Harris, Ross Celebrate State Titles For Hixson

Both Seniors Finish Prep Career On Positive Notes For Wildcats

  • Wednesday, March 1, 2017
  • John Hunt
Hixson's Cederick Harris, yellow singlet, found his way back for his second state wrestling championship this past month in Franklin, Tenn. Harris finished the season with a record of 35-5. His career won-lost totals stand at 100-30.
Hixson's Cederick Harris, yellow singlet, found his way back for his second state wrestling championship this past month in Franklin, Tenn. Harris finished the season with a record of 35-5. His career won-lost totals stand at 100-30.
photo by Dennis Norwood/File Photo

If the TSSAA ever started an award for Comeback of the Year honors, Hixson seniors Cederick Harris and Truman Ross would surely be nominated.

This is a real success story for these two young men. 

Like so many teenagers who are faced with difficult and often not good choices, Harris and Ross were among a group of Hixson wrestlers who last year decided to follow the beat of their own drum and to do things “their way.”  As a result, they were dismissed from the team.

No doubt they did a little soul searching after that happened and finally reached the point that they weren’t ready for that to be the end of their prep wrestling career.

They both approached head wrestling coach Garrick Hall and let him know that they wanted to make one more run for the money in this their final year at Hixson.

It’s safe to say they both had to pay a steep price, but they both did so without question and both were rewarded two weekends ago in Franklin as they both captured state titles in their respective weight classes, helping their teammates finish second behind Pigeon Forge.

Harris is a two-time region champ and now a three time state medalist after finishing third as a freshman at 113 and second as a sophomore at 132.  Perhaps the sweetest fact of all was that his win in the state finals was his 100th career victory for the Wildcats.

He finished at 35-5 this year and is now 100-30 for his career.

“I worked for that for the last four years and I couldn’t believe it at first,” said Harris earlier this week when asked about what it felt like to win a state title.

“I felt real confident going into that match and I beat a tall, lanky kid from Alcoa in the finals.  I normally score first, but I was penalized for grabbing his headgear and was behind 1-0 at the start.  I ended up winning the match, 7-4,” he smiled at the memory.

“I hope to go to the senior nationals at Virginia Beach in March and I’m planning to join some branch of the military after I graduate from Hixson, but I’m just glad that I could turn things around from what happened last year.  I think I learned my lesson,” he concluded.

Ross won his title at 220 pounds as he beat Red Bank’s Devon Suddeth for the third time this season, the last being by an 8-4 margin after edging him 3-2 in the regular season and 4-1 in the Region final.

He was also a previous medal winner at state after taking fourth as a sophomore at 220 pounds. His record this was 35-3 and his career mark 57-13.

“I started off pretty good, but it was a dream come true for me as my father was there to see me win,” Ross said in a quiet tone.

“I had beaten him twice going in, but knew it would be another tough match.  I was excited for sure, but I couldn’t let my nerves get the best of me.  Winning that match was a thrill, something I’d always worked for.  I just wish the season was still going,” he nodded.

Ross is planning to enter the Tournament of Champions in Ohio and is looking to improve on a fourth-place finisher there two years ago. He also plans to join the military as his intentions are to become a Combat Engineer in the Army.

Coach Hall is just happy that things turned out the way they did, both for Harris and Hall and the rest of their Wildcat teammates as well.

Hall took the Wildcats to Franklin for the State Duals the first weekend in February and it was a miserable experience.  Hixson lost its first two matches and were eliminated without experiencing a victory.  They were on their way back to Chattanooga early that Saturday afternoon.

Things changed in the following week after several heart-to-heart talks between coaches and wrestlers.

Once again, the Wildcats responded in a most positive fashion to win the Region 2-A/AA tournament and advance 11 to the state the following weekend.

Seven of those 11 earned a medal as Hixson finished second to Pigeon Forge.

“I’m really proud of these two young men as they overcame a lot of adversity and paid a high price to do what they did,” Hall said later.

“Landon Goforth was my first state champion last year, so Cederick and Truman make it three.  We’ve had a lot of seconds through the years and we even won the state in 2014 without a champion.  But I was relaxed in the finals this time as I had a lot of confidence in both of them.

“Cederick is so much more athletic than most guys in his weight class.  He got mad when he didn’t get the first takedown, but he ended up wrestling a really good match in the finals.  He had to really stay focused as a student athlete this year, but he did all I asked and I’m really happy he won.

“I didn’t realize that the championship match was his 100th win until I started tabulating stats when we got home,” Hall smiled.

The coach also had plenty of good to say about Ross.

“Truman is really a hard-nosed kid and you better be ready for a battle when you step on the mat with him.  He added a lot of offense this year to make himself better and he did what was necessary to get to that next level.  He was one of our captains this year,” the coach added.

“Finishing second as a team was nice and I was pleased, but not satisfied.  It just proved what I already knew and that we deserved to be there.  Hopefully we can get back and do it again next year,” Hall concluded.

(Email John Hunt at nomarathonmoose@gmail.com)

Truman Ross, of Hixson, won the state wrestling title at 220-pounds this past month in Franklin, Tenn. Ross finished at 35-3 with a career record of 57-13.
Truman Ross, of Hixson, won the state wrestling title at 220-pounds this past month in Franklin, Tenn. Ross finished at 35-3 with a career record of 57-13.
photo by Dennis Norwood/File Photo
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