There were those in North Georgia who had their doubts about Calhoun High School's football program. Hal Lamb's youngsters had a disappointing end to the 2013 season, and the Yellow Jackets were moving up a classifcation.
They surprised the doubters.
There were several surprises - ups and downs, if you will - to the 2014 season, from Notre Dame's first win against Signal Mountain to McMinn Central's first victory over McMinn County in almost three decades.
There were outstanding - some record-setting - individual performances, as well as recognizable signs that area teams were climbing the state competition ladders from Ringgold to Meigs County.
HIGHLIGHTS
Calhoun wins state championship
A move up to Class AAA didn't sidetrack the Calhoun dynasty in 2014 one bit. A 15-0 record, which included several memorable playoff wins, earned coach Hal Lamb his second state title.
The 27-20 win over top-ranked Washington County - a team that set the state record for most points scored in a season - was a shocker to some. Washington County quarterback A.J. Gray, Georgia's Gatorade player of the year in 2014, had his way with the Jackets early, but the depth of Calhoun wore down Gray and his teammates.
The Jackets controlled the second half and won the game on a double-reverse pass.
"That game still gives me goosebumps," quarterback Kaelan Riley said. "That was a great team we played, but we proved we were also a great team."
Trotter sets single-game records
Alex Trotter, who signed with the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, set single-game rushing and scoring records in McCallie's 59-38 victory over Pope John Paul II. Trotter ran for 374 yards and seven touchdowns.
The 5-foot-9, 170-pounder had three long scoring runs covering 71, 80 and 73 yards.
"I've never had anybody run for that many yards," McCallie coach Ralph Potter said. "Obviously, there had to be some good things happen for him. The offensive line and our fullback (Matthew Brock) definitely got him to the second and third levels an abundance of times, and he has enough speed to take advantage once he gets behind the defense."
Maynor throws for 451 yards
Soddy-Daisy quarterback Hunter Maynor passed for 451 yards, completing 29 of 46 passes with three touchdowns in the Trojans' shootout loss to McMinn County. Maynor, who displaced B.J. Coleman as the city's single-season passing yardage record-holder with the performance, had four of the top 12 passing games of 2014.
Veraldi, Dalton make a run
Led by Best of Preps first-team quarterback Payton Veraldi, Dalton rolled through its new Class AAAAA sub-region schedule, nearly upset Kell in the region title game and gave eventual state champ Northside-Warner Robins its best playoff game, losing 30-21 in the second round.
Veraldi passed for 2,223 yards and 30 touchdowns for what is traditionally a run-oriented offense and led the Cats to nine wins and more than 30 points per game.
Marion County's Hayden Tudors (66) and Deion Riley (24) kneel behind the runner-up trophy as the Peabody Golden Tide accept the championship trophy. Marion lost to Peabody 35-7. The Marion County Warriors faced the Peabody Golden Tide in the TSSAA Class 2A state football championship at Tennessee Tech University's Tucker Stadium in Cookeville.Irish climb mountain
Notre Dame made it to the Class 3A state semifinals, and no win could have been larger than the Irish's rainy day game against Signal Mountain, a team they'd never beaten. The game was moved across the state line to Ringgold and the Tigers' artificial turf, and more than 5,000 fans still showed up to see Notre Dame win 35-3.
"It was a game that got us over the hump. Our coaching staff felt if we could beat those guys we had a chance to do well in the postseason," coach Charles Fant recalled. "It's a game we won't forget for a while."
Warriors go back-to-back
Putting behind a disparaging end to the 2013 season - one that resulted in a coaching change because of off-the-field trouble - Marion County was revived under Ricky Ross. The new coach couldn't look back, because he hadn't been in Jasper and he refused to let the players look over their shoulders. The end result, aided by veteran running back and linebacker Blake Zeman and untested quarterback Bryce Massengale, was a 9-1 regular season and a run to the state championship game. The Warriors finished the season 12-2, giving the team their first back-to-back seasons with at least 10 wins since 1994-95 under Ken Colquette.
Region 7-AAAA works overtime
Southeast Whitfield had waited nearly three decades for a playoff berth, so one extra night's work in 2014 was no big deal.
The Raiders, after tying Heritage and Northwest Whitfield for fourth place in Region 7-AAAA, won a mini-playoff between the three schools on the Monday night following the final Friday of the regular season. Quarterback Will Swantic, whose dad was the quarterback on the last Southeast playoff team, led the Raiders to a 7-0 win over Heritage, which had earlier edged Northwest 7-6.
"That was an unbelievable night for our school and our community," Southeast coach Sean Gray said. "It proved to the kids how important hard work and believing in each other really is."
Chargers end a drought
Although McMinn Central allowed 34 points, the third-most it would surrender all season, the Charger's season-opening, seven-point victory was special - most of all because it came against McMinn County but secondly because the team learned early on that it could not only compete but win.
"The biggest thing was that win gave us a ton of momentum as we started the season," Chargers coach Josh Goodin said. "We wound off winning seven in a row, so, yeah, that game gave us a lot of confidence."
The last time the Chargers had pulled off that feat was 1988.
DISAPPOINTMENTS
Marion County falls short of state title
The season-long ride to reach Cookeville came to a stumbling, then crashing end as the Warriors fell to Peabody by a lopsided 34-7 score in the Class 2A state championship game.
"There was a lot of hurt," Ross said. "Yeah, you're one of the few teams that played for a state championship, but you didn't get to finish with a win."
Rhea County's comeback not enough
Rhea County already had an undefeated regular season under its belt. The Eagles then proceeded to bump off Tullahoma, Ooltewah and Oak Ridge to reach the Class 5A state semifinal against Knox West. They scratched and clawed their way back from a 28-0 halftime deficit and appeared to be headed for overtime when the eventual state champions scored with just seconds left on the clock.
"We were down 28-0 at halftime and we were still expecting to win and then (Knox West) scored with 13 seconds left. It was devastating," quarterback Daniel Dotson recalled. "It gives a lot more motivation. You never know when that little extra in the weight room or on the practice field could push you over the top.
Alcoa ends Notre Dame run
Notre Dame's flashy offense and stingy defense were a potent combination, carrying them to the Class 3A state semifinals and a date with defending champion Alcoa. Maybe it was jitters from being on the biggest stage ever for a Notre Dame football team, but the Irish's season came to an end with a 28-19 loss at Finley Stadium.
The 12-2 record was the second-best ever at Notre Dame. They began the season as they ended (a loss, this one 15-12 to Knox Catholic). In between, though, came 12 straight wins in which they scored at least 40 points nine times, including two outputs of 55 and another of 68.
South Pitt falls on hard times
Just one year after reaching the Class 1A state championship game, South Pittsburg lost six games last season. That was the most losses by the Pirates in a season in 10 years and included a blowout loss to rival Marion County - snapping an eight-year win streak in the series - and a second-round playoff loss to Copper Basin. The losses led to declining interest among players and the community, which in turn led to a coaching change.
The Eagles entered the game unbeaten and ranked among the state's top 10 Class 3A teams. They'd never lost to Notre Dame, but things fell apart late in the first quarter when running back Skye Wilson went down with a season-ending knee injury. The Eagles came apart at the seams and eventually lost 35-3.
The Creek runs dry
Chad Barger had high hopes when he took over at Coahulla Creek, but early injuries put an already-thin team in danger. By the end of an 0-10 season in which the Colts scored only 24 points, the team was starting six freshmen.
"It was a learning experience for all of us," said Barger, who's back with 20 returning starters in tow. "It seemed like once the injuries started piling up, it just snowballed on us. But these guys never quit fighting, and that will pay off."
Contact Ward Gossett at wgossett@timesfreepress.com or 423-886-4765. Follow him at Twitter.com/wardgossett. Contact Lindsey Young at lyoung@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6296. Follow him at Twitter.com/youngsports22.