Week One Slate (Top Games/Matchups)

<h2 class="wp-block-heading">High school football in Tennessee is back! The season officially kicks off tonight and rolls through Saturday evening. Week One provides a wonderful slate of games and some interesting matchups. Our experts here at #PRZTN have broken down our top ten games of the week with analysis and predictions. </h2>     Maryville Rebels at Alcoa Tornadoes   - The battle of Blount Co. kicks off the 2025 season between two powerhouse programs in Maryville traveling to Alcoa in what should be another classic that isn't finalized till the fourth quarter. The Rebels bring a championship caliber squad to town, led by the backfield of [player_tooltip player_id='1723184' first='Will' last='Jones'], Cameron Porter and [player_tooltip player_id='800786' first='Tory' last='Beaufort'] versus an Alcoa team that has moved up to the 4A level this year but still have their eyes on the big prize of winning another state title. The Tornadoes have a loaded team this Fall but are implementing a new starter at quarterback, so that will be an interesting position to follow in this game and throughout the season. This should be a fun game to pay attention to as I can see either team coming out on top. If the Rebels can generate enough offense against a strong Tornadoes defense, the road team may pull out the victory but that will be tough to accomplish on the road within a hostile environment.    Expert Predictions   Chris Smith - Alcoa 33 Maryville 25   Drew Toennies - Maryville 24 Alcoa 21   Shayne Pickering - Maryville 23 Alcoa 17   Conner Smith - Maryville 27 Alcoa 17   <figure class="wp-block-image size-large is-resized"><img src="https://prepredzone.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2024/10/maryville2.jpg?w=1024" alt="" class="wp-image-1540797" style="width:298px;height:auto" /></figure>   - - - - -    CPA Lions at Oakland Patriots   - Possibly the biggest game and matchup from “Week One” are these two Mid-Tennessee powerhouses that head into the 2025 season as top state title contenders from their respective classifications. Both of these teams will be tested in game one to see how good each of them are and will be throughout the season. CPA brings a powerful rushing attack to town, led by senior star [player_tooltip player_id='1335216' first='Rawls' last='Patterson'] versus an Oakland defense that is built towards stopping the run. It will be interesting to see which one of these units succeeds in the end because whoever does win the battle in the trenches should win the game. The home Patriots will be looking to run the ball early and often as well with [player_tooltip player_id='856867' first='Craig' last='Tutt'] and a deep running back core. Whoever does take the crown of being the best running team in this game should gain the ultimate edge towards victory.    Expert Predictions   Chris Smith - CPA 28 Oakland 20   Drew Toennies - Oakland 35 CPA 28   Shayne Pickering - Oakland 23 CPA 17    Conner Smith - Oakland 34 CPA 21   - - - - -    Anderson Co. Mavericks at Powell Panthers   - We should have a packed house in Powell on Friday evening for this East Tennessee matchup between two teams that have their eyes on winning a “Gold Ball” this year. The Mavericks bring a highly talented ball club to town that has a chance to be high scoring and explosive on offense with a freshman at the helm in J.D. Gillum. He will be throwing against a stout Panthers defense that is opportunistic in the secondary, led by senior defender [player_tooltip player_id='1592486' first='Taa' last='Henderson']. Watching the Mavs passing attack will be fun but establishing [player_tooltip player_id='806042' first='Jayzon' last='Thompson'] and their rushing attack may be key towards winning the game. The battle that may determine the outcome however may be the Powell offense versus the Anderson Co. defense. The Panthers return [player_tooltip player_id='1111032' first='Deuce' last='Rodgers'] at quarterback but has he improved enough to push his offense to another level? We shall see but this game should be a fun one!    Expert Predictions   Chris Smith - Anderson Co. 30 Powell 20   Drew Toennies - Powell 21 Anderson Co. 20   Shayne Pickering - Powell 24 Anderson Co. 21   Conner Smith - Powell 17 Anderson Co. 6   - - - - -    Upperman Bees at Knox. Webb Spartans    - Upperman heads into the 2025 season as a favorite to contend for a 4A title and we will find out how good they might be with a major test on the road in “Week One” versus a solid Knox. Webb team. The Bees have a winning culture and an offensive scheme that travels well into different environments. Their offense is well equipped this year to handle tough road games with [player_tooltip player_id='1254853' first='Bronzden' last='Chaffin'] at quarterback, [player_tooltip player_id='492559' first='Carmine' last='Phillips'] and others producing at running back and a solid offensive line with decent size, led by junior big man [player_tooltip player_id='1566197' first='Parker' last='Cox']. I think the Bees offense will do well in this matchup but can their defense find a way to match the Spartans athleticism on offense, especially senior two-way player [player_tooltip player_id='402563' first='Shavar' last='Young, Jr']. That will be the challenge for Upperman to overcome in this game. Senior [player_tooltip player_id='1648112' first='Elijah' last='Fitts'] may be the guy that makes the biggest impact on this game with his potential at having to guard Young, Jr and other Spartan pass catchers.    Expert Predictions   Chris Smith - Upperman 31 Knox. Webb 21   Drew Toennies - Knox. Webb 27 Upperman 24   Shayne Pickering - Knox. Webb 24 Upperman 21   Conner Smith - Upperman 31 Knox. Webb 27    <figure class="wp-block-image size-large is-resized"><img src="https://prepredzone.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2025/07/cphillips.jpg?w=1024" alt="" class="wp-image-1741215" style="width:278px;height:auto" /></figure>   - - - - -    Southwind Jaguars at Lausanne Lynx   - Moving up to the 6A level this season, Southwind kicks off the 2025 campaign on the road versus a good Lausanne team that should present a challenge to a potential state title contending team. The Jaguars have a loaded team this year with star players on both sides of the ball. Their offense is seasoned with [player_tooltip player_id='480742' first='Kelvin' last='Perkins'] at the helm with a talented receiving corps and a powerful offensive line, headlined by juniors [player_tooltip player_id='1159814' first='Antonio' last='Keefer'] and [player_tooltip player_id='378854' first='Chris' last='Campbell']. I expect Southwind to be high scoring this year and in this game but their defense may see a challenge stopping the athletic Lynx duo at receiver in [player_tooltip player_id='860627' first='Jawell' last='Rodgers'] and [player_tooltip player_id='1556594' first='Lawrence' last='Britt']. The Jags defense looks equipped and up for the challenge but it won't be easy slowing either of those guys down. Being that it's the first game of the year, the Jags could start slow but in the end, they might end up having too much firepower for the Lausanne defense to handle.    Expert Predictions   Chris Smith - Southwind 35 Lausanne 17    Drew Toennies - Lausanne 28 Southwind 14   Shayne Pickering Lausanne 31 Southwind 20    Conner Smith - Lausanne 21 Southwind 7    - - - - -    East Nashville Eagles at Collierville Dragons   - This is an interesting matchup that we have in “Week One” as the 3A Eagles from Nashville travel to Memphis to take on a powerful and talented Collierville team that has their eyes on contending for a 6A state title. Everybody will immediately pick the home team in this game and I would too but we can't sleep on East Nashville as they are a well coached squad that brings some strong talent into this matchup as well. Watching the run game for both teams should be fun as we have two of the best on display in this game with [player_tooltip player_id='1669050' first='Lawrence' last='Autry'] from Collierville and [player_tooltip player_id='971296' first='Keith' last='Johnson'] from East Nashville. The Dragons are good on defense but I think Johnson will get his yards but watching how the Eagles run defense handles Autry could dictate their chances at winning or losing. This contest may turn out to be closer than many of us think but I still see Collierville with the clear upper hand.    Expert Predictions   Chris Smith - Collierville 34 East Nashville 21   Drew Toennies - Collierville 28 East Nashville 21   Shayne Pickering - Collierville 27 East Nashville 17    Conner Smith - East Nashville 28 Collierville 24   - - - - -    Whitehaven Tigers at Ensworth Tigers   - I believe this is the first time these two programs have ever faced each other and if I'm wrong, my bad but boy isn't this an interesting matchup to watch here in “Week One”. This feels like a true college football non-conference game that you rarely see but really want to. Whitehaven comes to town with a highly athletic team that is led by [player_tooltip player_id='1431775' first='Christopher' last='Talley'] and their running game. The home Tigers should present a solid run stuffing defense that is strong at linebacker with [player_tooltip player_id='1132842' first='Blake' last='Surratt'] and [player_tooltip player_id='854393' first='Jayden' last='Pyant'] to counteract the Whitehaven rushing attack. Which either team is able to establish the passing game may gain the edge. Ensworth will have the best quarterback on the field with [player_tooltip player_id='1153810' first='Taylor' last='Hasselbeck'] but his O-line must keep him clean while finding a way to slow down [player_tooltip player_id='1162375' first='Cory' last='House'] and the Tigers pass rush. This contest may prove to be one of the more entertaining games we have from the “Week One” slate.    Expert Predictions   Chris Smith - Ensworth 27 Whitehaven 17    Drew Toennies - Ensworth 35 Whitehaven 28   Shayne Pickering - Ensworth 30 Whitehaven 17    Conner Smith - Ensworth 21 Whitehaven 13   - - - - -    Pearl Cohn Firebirds at MBA Big Red   - Two of the more proud football programs we have from the greater Nashville area are these two teams that square in “Week One” in what could be a close, hard fought contest. The Big Red have been dormant while dealing with injuries over the past couple of years but look equipped this year for better football and it's quite important to have [player_tooltip player_id='688833' first='Hugh' last='Price'] back under center on offense. His play this year will be highly important in the team's overall success and he will be tested this Friday against an athletic and aggressive Firebirds defense. Pearl Cohn isn't afraid to play anybody, regardless if it's home and away. Their defense travels and I expect them to be ready for a Big Red offense that will be looking to establish themselves as a formidable unit for the coming season. Look out for [player_tooltip player_id='1432204' first='Karmelo' last='League'] and his pass rush against Price as an X-Factor in the Firebirds favor.    Expert Predictions   Chris Smith - Pearl Cohn 24 MBA 21    Drew Toennies - Pearl Cohn 17 MBA 14   Shayne Pickering - Pearl Cohn 17 MBA 16    Conner Smith - Pearl Cohn 21 MBA 20   <figure class="wp-block-image size-large is-resized"><img src="https://prepredzone.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2025/03/kleague.jpg?w=400" alt="" class="wp-image-1647258" style="width:241px;height:auto" /></figure>   - - - - -    Knox. Catholic Fighting Irish at Riverdale Warriors   - This game has the makeup of being high scoring and entertaining due to both team's offensive weapons and quarterback play. Knox. Catholic comes to town with a talented team that is led by [player_tooltip player_id='496084' first='Mack' last='Bartholomew'] at quarterback, wide receiver [player_tooltip player_id='284149' first='Tyreek' last='King'] and the Fighting Irish offense. Riverdale should counteract that with their own quarterback and receiving connection between [player_tooltip player_id='1287058' first='Gavin' last='Hampton'] and [player_tooltip player_id='1103005' first='Corben' last='Reynolds']. Watching these two teams pass the football should be fun but I think whoever takes the advantage in the run game will gain an edge towards winning. Both these teams will present sophomores in the backfield with [player_tooltip player_id='1084814' first='Matthew' last='Rogers'] and [player_tooltip player_id='1868595' first='Jacob' last='Vaughn']. Gaining a push on the offensive line will be critical for both squads. I like the Warriors unit better but that doesn't mean anything on paper. Overall, this a great opportunity for both teams to play someone of good quality, which will help in the long run with both eyeing a deep run in the playoffs.    Expert Predictions   Chris Smith - Riverdale 38 Knox. Catholic 34    Drew Toennies - Riverdale 31 Knox. Catholic 28   Shayne Pickering - Knox. Catholic 27 Riverdale 20    Conner Smith - Knox. Catholic 30 Riverdale 24    - - - - -    Beech Buccaneers at Green Hill Hawks   - Week one kicks off tonight with this highly intriguing Mid-TN matchup between two squads that have aspirations of winning region titles and potentially competing for state championships. Beech comes to town with a winning culture, so they shouldn't be intimated by the road atmosphere at Green Hill. The Bucs are known for running the ball and I expect them to continue churning away on the ground this Fall, especially with a potent 1-2 punch in [player_tooltip player_id='800803' first='Chelton' last='Swafford'] and [player_tooltip player_id='1206523' first='D.K.' last='Williams']. The home Hawks counteract the Bucs run game with their own potent backfield of quarterback [player_tooltip player_id='964976' first='Kannon' last='Burroughs'] and junior ball carrier [player_tooltip player_id='1841394' first='Zachery' last='Cartwright']. Passes will be thrown but I expect this game to be won and lost on the ground. Whichever defense is able to slow down the opposition and keep the run game in-check, should gain an advantage. Turnovers may prove to be key as well. This may not be the most exciting, entertaining game but it's a great litmus test for both teams and their chances at putting forth a big 2025 season.    Expert Predictions   Chris Smith - Green Hill 31 Beech 21    Drew Toennies - Green Hill 24 Beech 17   Shayne Pickering - Beech 27 Green Hill 24    Conner Smith - Green Hill 27 Beech 13    - - - - -    Other Top Week One Matchups   East TN: McMinn Co. at Bradley Central, Walker Valley at Cleveland, Heritage at Clinton, Gordonsville at Coalfield, Sevier Co. vs. Farragut, Knox. Halls at Oak Ridge, Tyner Academy at Silverdale, Loudon at William Blount   Mid TN: Blackman at Clarksville, Nash. Christian at Davidson Academy, Hendersonville at Gallatin, McCallie at Lipscomb Academy    West TN: MUS at Bartlett, Dyer Co. at Dyersburg, Houston at Germantown, Haywood at Henry Co., Jackson North-Side at JC Merry, Memphis Central at Melrose, Memphis Biz. Academy at Munford, Camden at Riverside, FRA at South Gibson, MASE at Westview   <figure class="wp-block-image size-large is-resized"><img src="https://prepredzone.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2025/01/taahenderson.jpg?w=400" alt="" class="wp-image-1593378" style="width:265px;height:auto" /></figure>