#TNHSFB Playoffs: Round One Takeaways
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Before we advance to the 2nd round, we look back at Round One and some of the biggest stories from the first week of Tennessee HS Football Playoff action where several top seeded teams went down in defeat! Class 2A-Region…
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Continue ReadingBefore we advance to the 2nd round, we look back at Round One and some of the biggest stories from the first week of Tennessee HS Football Playoff action where several top seeded teams went down in defeat!
Class 2A-Region 5 Goes Down
– Possibly the most shocking results from the entire 1st Round slate was seeing the Class 2A-Region 5 go down in flames as all four postseason qualified teams took defeat with each result being surprising in their own regard. There is no question that the biggest surprise from all results in round one was seeing top seed and previously undefeated Loretto lose to Peabody, 28-24. This defeat was one I’m sure many across the state did not see coming but this is what happens in a win or go home format and the Mustangs must wait until next year to compete for the 2A state title.
Another very surprising result came at the hands of Milan as they went into Lewis Co. and beat the Panthers, 40-6. The Bulldogs absolutely shut down Brycen McDonald and the Panthers offense while senior pass catcher Carson Pruitt and his Milan offense moved the ball at will in their first round victory.
Mt. Pleasant put a high scoring offense on the field most of the season but in the first round, they were non-existent as the Tigers were a no show in their 50-6 loss to Riverside. Being on the road against a veteran Panthers team proved to be too much for Mt. Pleasant as their offense could not do anything against Desmond Thomas and his defense.
The last squad from Region 5 to go down to defeat was Waverly and the Tigers had a very tough time to do anything in their shutout 62-0 loss to Huntingdon. Many knew the home Mustangs were the favorite and tough to beat but Waverly didn’t give them much of a challenge and eventually saw their 2023 season come to end.
Overall, this was a very disappointing showing for Class 2A-Region 5 in what was a banner regular season that had at least two, maybe three state title caliber teams lose in the first round. Several key seniors are leaving as well, so this might have been a great opportunity for these teams to do something special but there is always next year and I’m sure all four will look to make up for an early playoff exit.
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Class 6A-Region 8 Impressive in Round 1
– One of the best football regions in the state is Class 6A-Region 8 and it did not disappoint in Round One as all four of Germantown, Houston, Bartlett and Collierville won and advanced with some big games against each other looming in the second round.
Germantown rolled easily with a win over West Creek while the Mustangs did the same in a 47-0 demolition of Dickson County. Bartlett had to go on the road but they had no problems in their 48-16 victory over Rossview. Collierville is the lone Memphis area Region 8 program that had problems but they still found a way to come out with the win.
The Dragons was trailing the entire game until late in the 4th quarter, where the team rallied behind backup quarterback Grant Troutman Grant Troutman 6'3" | 190 lbs | QB Collierville | 2025 State TN and the offense scored two touchdowns to push ahead and defeat Clarksville, 23-22.
Now looking ahead, these four Region 8 squads play this coming Friday in round two with two of them seeing their season’s come to an end. Germantown hosts Bartlett while Collierville will remain on the road, facing a talented Houston team. This will be the 2nd game at Germantown for the Panthers as earlier this season they took defeat to the Red Devils, 44-20 but I’m sure they are looking forward to another opportunity against the top team in the 6A ranks.
Houston and Collierville just faced each other two weeks ago where the Mustangs won, 42-28 in a back and forth affair early on that ended in the favor of this Friday’s home team. It will be interesting to see if Aidan Glover plays this week as he left last week’s game with a concussion but if he is out, Troutman should be back under center and he has help with guy’s like Joakim Dodson ready to make plays.
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Knox Halls/McMinn Co. take 1st round losses
– Playoff season is a whole new ball game for every team that earns a place in it and both Knox. Halls and McMinn Co. received a strong dose of that last Friday as they both took defeat in Round One, knocking them out of contention for the Class 5A state title this year and looking ahead to the off-season. Both the Red Devils and Cherokees received home games for the first round but neither appeared ready for the challenge that was at hand as both were blown out by schools who had struggled throughout the 2023 season.
Knox. Halls had only seen defeat twice this year at 8-2 but they didn’t play up to their record as a 5-5 Morristown-West team came to town and took down the Red Devils 35-14. The Trojans defense completely shut down the Red Devils offensive attack while their run game on offense was a major factor behind their 35 points. This was a surprising defeat to me by Knox. Halls and a loss that should fuel the fire for players like Drew Ross and Amari Lethgo Amari Lethgo 6'1" | 185 lbs | QB Knox. Halls | 2026 TN headed into the 2024 season.
The Cherokees I feel had a tougher opponent to deal with the first round compared to Knox. Halls as they took on an underachieving Clinton team that sports college level talent but they just haven’t played up to their capabilities this year until this matchup against McMinn County.
Led by stud quarterback Joshua Keith, the Dragons offense was on point as they put up 34 points on one of the best defenses in the East Tennessee region to advance into the Round Two. Joined by Jawan Goins in the backfield, Keith had a good day spraying the ball around the field while producing big plays. For the home Cherokees, it was a tough loss to end a solid year and watch several key seniors end their careers, especially Landon Feggins, who had an All-State caliber season.
Both Knox. Halls and McMinn Co. should bounce back next year as both team’s return several key pieces from this year but I’m sure both would love to still be playing and not home watching others contend for the 5A state title.
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Station Camp stuns South Gibson
– In one of the biggest surprise upsets from the entire state for Round One was the Bison going into South Gibson and taking down a sleeper title team, defeating the Hornets 24-20. Many across the state, including me, did not see Station Camp beating South Gibson but you have to give credit to the Bison coaching staff and their players for letting go of the regular season and taking advantage of being in the playoffs.
The Bison have shown flashes throughout the 2023 season of strong play but have not been consistent enough to gain any traction behind their name but adding a playoff win over a good South Gibson team helps build the Station Camp brand.
A big reason behind the Bison’s road victory was the play of their defense, led by stud front seven defenders in new Tennessee St. commit Sanders Ellis and junior standouts Kelton Crisp and Ococee Ellis. The Station Camp defense did a good job of keeping the Hornets run game in check and not allowing star two-way talent Cameron Clark to go off. They had to fight till the end to get the victory but they got the job done. Now they must forget about this win and move on to face possibly the best team in the state in Pearl Cohn.
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Top state title contenders look impressive
As the playoffs got started last Friday, many of the top seeds and top teams from each classification were seen as big favorites in Round One and most of those top squads came away with victories. Just about all of your state title contenders were able to advance to Round Two with some teams dominating their opponents.
The top team from the 6A ranks in Germantown handled business with their 47-0 win over West Creek. Another undefeated squad in Bradley Central took care of West Ridge by defeating the Wolves, 42-0. Southwind continued their winning ways in Round Two with an all out smashing of Springfield, beating the Yellow Jackets 62-0. Better keep an eye on the Jags in the 5A ranks as nobody appears to be playing better than them right now.
Both Greeneville and Pearl Cohn from the 4A ranks were very impressive in Round One. The Green Devils ran by Fulton 48-14 while the Firebirds had no issues with Lexington, beating the Tigers 42-2. If everything plays out like I think it will, these two teams should be meeting in Chattanooga for the 4A state title in December.
Three of the top title contenders from the 3A ranks advanced to Round Two after first round dominating wins. Alcoa completely shut down Chucey-Doak in the Tornadoes 56-6 win over the Black Knights. Dyersburg remained undefeated after their 56-20 win over Memphis East. The Tigers of Meigs Co. also stayed undefeated after their Round One 50-8 win over Grundy Co. All three of these squads have championship caliber teams with many thinking it will be Alcoa and Dyersburg meeting up in Chattanooga.