In the realm of sports mascots, it really doesn’t get much better than the Tigers.

Tigers are bold. Tigers are fearsome. Tigers are respected. Tigers are beautiful creatures. Tigers make for great color schemes, logos and costumed, dancing figures on the sidelines, even if said Tigers are anthropomorphized and standing on two legs instead of four.

Fans of college football are going wild these days at the upcoming national championship on Jan. 13 featuring two Tigers teams — top-ranked Louisiana State University and No. 3-ranked Clemson.

If one Tigers team makes a great mascot, two Tigers teams in the championship makes for great jokes and puns.

We can’t wait to see the outcome of that game, but we want to draw attention to a local Tigers team that recently had a couple of great games themselves.

The Tigers from Turlington Woods School played against the Suffolk Police Department on Dec. 20. The Tigers tied with the “Hometown Heroes” team at the end of regulation, forcing overtime and then bringing it home in the final seconds of the extra period on the strength of a timely free throw from 17-year-old junior Taevon Johnson.
Proceeds from the game benefited the March of Dimes, but the students and officers who participated in the true spirit of the game also benefited. The officers were able to build a rapport with the students, and the students were able to see the police officers in a positive light.

The student Tigers team also took on a team from The Mount Suffolk church earlier in December, allowing them to interact with another group of good adult mentors and leaders from the community.

We appreciate the Tigers and thank the Suffolk Police Department team and Mount Suffolk team for their efforts to make a positive influence in the lives of these young people.

Go Tigers!