While there are teammates with more recruiting headlines and flashier stats, Zack Bowman is the face of Signal Mountain football.
It's the face of a fullback and linebacker who knows only one way to play -- physical -- on both sides of the ball.
"Just one heck of a good football player," Eagles coach Bill Price said when asked about Bowman after Friday's 65-36 whipping of South Pittsburg.
The gash across the bridge of Bowman's nose is a three-week-old scar that was reopened during the course of Friday night's battle between two 2010 state champions.
He helped gash the Pirates defense early on, accounting for 150 of the Eagles' 284 first-half rushing yards and scoring one touchdown. He also totaled nine tackles as Signal Mountain outgained the Pirates 407-193.
"You pretty much have to pick your poison with their offense," said Pirates defensive coordinator Danny Wilson, who has been a head coach at Cleveland and Maryville Heritage. "They're as good offensively as the Maryville teams I've gone up against."
South Pittsburg's defensive plan was simply not to allow the Eagles to beat them throwing the ball. Without missing a beat, Signal Mountain ran it right at the Pirates.
"People had said we weren't running the ball very well lately," Price said. "We ran it very well tonight. We were physical on both sides of the ball, and that's what we need to be from here on out."
After jumping out to a 14-0 lead, Signal Mountain had to fend off a second-quarter rally from the pesky Pirates but never were really slowed offensively. Bowman punctuated the first half with a 39-yard run to the Pirates' 1, then scored on the next play with just five seconds remaining before halftime to help extend a four-point lead to 12 at the break.
He then led a defense that stopped the Pirates' opening possession of the third quarter, which opened the floodgates for the final margin.
"We knew we had to be physical against them tonight," Bowman said. "When we saw that they were going to try and take away the pass, as a [running] back you get excited because you know you're going to get more chances. The offensive line did a great job up front for us, and that's where we wore on them."
The game last year was beneficial for both teams' run through the playoffs and to state championships in their respective classifications. Going on the road to play in a hostile environment, and rallying late, paid off for the Eagles in a road win at Trousdale County. It also prepared South Pittsburg for the type of physical offensive front it later faced against Gordonsville.
Both teams can take similar lessons from Friday's game and begin making corrections as they prepare for the late-season stretch toward the playoffs.
During his postgame speech to his team, Price reminded the Eagles that "the goal from here on stays the same."
Before he could finish his thought, his player answered in unison, "State championship."
And while other area rivalries are fueled by a common dislike, this one continues to thrive off a mutual respect. During the postgame handshake line, Bowman encouraged several South Pittsburg players to "keep your heads up. Ya'll are going to win another state championship."
"I think both teams just have a lot of respect for each other," Bowman said. "I absolutely have a great deal of respect for their program because they've been an amazing football team for a while. I'm hoping we both get back there again this year and do the same thing we did last year."