville’s JV football team, scores a touchdown in a game against St. Martin at Warrior Stadium in D’Iberville on Monday, Oct. 9, 2023. Hunter, who has an intellectual disability, played for two of the game’s plays, scoring two touchdowns. Hannah Ruhoff Sun Herald
Tyler Hunter, the student manager for D’Iberville’s JV football team, takes the snap in a game against St. Martin at Warrior Stadium in D’Iberville on Monday, Oct. 9, 2023. Hunter, who has an intellectual disability, played for two of the game’s plays, scoring two touchdowns. Hannah Ruhoff Sun Herald
Tyler Hunter, the student manager for D’Iberville’s JV football team, celebrates after scoring against St. Martin at Warrior Stadium in D’Iberville on Monday, Oct. 9, 2023. Hunter, who has an intellectual disability, played for two of the game’s plays, scoring two touchdowns. Hannah Ruhoff Sun Herald
Tyler Hunter, the student manager for D’Iberville’s JV football team, signals to his coaches during a game against St. Martin at Warrior Stadium in D’Iberville on Monday, Oct. 9, 2023. Hunter, who has an intellectual disability, played for two of the game’s plays, scoring two touchdowns. Hannah Ruhoff Sun Herald
Tyler Hunter, the student manager for D’Iberville’s JV football team, runs the ball down the field during a game against St. Martin at Warrior Stadium in D’Iberville on Monday, Oct. 9, 2023. Hunter, who has an intellectual disability, played for two of the game’s plays, scoring two touchdowns. Hannah Ruhoff Sun Herald
This story was originally published October 9, 2023 at 8:35 PM.
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