Friday Night Lights - Playoff Semifinals - Maryville vs. Oak Ridge

Tonight's game had nothing except a trip to the state championship on the line. Oak Ridge had won every single playoff game they played up to this point on the road. Maryville was just the opposite, never having to leave their home field to play. I had a time conflict this week with the Tennessee men's basketball team playing in the NIT championship game against Villanova. The game started at 5pm so I thought I could watch the 1st half then make my way to Maryville High School. I was correct and got to the field just as the Maryville band began to play the National Anthem.

No reason at all that Steven Pearl should be lifting that trophy instead of Tobias Harris.

I decided to retire my press pass and pay the $8 admission for this one, making it the first game I've paid for since the week zero game between Bearden and Walker Valley. Once again this week I was not prepared for the weather. As soon as I started walking to the stadium I began to hope that Maryville would put this game away quickly so I could leave early. Maryville quickly dashed my hopes of that happening by fumbling the first play after the kick off. Oak Ridge recovered on the Maryville 17 yard line but could only manage a field goal to take a 3-0 lead. Maryville made the most of their second possession when Rebel quarterback Patton Robinette took a QB scramble 77 yards to put the Maryville Rebels up 7-3. Oak Ridge went three and out and Robinette hit Preston Burnett after evading a couple of tacklers for a 65 yard touchdown pass on third and twelve. On the Wildcats following drive, cornerback Brandon Johns made it look like the route may be on for the Rebels when he intercepted Oak Ridge quarterback Bradley Zulliger and returned the ball to the Oak Ridge 13 yard line which led to a 2 yard score by Maryville running back Jacob West, ending the first quarter with the Rebels leading 21-3, and leaving me hopeful I may be able to leave at halftime.

Oak Ridge got things going in the 2nd quarter. After a lengthy drive, Wildcat quarterback Bradley Zulliger put Oak Ridge in the end zone for the first time after a QB sneak play from the 1 yard line. The Oak Ridge defense stepped things up as well as a punishing hit from two Oak Ridge defenders knocked the ball loose from Patton Robinette allowed the Wildcats to regain possession on their own 45 yard line. Bradley Zulliger again took matters into his own hands and scrambled 35 yards to pull Oak Ridge within one score at 21-17. It was at this moment I began to get a little nervous I would have to sit through the entire game in the cold.

I feel your pain buddy.

Maryville answered the Oak Ridge touchdown this time when Patton Robinette found Logan Winders all alone for a 48 yard touchdown pass pushing the Rebel lead to 28-17. On the ensuing drive the turnover bug struck the Wildcats again when Zulliger was intercepted by Baylee Delozier who took the interception 72 yards for a touchdown. It looked like Zulliger may have the angle on Delozier and would be able to tackle him around the Oak Ridge 20 yard line. Baylee however slowed down a bit and when Zulliger tried to do the same he slipped and fell giving Delozier nothing but green in front of him.

Oak Ridge had one last chance before the half ended to put up some points but could only manage a field goal. The try was however a pretty nice 42 yarder that banged through off the crossbar making the score 35-20 at half. In the second half the only drama occurred when it looked like the Maryville Rebels were about to score yet again but a fumble by Robinette gave the ball back to the Wildcats. Oak Ridge wasn't able to do anything except punt though and in the 4th quarter Maryville's Zach Sharp put the final points on the board with a 32 yard field goal making the final score of 38-20. Oak Ridge's magical run ended and Maryville earned another trip to the Blue Cross bowl for a chance at the state title. If all works out I will be in Cookeville on Friday to watch one if not two of the three games that will be played then. I look forward to ending this season by watching some of the best in the state lift the championship trophy.

Who knew Clark Griswald lived across the street from Maryville High School. It is in fact Christmas time in Tennessee though.

Friday Night Lights - Playoff Quarterfinals - Alcoa vs. CAK

This was the game I was hoping to finish the regular season on, so you can imagine how hard I was rooting for both of these teams last week in the 3rd round games of the playoffs. I was also really excited to compare the atmosphere of an Alcoa game with that of a Maryville game. Both are huge Tennessee high school football powers and both look to be well on their way to another state championship this year. I was also a little nervous about using my press pass because of the small issues I have had at each of the Maryville games I have attended and also because I had exactly zero dollars in my wallet. Zenyatta pulled through again though, keeping me undefeated and running my money saved amount to $76. I had also remembered Alcoa doing some type of song during their warm ups at Maryville and wondered if it was just something for the Maryville game or something they did each week. Well I got my answer.

Don't know how much this actually helps, but 6 straight state titles speaks for itself I suppose.

Alcoa's defense was fired up from the opening whistle. On the first three plays alone, there was a sack, a stuffed run, and a near interception. With the temperature hanging in the low 40's I was hoping this would mean I would be able to leave early due to Alcoa racking up points at a blistering pace. CAK had to punt and the ball rolled to the 6 yard line before being downed. The bad field position caused the Tornadoes to punt and on the second play of their second drive, the Warrior's Quinn Epperly hooked up with Josh Smith for what seemed to be a 48 yard touchdown pass. However, an ineligible receiver down field penalty took those points off the board and CAK had to once again punt.

CAK's defense looked to be fired up as well. They wouldn't let Alcoa get anything going and after forcing the Tornadoes to punt, Josh Smith once again made a big play returning the punt 45 yards inside the Alcoa 5 yard line. This time a block in the back penalty on the Warriors was what negated the big run and once again CAK was their own worst enemy. The penalty was not as costly this time though, and Jordan Ritchie, under the coaching of former Vols kicker Jeff Hall, banged home a 19 yard field goal and gave CAK the lead to end the first ahead 3-0.

FTW

After beginning to establish a solid running game that gained the Tornadoes 4-6 yards a carry, Vanderbilt Hambrick broke free on a 63 yard touchdown run. Much like the previous two big plays for CAK, Alcoa's first big play was also brought back because of a block in the back penalty. The only difference this time was Alcoa ended up putting the points back on the board when Darrell Warren scored from 5 yards out to put Alcoa ahead 7-3. Alcoa forced another punt from CAK before the Tornado's Austin Tallant went for Steven Isom in the end zone, which would have put Alcoa ahead 14-3 before halftime. Charlie High made a great play on the ball however and intercepted the pass giving the Warriors the ball back with enough time to try and make something happen before half. CAK took a big shot down field and Quinn Epperly had a wide open Zach Mead streaking toward the end zone on a post pattern. The only problem was he dropped it. Alcoa led at halftime 7-3.

During the break, Alcoa recognized one of its most talented athletes by retiring his number 7 jersey. He was a four time state champion and seemingly held every record possible for Alcoa in football, as well as 2 state records in track and field. He now holds a large handful of offensive records for the University of Kentucky and is closing in on career marks for the Wildcats in only his third year on the field. As he was walking out to the 50 yard line to be honored, I must be honest, I was hoping he would step in a divot and severely sprain his ankle so he couldn't play next week, helping to add another honor to his resume, helping Kentucky snap a 25 game losing streak to the University of Tennessee.

Cobb probably never had to call out the Alcoa fans for not showing up to big games.

Alcoa received the ball to begin the second half and seemed to turn exclusively to Darrell Warren and Taharin Tyson on a drive that ate up close to 10 mins of the third quarter. A failed 4th down attempt gave the ball back to the Warriors but all they could do was punt. Alcoa's second drive of the half was much quicker after a 40 yard run from Vanderbilt Hambrick, and a few runs from Darrell Warren in which he impersonated a steam roller running over the safeties, set up a 16 yard touchdown run for Hambrick giving Alcoa a 14-3 lead. CAK was forced to punt on their ensuing drive and Alcoa began the 4th quarter with the ball and didn't give it back to CAK until there was only about 3 minutes left in the game. The Warriors threw four straight passes and each fell to the ground allowing Alcoa to just take a knee to finish the game, preserving the 14-3 win and assuring them a spot in the semifinals.

Meanwhile Maryville ended Devrin Young's high school career, beating the Bulldogs 52-20. Oak Ridge continued an impressive run in the post season, winning their 3rd straight road game against Riverdale after late TD gave them the 28-21 lead. This sets up another post season rematch next week where Oak Ridge will travel to Maryville, having to win their 4th straight road game in order to get to Cookeville. Hopefully Zenyatta has one more in her and can keep me undefeated on the year as I make my way back to Maryville to see who gets to play for the District 5A state championship.

Friday Night Lights - Playoffs Round 2 - Webb vs. USJ

Tonight I decided to take in a game at Webb School of Knoxville where the Spartans and the Bruins of University School of Jackson met in a rematch of last year's state championship game. Webb was a number 1 seed while USJ was a number 2. I was immediately blown away by the facilities Webb had. By far they had the nicest press box I had seen all year, and the fencing around the field reminded me of what is around Tom Black Track at the University of Tennessee. After being in the stands for a little bit, I realized that the USJ parents really took their football serious as they all got up and walked over to the part in the gate that the Bruins would take the field in, and formed a tunnel that led all the way to the Bruin locker room.

My press pass, which I named Zenyatta last week, was put to the test at the gate. My name wasn't on the press list, and I was legitimately concerned I may have to pay. However, after close inspection, the man working the ticket table allowed me free entry. I don't know what this makes me on the year, but I know I am still undefeated and my total money saved is now $68.

Webb got the ball to start the game and after one play, I knew this game wouldn't take long to complete as the Spartans run the triple option. They didn't even attempt a pass until the 2nd quarter. After a long drive, Webb's Caleb Blance broke free for a 20 yard touchdown run. The extra point attempt was wide left, although I didn't know until the referees signaled because Webb is yet another school with the uprights on their goalposts being only about 3 feet tall.

Can someone look into how much it would cost to add about 8 more feet of PVC pipe to these uprights at Webb, Farragut, and Halls???

USJ couldn't get anything working for them. After Powers Spencer showed unbelievable effort to convert a first down, the Bruins had to punt. Webb took their second possession and scored another touchdown on a 42 yard scamper from Caleb Blance's brother Aaron. This time point after was good and the score was 13-0 Webb. USJ looked like they might be beginning to click after Jake Overbey hit Lee Mayhall for a 25 yard gain that had 15 yards added to the end of the play due to a late hit on Webb. A fumbled snap dashed those dreams when Jake Grayson recovered ending USJ's drive. The Bruins discovered how to play defense though and forced a punt. Overbey, who on Wednesday signed a letter of intent to play baseball for Ole Miss, scrambled on a play during the ensuing Bruin drive and showed only that he won't be stealing second base at anytime while in Oxford. Overbey also liked to hold on to the ball a little longer than he probably needed to which reminded me of another quarterback you may know.

Hey, at least he didn't go out there and throw it straight to the other team right?

Overbey hit Tillman Keller for 18 yards which set up a 4 yard QB draw which Overbey scored on making the score 13-7. Webb looked like they may score before the half ended after Caleb Blance took the kickoff back 50 yards but the Spartans were unable to do anything with great field position and that halftime score stood at 13-7. Just as the Bruins looked like they may take the lead on the opening drive of the 2nd half, Todd Kelly intercepted Overbey and Webb eventually scored on a 12 yard pass from Parker Wormsley to Aaron Blance. Webb couldn't convert the 2 point conversion so the score held at 19-7. Webb kept the pedal down after a USJ fumble and Caleb Blance had another 20 yard run for a touchdown pushing the Webb lead to 26-7 to end the third quarter.

USJ pulled within two scores when Overbey hit Chase Rushing on a post pattern for a 25 yard touchdown pass, pulling the Bruins to within 12 points at 26-14. The USJ fan sitting behind me didn't really understand the scoring in football, and was convinced that the Bruins were down 3 scores and should have gone for two instead of kicking the field goal for one after the touchdown

Just that simple.

Webb added two more scores to finish the game. The first was a 22 yard run from Aaron Blance and the second was a 72 yard scramble from Parker Wormsley which created the final score of 41-14. Webb dominated in every aspect of the game. Their defense was all over the field and the Spartan offensive front had their way with the Bruin defensive line. The Spartans move on to face #3 seed Evangelical Christian School for the right to play in the state championship game. If Webb plays at the level they did tonight, I have no doubt they will be in Cookeville in two weeks for the state championship.

Friday Night Lights - Playoffs Round 1 - Catholic vs. Shelbyville

This Friday was the first round of the TSSAA playoffs and there are a number of schools from the greater Knoxville area that are involved. However, only two were teams playing at home in stadiums I hadn't made it to during the regular season. CAK is a #2 seed and played #7 Kingston while Catholic is a #4 and played #5 Shelbyville. I chose the Catholic game because based solely on seeding it should have been a decent game. Hopefully I'll be able to go to a game all the way up until the State Championship in Cookeville, but we will have to see how that plays out.

I knew the stakes would be higher tonight as far as the press pass goes. I would no longer be shorting a school from $6, but the state from $7, and The Man doesn't like to be shorted. I was a bit nervous as I approached the gate and after the two ticket takers pointed me to the pass gate by saying, "They have a list over there." my fears grew slightly more. I have saved a total of $54 by not paying throughout the season. Well make it $61. I showed the lady my fake pass and without hesitation she reached and gave me a real one making the fake pass a perfect 10-0.

I immediately named my pass Zenyatta.

Since I was at Catholic, I started comparing everything I saw to when I went to Notre Dame. I also thought of a lot of jokes that start with, "A priest walks into a bar. . ." but that is for another post. Right as the game was about to kickoff my dad and I discussed how incredibly empty the stands were. This could have been the last game for some of the kids on the Catholic team and there weren't even enough people in the stands to say "at least the parents came." It was amazing to me. I know that Catholic is a relatively smaller school, but with around 50 players on the team there should have been at least 100 adults there and I can't confidently say that there was. I can understand why the bagpipe player's parents didn't come, but if you child is a player, you have to be there no questions asked.

I don't think I could ever point at my son while he is dressed in a kilt carrying around bagpipes and happily say, "THAT'S MY SON!"

Catholic received to start the game, and took quite a bit a time off of the clock to start the 1st quarter. It became pretty evident really quick that Shelbyville was over matched. Catholic's Nolan Coulter broke what would have been a touchdown run, but after a gain of about 20 yards, the 30 yard line jumped up and tackled him. It took a great catch by Michael Bonfini to keep the Catholic drive going. Coulter eventually scored from 8 yards out to give the Irish a 7-0 lead and that's how the quarter ended. Shelbyville's defense was a little more than suspect on the drive, as they allowed 8 and 9 yards a play. It was freezing cold, so the fact that the Golden Eagles defense looked like Swiss cheese made me happy. I knew I was leaving early. The Catholic girls' soccer team was recognized at the end of the quarter for making it to the State semifinals. Play almost resumed while the girls were still on the 30 yard line. I was hoping it would with the play selection involving a deep fade.

Shelbyville's struggles continued on offense, where on their first drive of the 2nd quarter they went three and out and had to punt to Catholic. On the second play from scrimmage Mike Wegzyn hit a wide open Michael Bonfini for a 45 yard touchdown pass that put Catholic up 14-0. Shelbyville looked like it may get something going when Zach Hamler broke free on a run that covered 25 yards, but before being tackled, Hamler fumbled and Catholic recovered. The Irish drove down the field again and once more it was Nolan Coulter who put the points on the board for Catholic making it 21-0. Catholic got the ball back with just over a minute remaining and executed their Indy offense to perfection. Wegzyn put the cherry on top when he hit Vic Wharton on a beautiful post route in the end zone. The Irish took a 28-0 lead into halftime, with 21 points coming in just 12 minutes of play.

The Shelbyville medical staff, consisting of the man here in overalls and a fanny pack, may have been working double at halftime because The Golden Eagles were being run all over.

I stayed to see Shelbyville's first drive of the 2nd half and thought they might erase the goose egg after Hamler completed a pass for a gain of 36 yards. Once again though the Golden Eagles had to punt, and Catholic called off the dogs after Wegzyn scored on a QB keeper from 11 yards out to make the final of 35-0 Catholic. With this loss Shelbyville's season is over and Catholic moves on to face Columbia in the 2nd round of the playoffs next week with the game being played at Columbia. Maryville topped Science Hill and Farragut beat Sevier County to set up a rematch in the second round that will once again be played at Maryville. I wonder if they will have another parachuter bringing the game ball. I'll let you know next week as that is the game I plan on attending.