Central a state favorite

It has been a long time since Central High School drew statewide attention to its athletic program.

Since the former football power moved from Dodds Avenue to Harrison in 1970, the Purple Pounders have two state baseball championships (1985, 1987), a girls' state softball crown (1985) and a state duals wrestling championship (1990).

This year's wrestling team is 26-2 and poised to give the school its first state title in 21 years.

"I don't think we have accomplished anything until we get it done," said Central coach Steve Price, who was a sophomore on that 1990 team.

The Pounders will be in Franklin today and tomorrow, along with defending state champ Hixson, with hopes of bringing home the Class A/AA trophy. Soddy-Daisy and reigning champ Bradley Central are in the Class AAA field, and Baylor and McCallie represent the area in Division II.

There are differences between this Pounders team and the one that took the 1990 championship.

"We don't have any superstars," Price said. "That team had three or four or five, including the Johnson brothers [Ricky, Kevin and Mark]. Joe Browning, who was later a state finalist, was on that team along with Mike Combs, who was a pretty tough wrestler in the Chattanooga area."

Price's energetic staff includes former Cleveland wrestler Marques Dotson and ex-University of Tennessee at Chattanooga standouts Josh Edmondson and Joey Knox.

They have promoted Price's philosophy of outworking all competition.

"One thing I promised [the team] at the beginning of the season was that they would be in better shape than anybody we wrestled," Price said. "I would provide the conditioning, and the rest would be up to them. That's been our staple. When they step on the mat, they do so knowing their practices have been harder than anybody else's."

It is probable that the Pounders will meet Hixson in the semifinals, which didn't sit well with either local coach. The teams are in the same slots they had last season, although the state seeds the top returnees from the previous season and then blind-draws the remaining teams.

"If they're drawing them from a hat, I'd like to have that hat for a trip to Vegas," Price said.

"If they don't want two Chattanooga teams in finals, then say that," added Garrick Hall, whose Hixson team has won the last two A/AA titles. "It's very possible that you'll see what should be a finals match in the semifinals."

Though his team is the defending champion, Hall is clinging to the underdog role.

"Last year the teams who were supposed to win were East Literature and Pigeon Forge. This year it's Pigeon Forge and Central," he said.

Central beat Hixson 40-16 in a pre-Christmas match, but the Wildcats have since shifted some wrestlers and added two: Chris Phinizey (145) and Justin Mathieson (160). Phinizey had been sidelined because of differences with Hall, and Mathieson had been recovering from knee surgery.

"We've made some changes, but I don't know if it's enough to make up that [24-point] difference," Hall said.

Many are anticipating a Class AAA finals rematch between Bradley, the three-time defending state champion, and Soddy-Daisy, and Baylor got the favorite's vote in Division II from McCallie coach Gordon Connell.

"I think you have to give it to Baylor," Connell said. "They have the horses to take everything from here on out, and they're making even more moves. Christian Brothers has an outside chance because they're so well balanced, but then they have to get by us and that is going to be a good match."

Soddy-Daisy slipped past Bradley earlier this season, snapping the Bears' consecutive win streak at 70 and breaking their 17-year home win streak.

"I say it without any arrogance, but I think it will come down to Bradley and us. Both of us expect to get the 'A' game from everybody we wrestle," Soddy-Daisy coach Steve Henry said. "If you look at the coaches' rankings, obviously people are going to be gunning for the teams at the top."

This week's all-classification state poll has Baylor, Soddy-Daisy and Bradley Central first through third and McCallie sixth behind No. 4 Christian Brothers and Cleveland, which lost by two points to Bradley in the region semifinals.

Bradley coach Steve Logsdon wasn't about to cast his team in the role of favorite or underdog.

"We're going as the three-time defending state champions," he said. "There was a lot of talk after we lost to Soddy-Daisy. I heard 'All this losing has to stop,' and 'What has happened to Bradley?' We have lost once in the last four years. It was a nice, close match and Soddy-Daisy beat us.

"We're going [to Franklin] to wrestle hard. We don't make predictions and we don't adjust our style. We have a formula that has been successful. We'll wrestle the way we wrestle and let the chips fall where they may."

Does he anticipate wrestling Soddy-Daisy again since the two are in opposite halves of the bracket?

"It's a good possibility," Logsdon saidd. "That could come off as arrogant. We're not looking past anybody. We'll concentrate on each opponent as they come, but it goes back to philosophy, and that philosophy is to make the finals."

Bradley has been to 15 of the last 17 state duals tournaments and has reached the finals 15 times.