Malone Enjoyed Pioneers' 10th Win About 3 Hours

Was Back To Work Early Saturday On Playoff Opponent

Sunday, November 1, 2015
Larry Fleming

It’s called the second season.

More precisely, prep football teams across the state are now gearing up for the TSSAA playoffs.

There is less confusion, fewer coaches are scratching their heads today. The first round matchups were keyed into the postseason formula and Friday’s regular-season outcomes filled in the blanks.

Twenty Chattanooga-area schools are in the massive playoff field, including East Ridge, which finished off a spectacular 10-0 season – the first in school history – with a 28-13 win over Chattanooga Christian. After missing the 2014 playoffs, coach Stacy Malone’s Pioneers roar into the postseason brimming with confidence and school-wide enthusiasm.

“I got out of here about 11 last night,” Malone said Saturday. “I enjoyed the win until about 2 in the morning while hanging out with some of the coaches and was back at the office at 9 (Saturday morning). I’ve had about 70 text messages, but it’s hard to enjoy.

“Being 10-0 is done. We’re all back to zero and we’ve got to get ready for Smith County.”

The Region 3-3A champion Pioneers will entertain Smith County (6-4), the No. 4 seed from Region 4-3A, on Friday to open their bid for the school’s first state football championship.

East Ridge has a 2-13 playoff record, according to the Tennessee Prep Football Database web site, and is 2-10 in first-round games. The Pioneers’ deepest venture into the postseason was a berth in the 1970 semifinals where they lost to Memphis Melrose, 26-6.

“I haven’t pinched myself yet,” Malone said. “I’ll relive this thing later. It’s funny, I was an assistant at Riverdale and we played for the state championship three years in a row, and won it in 2001. You finish that game and you’re so relieved, but it doesn’t hit you for a couple of days.”

East Ridge hasn’t won a playoff game since it defeated Knox Halls, 28-17, in 2001, but this year feels different for the Pioneers, who got fourth-quarter touchdowns by Traneil Moore (14-yard run) and Deondre Chambliss (56-yard interception return) to pull away from Chattanooga Christian for the win.

“There was pandemonium,” Malone said. “We had students, fans, alumni down on the field and that was really neat to see. One thing I’ve taken a step back to appreciate is the effect our season has had on our school. Last season we might have had 10 students in the stands. This year it’s more like 150. That’s been such a great thing to see and experience and see our kids walk down the halls and be appreciated.”

As for Smith County, Malone is familiar with the program. While the head coach at White County for three years, he faced Smith County twice.

“They’re always well-coached and disciplined,” he said. “If you beat them, you have to line up and physically beat them.”

For coach Justin Barnes’ Soddy-Daisy squad, Friday will be a repeat of the 2014 playoffs when the Trojans suffered a 53-28 first-round loss at the hands of Oak Ridge.

The 9-1 Wildcats have won seven in a row and their lone loss (31-14 on Sept. 4) was to Region 3-5A champion Farragut (9-1). The Admirals’ only setback was a 9-7 decision against Knoxville West.

“This year, at least we took care of our own business,” Barnes said. “Last year we snuck in and this year we finished third (in Region 4-5A behind Ooltewah and Rhea County) and that’s an improvement for us. We’re excited about the opportunity to go up there again.”

Barnes admitted the Trojans struggled defensively throughout the 2014 season, but that phase of the Trojans’ game has improved significantly.

“We’re much better defensively and we’ve been clicking offensively over the last few games,” he said. “The kids are ready for the challenge. We haven’t backed away from anybody this year. We played Ooltewah well, but were overmatched physically against Rhea County. I feel like we match up pretty well with Oak Ridge from what I’ve seen.”

Reaching the playoffs is old hat to coach Grant Reynolds at Boyd-Buchanan. The Bucs have been in every postseason since 1998, with one state title coming in 2003 with a 26-3 win over Donaldson Christian Academy.

This time around, the Bucs go into the playoffs with a 10-0 record, their first undefeated regular season since 1996 under coach Robert Akins. Boyd-Buchanan has never had an unbeaten season, although Akins’ 1996 team went 11-1.

“It’s always exciting to go to the playoffs,” Reynolds said. “Each year has a different feel to it. We’ve got a bunch of kids that like to prepare and practice. Playoffs are always challenging and I think these kids are up for the challenge.”

The Bucs open the playoffs at home, hosting Eagleville (5-5), which lost three of its final three regular-season games.

Boyd-Buchanan is clicking in all three phases of the game after whipping region rival Silverdale Baptist Academy, 49-0, on Friday. That was the Bucs’ third shutout of the season and they held three other opponents to seven or three points.

“We’re able to run the football and play good defense,” Reynolds said. “Those are two big things going into the playoffs because the weather can be bad a lot of times. The thing I really like is our special teams have played pretty well, especially the punt game. We’ve blocked several and returned seven for touchdowns. It’s a bonus when you make a play or two with special teams.”

No team had to work as hard as Ooltewah did in beating back Walker Valley, 45-44, in double overtime to win the Region 4-5A regular-season title.

The Owls got five touchdowns and 106 rushing yards from Rashun Freeman, but the outcome was finally determined when linebackers Jeremiah Jackson and Tyler Reid combined to stop Walker Valley running back Alex King on a two-point conversion try to end the game.

That win gave Ooltewah home field advantage through the first two rounds.

While earning playoff berths in each of the previous four seasons, the Owls have gotten beyond the second round only once. In 2012, Ooltewah reached the quarterfinals where it lost to Columbia, 31-13. In 2011, 2013 and 2014, the Owls lost in round two to Powell (42-21), East Hamilton (26-19) and Rhea County (47-14).

“Our first goal is to make the playoffs,” coach Mac Bryan said. “Second, we want to win the region championship. Back in the summer, we added a third goal – get past the second round. You can’t get to the last game (title game) if you can’t get past the second round.”

Bryan and the Owls continued senior night festivities with a post-game get-together in the school cafeteria and recognized football seniors and those from the band, cheerleaders and dance team as well, along with parents of those students.

“I had to leave,” Bryan said. “I was tired.”

While doing a phone interview, Bryan was taking a last look at film of Friday’s hard-fought victory before delving deeper into Clinton, the Owls’ first-round opponent.

“I know they like to throw the ball all over the place,” Bryan said. “We like to throw it, too, so it might be a long game. Clinton scores a lot of points (375) and they’ve given up some points (391).

2015 TSSAA Football Playoffs

First-Round Matchups, Area Teams

Friday, All Games 7 p.m. Local Time

Class 1A

Mt. Pleasant 6-4) at South Pittsburg (7-3)

Grace Baptist (5-5) at Fayetteville (8-2)

Moore County (6-4) at Whitwell (5-5)

Copper Basin (3-7) at Columbia Academy (9-1)

Class 2A

Eagleville (5-5) at Boyd-Buchanan (10-0)

Tyner (7-3) at Watertown (8-2)

Westmoreland (5-5) at Marion County (9-1)