Marion's Warriors seeking final reward

photo Marion County's Blake Zeman (1) rounds the corner past fallen Trousdale County Yellow Jackets.

TSSAA Class 2A finalMARION COUNTY WARRIORS (12-1) vs. PEABODY GOLDEN TIDE (12-2)Stars: Marion County is led by RB/LB Blake Zeman, who has rushed 202 times for 1,747 yards and 32 touchdowns. Josh Henderson and Blake Brooks have combined for 1,737 yards rushing and receiving and 15 TDs. The two also have a punt-return touchdown each, and Brooks also has returned a kickoff for a TD. QB Bryce Massengale is 41-of-67 for 675 yards and seven touchdowns and has rushed for 10 TDs. Zeman surpassed the 100-tackle mark in the first playoff game, and more than 30 of his hits have come in the backfield. Alex Kirkendoll is second in both tackles and tackles for loss. The Warriors also have a reliable K in Christian Stephens. Peabody has a dynamic QB in Kendrick Malone, who is 127-for-252 in the air for 2,095 yards and 27 touchdowns. He's also rushed 158 times for 1,197 yards and 10 TDs. RB Brandon Johnson is the scoring leader with 25 touchdowns and has gained 983 yards on 111 carries. Jared Penn is the leading receiver with 634 yards and eight TDs on 38 receptions. Jordan Johnson is the Golden Tide's leading tackler and Grant McEwen with 17 has the most tackles for loss. They also have a dependable K in Drew Sanders.Storyline: Marion County has a football history. But it's been just that -- history. The Golden Tide are trying to make history. The Warriors have been to six state finals, winning four. But the last was in 1995, which was a little before any of the current players were born. Peabody has been to one final (1991) but finished runner-up.Key matchup: The Warriors' offensive line, anchored by Corey Tucker, will be tested by the various defensive fronts the Golden Tide will show them. The bulk of the Marion County offense this season has come on the ground. Massengale twice connected with Brooks on key pass plays that helped the Warriors move the ball 73 yards in the final 2:21 as they rallied and won last week. But if they can't run the ball consistently for positive yardage, their chances of winning greatly decrease.How they got here: Marion County's road has progressively gotten tougher, going from a first-round bye to a 49-6 whipping of Jackson County to a 41-20 quarterfinal win over Trousdale County. Last week in a semifinal the Warriors had to rally to defeat Knoxville's Grace Christian Academy 24-15. Peabody came from the No. 4 seeding in its quadrant and during its 4-0 run through the bracket had victories over two top-seeded teams -- 42-37 over Trinity Christian in the second round and 42-31 over Adamsville in a semifinal. It opened by beating Huntingdon 49-27 and in the quarterfinal cruised past McKenzie 42-0.Coach's quote: "The biggest thing, and it goes with the nature of the offense they run, is they're kind of an explosive-play team. When you get into a spread, that's kind of what you want to be and kind of who you are. We've got to limit explosive plays on offense and on special teams. They can do it in both places."-- Marion County's Ricky Ross

No TSSAA football team competing this weekend has mentally and physically battled its way through tougher times in the last year than Marion County. None.

Consider that the players have persevered through a scandal brought on by the previous coaching staff in late October a year ago, right before the Warriors played and lost to rival South Pittsburg, and they were bounced from the state playoffs the following month. Consider that as punishment for the wrongdoing, the state organization banned the program from holding spring practice this year. And consider that Ricky Ross was hired in February to try to reorganize things, even though he had no previous in-season head-coaching experience.

Through it all, the Warriors sit 48 minutes away from the fifth football state championship in school history.

Marion County (12-1) takes on Peabody (12-2) today for the Class 2A championship with the kickoff set for noon EST at Tennessee Tech University in Cookeville.

Among the messages Ross consistently has tried to convey to his team this season is to get neither too high nor too low. The seniors -- free safety and running back Blake Brooks one of them -- have bought in.

"We've just got to come out and treat it just like it's another game and not get caught up in the moment," Brooks said of the state final. "We've got to treat it like it's just a regular-season game. We've got to line up fast, play fast and play with discipline."

Although the Warriors weren't able to work on anything in the spring, Brooks believes they made up for it with their effort during summer workouts.

"Over the summer we worked hard and did a lot of stuff that other teams weren't doing," Brooks said. "We put in more time and more work, then a few games into the season we got rolling and started to develop into a good football team."

In Peabody, the Warriors will be facing a team that runs a spread offense, and a balanced one at that. Quarterback Kendrick Malone makes it all go.

"We can run and throw," said Ricky Woods, a 30-year coaching veteran in Mississippi who spent one year in Georgia and is in his second season at Peabody. "We have guys that cause first-down problems whether we're going to run or throw, so I guess versatility is the strength.

"We just sort of play. Every week somebody has a good game. It's not the same person. It's never the same person."

The Golden Tide have multiple defensive formations, lining up in anything from a five-, four- or three-player front. They'll try to figure out which works best at slowing Marion's rushing attack.

One of Peabody's two shutouts came in its state-quarterfinal win over McKenzie. The Tide also have scored 40 or more points 11 times, including all four playoff games.

"Every time you play you should get better," Woods said. "If you can't get better, you get worse. We had plenty of room to improve. We're just sort of playing well at this point."

Ross projects his team's performance by another of those messages he's consistently tried to convey all season.

"If we're good Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday," he said of practices, "then we're going to be great during the game."

And this week?

"We have had a great week," Ross said. "The kids recognize that it's coming to an end. They're going to make the most of it. They want to seize the opportunity."

Contact Kelley Smiddie at ksmiddie@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6653. Follow him at twitter.com/KelleySmiddie.

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