Multimedia: South Pittsburg Pirates football

Staff Photo by Patrick Smith
South Pittsburg players touch a horseshoe for good luck while leaving the locker room prior to their game against Boyd-Buchanan.

In what amounts to the two toughest kids on the block just itching for a fight, the Class 1A matchup that has been anticipated since the end of last season takes place tonight. Top-ranked defending state champion South Pittsburg must travel to second-ranked Trousdale County tonight in a quarterfinal game between the state’s premier small-school programs.

From tradition to talent to rabid fan following, every aspect of these proud programs mirrors one another. The teams have more playoffs wins and more state championships than any other 1A programs. Trousdale’s Yellow Jackets own six state championships, five in 1A with the last coming in 2005. South Pittsburg has four titles, including last year, and both programs also have three state runner-up finishes.

“No disrespect to anybody else, but these are the two elite programs in 1A going at it,” Pirates coach Vic Grider said. “It seems like every year we play them the stakes couldn’t be any higher. And there’s a whole lot of mutual respect there.”

This will be the sixth meeting, with all five previous winners going on to claim state titles. With reclassification moving Trousdale back up to 2A beginning next year, this is likely the last time these rivals will play as well.

The Pirates and Yellow Jackets have been ranked 1-2 all season and have had very little competition on their way to matching 12-0 records. Neither team has allowed a point in the first quarter all season, and the Yellow Jackets haven’t allowed more than 15 points in a game. Trousdale, which has given up seven points or less seven times, is beating opponents by an average of 44-7, and its closest win was 20-0 over 2A Smith County, which advanced to the second round.

“They’re just so physical up front,” Grider said. “They will take their 4-5 yards a carry and keep coming right at you. They challenge you to stop them. And they don’t beat themselves. They wait for you to make a mistake and then they pounce.”

South Pittsburg’s average margin is 47-7, and that includes three nonregion games against tough 2A opponents Boyd-Buchanan, Marion County and Tyner. But this will be the first time the Pirates have had to travel in the postseason since 2003 and is also the first time since 1998 they have gone to the “Creek Bank,” the nickname for Trousdale’s intimidating home field.

“I’m not going to lie. This is a tough place to come play for other teams, and we like it that way,” Trousdale coach Kevin Creasy said. “Them coming to our place is a big advantage for us. Their kids haven’t had to travel yet, so I’ll be interested to see how they respond to an environment like this.

“We knew we were on a collision course with South Pittsburg all season. This game just has a different feel to it.”

South Pittsburg, which has won 27 straight games, is trying to become just the third program in state history to win back-to-back Class 1A championships. Trousdale County was the last to do it, in 1997-98. The Yellow Jackets’ ’98 title came after beating a South Pittsburg team that led the nation in scoring average.

Pirates assistant coach Tim Starkey was the quarterback on that South Pittsburg team.

“I just remember their crowd was yelling and calling us names from the time we stepped off the bus,” Starkey said. “We were walking right through them, and there was one old guy in coveralls who stood at the gate and pointed and said, ‘Come on, boys, take your butt-whippin’ like a man.’

“It’s like driving for three hours to play against yourself. They are basically the same type team as us. They had people that looked like they came right out of the woods, from hunting or something, with all their camouflage on, just ready to yell at us. To be honest, the state championship game is nothing compared with going to Trousdale. At the state game, it’s a happy time and the fans are so far away from you that you can’t really hear much. At Trousdale, the fans are right on top of you and they’re making a lot of noise on every play.”