Back to Back State Titles For Lipscomb Academy

<h2>The Mustangs owned this game from start to finish in defeating CPA, 42-0 to bring the Gold Ball back to campus for the second year in a row! </h2>     A familiar matchup took place in Game One of the TN HS Playoff Championships on Thursday morning with Lipscomb Academy taking on CPA in Chattanooga with the Mustangs winning 35-0 and taking their second consecutive D2-Class AA state title back with them to Nashville.    Early on with the first drive, CPA was able to force the Mustangs to go three and out but after that, it was all Mustangs as their offensive line started to take over as well as the team speed started to become a problem.    The Mustangs got on the board first with their second offensive possession when sophomore running back [player_tooltip player_id='301396' first='Andrew' last='Patterson, Jr'] took the short yard carry into the end zone. On their very next drive, Lipscomb would score again after a reverse flip toss to Vanderbilt commit, [player_tooltip player_id='185565' first='Jr' last='Sherrill'].    Lipscomb took a 14-0 lead before CPA could even start to manage a positive drive and that didn't end well for the Lions as they went for it on 4th down and did not complete the pass.    The ball went back to the Mustangs and they immediately tacked on another score with Sherrill taking the handoff and using his speed and power to break through the CPA defense for the touchdown.   <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://twitter.com/joe_spears7/status/1598360480518705152?s=20&t=0D0DVpDJ1vcsZpODexNvnA </div></figure>   Holding a 21-0 lead deep into the 2nd quarter, Lipscomb was in total command, able to do just about anything they wanted with CPA having no answers. That continued going into halftime after another short yard rushing touchdown with this one coming from Micah Burton. The Mustangs took a 28-0 lead into the locker room and in total control of the contest with another state title looming.    CPA would take the ball to start the second half but any hope they had to come back was immediately dashed as junior defensive back [player_tooltip player_id='149389' first='Kaleb' last='Beasley'] picked off Lions quarterback [player_tooltip player_id='297332' first='Thomas' last='Vaccaro'] and returned it to the five yard line.    Three plays later, the Mustangs would take a 35-0 lead after Sherrill's third touchdown of the day. The future Commodore wasn't done as on the very next drive, Sherrill would score again with this one coming by way through the air. The Lipscomb Academy wideout was unguardable and unstoppable in this game and showed off the skills that makes him a future SEC talent.   <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://twitter.com/Cam_615Preps/status/1598374773104443392?s=20&t=0D0DVpDJ1vcsZpODexNvnA </div></figure>   At this point, it was all but sealed up that Lipscomb Academy would walk away as champs but we would need to play the rest of half out before the Gold Ball could be handed over.    CPA would continue to get the ball on offense and receive chances at moving the ball and scoring points but they just could not get anything going. The Mustangs defense, especially their defensive line, caused problems for the Lions O-line the entire game, which could not give the quarterback enough time to throw nor allow their run game to have any traction.    It was an all out dominating performance from the Mustangs that eventually came to end with a final score of 42-0 and the second state championship in a row for head coach Trent Dilfer and his Lipscomb Academy football program.    This was a dominating season for the Mustangs where they steamrolled through their opponents that only had to end with the team holding up a “Gold Ball” and that's exactly what happened!   <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://twitter.com/LAmustangFB/status/1598389628955787264?s=20&t=0D0DVpDJ1vcsZpODexNvnA </div></figure>     Player of the Game/MVP   (WR) [player_tooltip player_id='185565' first='Jr' last='Sherrill'] - Lipscomb Academy    - Sherrill was absolutely dominant! CPA has no answers for this future Vanderbilt Commodore as the 5'10 athletic wideout scored four touchdowns on the day, two on the ground and two in the air. Sherrill is one of the top overall playmakers in this state for the #TN2023 and he certainly showed off those skills and then some on his way to championship MVP honors.      Other Top Performers    - (QB) [player_tooltip player_id='285338' first='Hank' last='Brown'] - Lipscomb Academy: It wasn't the flashiest of games for Brown but he was efficient and provided great command and leadership, helping his Mustangs offense dominate when they were on the field.    - ‘24 (DB) [player_tooltip player_id='149389' first='Kaleb' last='Beasley'] - Lipscomb Academy: Beasley locked down the Lions star receiver in Humphreys and picked off a pass early in the 2nd quarter that helped extend the Mustangs lead.    - ‘25 (OL) [player_tooltip player_id='219412' first='Chauncey' last='Gooden'] - Lipscomb Academy: The Mustangs offensive line was dominating in this game with Gooden being at the forefront of those efforts. This guy is a future Power Five player that will only get better as he matures.    - ‘25 (RB) [player_tooltip player_id='301396' first='Andrew' last='Patterson, Jr'] - Lipscomb Academy: A lot of the rushing carries went to Sherrill but Patterson, Jr was a nice compliment on the day, scoring a touchdown and using his strong frame to run over opponents.   <figure class="wp-block-image size-large is-resized"><img src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/redzone/uploads/2022/12/apattersonjr.jpeg" alt="" class="wp-image-532276" width="465" height="310"/></figure>