PRZTN Playoff Preview: DII-AAA

<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Postseason action is upon us! Playoff games crank up this coming week and here at Prep Redzone Tennessee, we are previewing every classification, including here with the Division II-AAA level. All signs point to a few teams being in driver's seat for the state title but we definitely have some sleeper teams to watch for too. Find out all that information and more below inside our DII-AAA playoff preview.</h2>   <hr class="wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity" />   Division II-AAA Brackets   East #5 Knoxville Catholic (5-4) at West #4 Christian Brothers (5-5)   Bye -- East #1 Baylor (9-0)   -- -- --   West #6 Father Ryan (1-9) at East #3 McCallie (8-2)   Bye -- West #2 Briarcrest   -- -- --   East #6 CPA (2-8) at West #3 Lipscomb Academy (3-7)   Bye -- East #2 Ensworth (7-3)   -- -- --   West #5 MUS (6-4) at East #4 MBA (5-4)   Bye -- West #1 Brentwood Academy (9-0)   <hr class="wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity" />   <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Top Title Contenders/Favorites</h2>   <figure class="wp-block-image size-large is-resized"><img src="https://prepredzone.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2025/10/dwdgg.jpeg?w=1024" alt="" class="wp-image-1927056" style="width:787px;height:auto" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Baylor junior running back David Gabriel Georges (Photo: Baylor Football)</figcaption></figure>   Baylor: Baylor has been in three state championships under head coach Erik Kimrey and they will have their toughest path yet to winning the second trophy in his tenure. The team has arguably the best rushing attack in the entire state led by David Gabriel Georges, who can completely take over games against anyone. The team has dynamic potential in the slot again this year and utilizing the middle of the field will be essential for this team in the postseason. Defensively, the front seven has a handful of playmakers and a strong secondary gives them the ability to be aggressive at times.   McCallie: McCallie has won the last two state championships at this level and have a strong team yet again this season. They are again an offense built with a powerful rushing attack behind a massive and powerful offensive line and the play action game opens up a lot for a handful of perimeter weapons with good speed. Defensively, they are aggressive up in the front seven to complement a strong cornerback duo and play fundamentally sound football. Head coach Joel Bradford is one of the best in the state at putting his best playmakers in favorable positions and that has been a large reason for their success.   Brentwood Academy: Brentwood Academy is built around dynamic playmakers on both sides of the ball and those players can make big things happen at any given moment. That includes everything from a big run to downfield passing play to a crucial sack to forcing a turnover. The level of consistency that the team plays with up front and which players step up could determine how far into the playoff this team actually goes, but the team is good enough to win the state championship if everything goes right.   Ensworth: Ensworth is another team that is built on having a strong presence in the run game on both sides of the ball with dynamic athletes surrounding to make big plays on the perimeter. This team lost a lot of talent in the trenches due to graduation, but young players have stepped up to round out the group and they have the size to match people up front with arguably the second best running back in the classification. Defensively, they have an undersized, yet explosive cornerback room that make timely plays. This team will need young talent to consistently step up to win it all, but those players and this team is capable of playing at a level high enough to bring home a trophy.   <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://twitter.com/EnsworthFB/status/1983683968965968235 </div></figure>   <hr class="wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity" />   <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Sleeper Teams</h2>   <figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img src="https://prepredzone.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2025/11/Htuck-crop-1639x1076-1762231385.jpeg?w=800" alt="" class="wp-image-2004557" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Briarcrest Christian senior quarterback [player_tooltip player_id='492553' first='Hudson' last='Tucker']</figcaption></figure>   Knoxville Catholic: Knoxville Catholic is an exciting team filled with a strong mix of veteran players and premier young talent that gives them the potential to go as far as their play takes them in the playoffs. The team is good enough to surprise anyone in the state but a lot will come down to the run game on both sides of the ball. The CPA game to close the season was a good summary of this as in the first half Catholic allowed explosive rushing touchdowns and were limited in their own rushing attack, but the exact opposite happened in the second half and the Irish made a big comeback to win. They will need to be playing at the level in which they did to defeat CPA last week to make a deep postseason push.   Briarcrest Christian: Briarcrest is a program you do NOT want to sleep on in the postseason as this team has shown up for big games on their schedule every single time this season. The question for how deep they push in the bracket is how they take that next step to pulling out the victory in those type of games. Their three losses are to state championship contenders in their classifications and they lost each game by one possession. This team has playmakers and can make a team pay for underestimating them.   CPA: The negative is this team is 2-8; the positive is this team is very good. CPA might have had the hardest schedule ever in the state this season and they just could not find a way to win close games at this level after moving up from DII-AA. That is not indicative of the talent and coaching that this team possesses, however, and they can beat any team in this classification and a big win or two could be a massive momentum boost for the program after a tough regular season.   <hr class="wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity" />   <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Final Four/State Title Predictions</h2>   Upper Half: McCallie at Baylor   Bottom Half: Brentwood Academy at Ensworth   - - -   State Title Game: Baylor vs Ensworth   Division II-AAA State Champion: Baylor Red Raiders   <hr class="wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity" />   <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Key Prospects to Watch</h2>   <figure class="wp-block-image size-large is-resized"><img src="https://prepredzone.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2025/08/IMG_1039.jpeg?w=1024" alt="" class="wp-image-1854899" style="width:789px;height:auto" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Knoxville Catholic senior receiver [player_tooltip player_id='284149' first='Tyreek' last='King']</figcaption></figure>   Baylor 2027 RB David Gabriel Georges   David Gabriel Georges is one of the best recruits in the entire country and it is easy to see why when watching Baylor play. While Baylor is one of the best teams in the state this season, he has to put the team on his back in a couple of games and carry this team to victory. He will be essential to the championship hopes of Baylor this postseason.   Baylor 2026 DL [player_tooltip player_id='1210664' first='Jayden' last='Arenas-Michel']   Baylor has a defense filled with talent but none of their success would be made possible without the size and versatility of defensive lineman [player_tooltip player_id='1210664' first='Jayden' last='Arenas-Michel']. The team found a good edge rusher in [player_tooltip player_id='1357924' first='Hans' last='Emery Julien'], but as the team tries to fill in pieces up front, the MTSU defensive line commit can be used in a variety of ways, allowing the team to not be forced to sacrifice talent for need. For this defensive front to work, Arenas-Michel will need to make plays from a variety of spots on the line of scrimmage.   <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://twitter.com/shaynep_media/status/1961577273603006487 </div></figure>   Brentwood Academy 2027 WR [player_tooltip player_id='378855' first='Kesean' last='Bowman']   [player_tooltip player_id='378855' first='Kesean' last='Bowman'] has taken another step forward and has become impossible to cover for opposing defenses with his physicality at the catch point, long speed, and clean footwork. Brentwood Academy will need to make some explosive plays to match opponents in scoring and Bowman will be the player that should be relied upon to accomplish just that.   Ensworth 2027 RB EJ Gibson   EJ Gibson has been a revelation for this offense, with his dynamic rushing presence allowing for Ensworth to remain one of the top teams in the classification despite the program relying some on an influx on youth this season. Gibson will have to bring his best each week for Ensworth to win it all and he has the offensive line to do just that.   <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://twitter.com/connersmith04/status/1985158620917485882 </div></figure>   Ensworth 2026 WR/DB [player_tooltip player_id='492562' first='Justin' last='Hopkins']   While Gibson is the engine that makes the offense run for Ensworth, there is a lot of potential for explosive plays in the passing game with a lot of speed and a rock-solid quarterback throwing the ball around. [player_tooltip player_id='492562' first='Justin' last='Hopkins'] will have to make big plays happen as a receiver in each game while covering the opponent's best receiver as well.   Briarcrest Christian 2026 RB [player_tooltip player_id='1651725' first='Darreus' last='McFadden']   Briarcrest has become one of the most underrated teams in the state this season and a large part of that is due in fact to their dynamic rushing attack featuring a variety of tailbacks and even the quarterback, but it all starts with senior running back [player_tooltip player_id='1651725' first='Darreus' last='McFadden']. In games he can not contribute at all, this team has lost each time. However, he has had some massive games, including against Brentwood Academy which gave his team the chance for the upset. If he is running the ball at a high level, this team can surprise a lot of people.   McCallie 2026 WR [player_tooltip player_id='986024' first='Keeyshawn' last='Tabuteau']   McCallie is a run-first offense and always will be, but having a dynamic receiving threat like [player_tooltip player_id='986024' first='Keeyshawn' last='Tabuteau'] has added an entire new layer to the offense, something Joel Bradford is elite at taking advantage of. His explosive ability from the slot takes away a box defender each play and puts constant stress on the secondary as he is used in a variety of ways all over the field. McCallie has gone away from the pass in some big games and that can not be the case if they want to win it all.   <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://twitter.com/shaynep_media/status/1953965432588648938 </div></figure>   Knoxville Catholic 2026 WR [player_tooltip player_id='284149' first='Tyreek' last='King']   Knoxville Catholic will be searching for consistent play this postseason with a young team, and if there is one thing they should be able to count on, it is [player_tooltip player_id='284149' first='Tyreek' last='King'] generating explosive plays if given the chance. The Irish will have to find creative ways to utilize his dynamic abilities if they are looking to surprise this postseason.   Lipscomb Academy 2026 WR/DB [player_tooltip player_id='1170988' first='Cam' last='Blivens']   [player_tooltip player_id='1170988' first='Cam' last='Blivens'] has consistently put up ridiculous performances each week of the season for a couple of seasons now and can make huge plays happen against anyone he lines up against. He will be relied on heavily as a both a receiver and defensive back in the playoffs if Lipscomb Academy is looking to make any kind of run in their first year back to the bracket.   <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://twitter.com/connersmith04/status/1961621739651170529 </div></figure>   CPA 2026 RB [player_tooltip player_id='1335216' first='Rawls' last='Patterson']   CPA is good enough to make a very deep postseason push, but they will have to score points consistently to match their opponents and that all centers around their ability to get standout tailback [player_tooltip player_id='1335216' first='Rawls' last='Patterson'] going. He can make big runs happen if given a crease and he has an impressive offensive line to work with in front of him.