By Mike Blackerby, Correspondent

LOUDON, Tenn. — After ending last season on a downer, McMinn Central ushered in the 2008 high school football season with a bang Friday night against Loudon.

The Chargers — who were upset in the first round of the playoffs a year ago by Greenbrier after winning Region 3-3A — blitzed the Redskins 34-13 at Dukes Field.

McMinn Central scored on its first five possessions and took a 34-0 lead as it ended a six-game losing streak to Loudon that dated to 1995.

“It was good to get that monkey off our back. We had a lot of 10-year streaks like that against us when I took over the job,” Chargers coach Brandon Derrick said with a laugh.

His team’s experience showed, especially in the first half. McMinn Central, which returned nine starters on offense and nine on defense from last season, rang up a 21-0 halftime lead while holding Loudon to 42 yards of offense.

The Region 2-2A Redskins finally got untracked late in the third quarter.

“We looked good for about 27 minutes and then kind of went into cruise control. We’re not a powerhouse football team yet,” Derrick said. “We’ve got a lot of juniors and seniors on the football field. Some of these guys have been three-year starters.”

Loudon coach Jeff Harig, whose lineup was made up mostly of sophomores and juniors, agreed that McMinn Central’s experience was the difference.

“No question,” Harig said. “We were in position to make plays. It wasn’t a lack of effort, but we just didn’t make plays. Our kids kept playing. We’re a work in progress.”

The balanced Chargers got touchdowns from five players and had 277 yards in total offense to Loudon’s 114.

Josh Moss opened the scoring with a 10-yard dash with 3:46 to go in the first quarter.

Tailback Branden Simpson capped a 12-play, 80-yard drive with an 8-yard scoring scamper midway through the second stanza.

But the backbreaking play for Loudon came in the waning moments of the first half.

Faced with a third-and-10 from its 30, McMinn Central quarterback Zac Rayl hit wideout Jarrel Harrison in the flat. Harrison found a seam and raced 70 yards for the touchdown with 1:07 showing.

Maury Ragland and Aaron Walker had scoring runs of 3 and 5 yards for the Chargers.

E-mail Mike Blackerby at sports@timesfreepress.com

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