#TNHSFB Playoffs: Semi-Final Recap/Title Predictions

Championship games are set! The slate for Chattanooga is now ready to go after an entertaining Semi-Final playoff round on Friday night that saw a couple of upsets along with strong favorites marching on. Here we recap all the Semi-Final action as well as provide predictions for next week’s class championship matchups. 1st Ever Title Berths for East Nashville, Tullahoma It was a big night for both the football programs of East Nashville and Tullahoma as they both won on Friday night and earned themselves a ticket to the state title games. The victory was not only a win to reach the championship but it is the first berth ever for both programs in the state title games and certainly shouldn’t be their last. The Wildcats of Tullahoma, led by seniors [player_tooltip player_id="102031" first="Ian" last="Poe"] and [player_tooltip player_id="215664" first="Ryan" last="Scott"], have been dominant all year and Friday night was no different as they defeated a highly talented Haywood team, 44-29 to clinch a berth in the Class 4A State Championship. They advance to now face the Class 4A defending state champ, Elizabethton after the Cyclones defeated Upperman 23-6 at home. East Nashville clinched their 1st title berth after defeating Dyersburg, 20-7. This is a magical run for the Eagles as nobody expected them to be in this position at the beginning of the year but they are here and playing high level football, especially on defense. The Eagles have been on a tear lately over on defense but they have their biggest challenge ahead, facing off against East Tennessee power Alcoa. Both East Nashville and Tullahoma without a doubt want to win a state title but the fact that both programs reached this point shows where they both are and how the future should look bright for both teams. Look for Tullahoma to possibly be favored in their game vs. the Cyclones while the Eagles will be big underdogs against one of the state’s best. Pats Win Matchup of Class 6A Powers The showdown of the week took place in East Tennessee on Friday night at Maryville High School but it wasn’t the home team that walked away with the victory, it was the road Patriots from Oakland who defeated the Rebels, 24-14 and earned their spot in the Class 6A State title game. This is now back to back championship berths for Oakland and another shot at winning a state title, their possible third. The berth to Chattanooga was not easy as Maryville gave the Patriots everything they wanted but the ground attack from Jordan James and [player_tooltip player_id="102016" first="Antonio" last="Patterson"] along with a stout defensive performance, proved to be too much for the home Rebels. Both these teams are loaded with college talent and both are two of the best teams, programs in the entire state, so it’s a shame somebody had to lose but that’s how it goes. Maryville must now head into the offseason and focus on a state title while Oakland gets to earn back to back state championships. The Patriots have another classic showdown ahead versus an undefeated Summit team and this is a contest that the entire state has been asking to see all year long! <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"> We can’t hear you!…….We can’t hear you! Let’s Go Pats! ⭕️ <a href="https://t.co/lQB8WRhKK8">pic.twitter.com/lQB8WRhKK8</a> — 𝙊𝙖𝙠𝙡𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙋𝙖𝙩𝙧𝙞𝙤𝙩𝙨 𝙉𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣 (@PatsNationTN) <a href="https://twitter.com/PatsNationTN/status/1464414891331174408?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 27, 2021</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script> Wild Comeback Puts Page Into Championship Trailing by ten points headed into the 4th quarter, Page had their state title hopes slipping away until a monstrous 4th quarter, 35 point comeback pushed the home team ahead and to victory over a tough and hungry Henry Co. Patriots team, 56-52. This was an entertaining game with offenses led by two college level quarterbacks in Patriots senior [player_tooltip player_id="150807" first="Jake" last="McNamara"] and Henry Co. junior [player_tooltip player_id="102210" first="Ryan" last="Damron"] that went blow for blow with McNamara coming out on top in the end. Damron and his Patriots started out on fire, taking an early lead and holding it headed into the 4th quarter but things quickly turned into the favor of Page. A late surge and sudden explosion from the Patriots offense put them back in the game and at the end, it was junior wideout [player_tooltip player_id="215066" first="Max" last="Collins"] who came up with the game winning catch to put Page on top for good. It was a well earned victory for Page and a heartbreaking loss for Henry County. You had a bevy of emotions in this game where you didn’t want to see anybody lose but unfortunately somebody had to. For the Page Patriots, this is their first ever appearance in a state title game and they have some dudes to win the championship. They are set to face a Powell team that is talented and explosive on offense, so this game could be another high scoring affair that isn’t settled till the end but it certainly should be entertaining. Trousdale Co. Loses Lead & Title Berth Holding a 20-7 lead late in the 2nd half, proved to not be enough for Trousdale Co. as they went on to lose the lead and the game to Hampton, 22-20. This was a tough loss to take for the Yellow Jackets as they controlled this game for virtually three and half quarters until mistakes and a late surge from the home Bulldogs put the game into their hands. You have to give credit where it’s due and Hampton continued to compete and fight till the very end and it paid off with a victory. Now the Bulldogs are headed to the Class 2A State Championship and doing so for the 1st time in school history while the Yellow Jackets head home and put a bow on their 2021 season. Championship Matchups & Predictions Class 1A: South Pittsburg (10-2) vs. McKenzie (13-0) - South Pitt may be viewed as the favorite due to their program history but they won’t win this game as [player_tooltip player_id="102344" first="Marquez" last="Taylor"] and the Rebels offense will be too much Rebels 45 Pirates 20 <img class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-239670" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/redzone/uploads/2021/11/queztaylor-300x300.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="300" />   Class 2A: Hampton (11-2) vs. Westview (13-1) - East Tennessee doesn’t fair well here either as the stellar season from the Bulldogs ends as [player_tooltip player_id="101971" first="Ty" last="Simpson"] and his Chargers offense will be too explosive and too much to handle. Chargers 54 Bulldogs 10   Class 3A: Alcoa (13-1) vs. East Nashville (10-4) - The powerhouse that is Alcoa wins yet another state title as they will easily handle these Eagles. It was a magical season for East Nashville that should be a great building block for the future but the Tornadoes are too talented and know how to win big games. Tornadoes 62 Eagles 13 <img class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-239673" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/redzone/uploads/2021/11/lwilliams4-241x300.jpg" alt="" width="241" height="300" /> Class 4A: Elizabethton (12-1) vs. Tullahoma (14-0) - This should be a fun game as both teams have a great chance to win. The Cyclones have a championship QB in [player_tooltip player_id="102068" first="Bryson" last="Rollins"] along with a sensational wideout in [player_tooltip player_id="102044" first="Jake" last="Roberts"] but the defense and line play from Wildcats will win this game. Wildcats 27 Cyclones 20   Class 5A: Powell (12-2) vs. Page (13-1) - Very intriguing game between two high scoring offenses. Both have stellar QB’s in [player_tooltip player_id="150807" first="Jake" last="McNamara"] and [player_tooltip player_id="102302" first="Jordyn" last="Potts"] along with outstanding receivers, so it will be the defense on each team that decides the victor. Gut feeling just has me pick the Patriots but this game could go either way. Patriots 38 Panthers 34   Class 6A: Oakland (14-0) vs. Summit (14-0) - Many around the state have wanted this game and now we got it! Possibly the game of the year, the Pats and Spartans will go toe to toe in what should be a classic, close game that is not settled till the very end. The Wade twins will be the main factor in Summit coming away with the 6A title but you certainly can’t sleep on Oakland. Spartans 27 Patriots 24   D2-Class A: DCA (11-1) vs. Nash. Christian ( - Battle of Nashville area teams pits two high scoring offense against each other with seniors leading the way. People may be sleeping on NCS as they have a team capable of winning the state title but I gotta roll with the Wildcats as they are playing with magic right now. Wildcats 34 Eagles 23 <img class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-239676" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/redzone/uploads/2021/11/afrancis2-300x300.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="300" /> D2-Class AA: CPA (11-2) vs. Lipscomb Academy (11-1) - This is a rivalry and a rematch from earlier this season where the Mustangs beat CPA and did so in an easy fashion. The Lions have the quarterback and are defending state champs, so it would be surprising at all to see CPA come away as the winner but this is the Mustangs season and it has to end with a title. Mustangs 38 Lions 28   D2-Class AAA: McCallie (12-0) vs. MBA (9-3) - Nobody has been able to slow down this Blue Tornado team this year and I don’t see MBA doing so either. McCallie is like a well oiled machine that doesn’t show any kinks. They know how to win championship level games and I expect them to handle business as usual in Chattanooga. Blue Tornado 34 Big Red 17