District 3-4A at a glance
Last year’s champion The region is new this year because of TSSAA realignment. In 2014, Hixson went 9-3 with a 21-20 loss to Livingston Academy in the second round of the playoffs. Four of the seven teams in this new region — Central, Hixson, Livingston Academy, and Stone Memorial — had winning records in 2014. Team to beat The coaches in the region are uncertain about the top team. They’re rather unfamiliar with each other. But the consensus is that East Hamilton should revive after an off year and that Hixson will have another winning year. Players to watch East Hamilton quarterback Nic Woods missed almost the entire 2014 season after an injury in the opening game. He'll be back and lead the Hurricanes. Stone Memorial seniors Justin Johnson and Keith Smith are proven linebackers. Livingston Academy runnning back Dylan Linder is a svelte 6-foot-2 and 180 pounds, and Hixson senior Elijah White is an essential linebacker. Watch out for... The Wildcats of Hixson went 9-3 in coach Dan Duff’s return to the program. He’ll be in his second year — in his second go-round at the school — and another winning season should be forthcoming. Best game The game that jumps off the calendar is Hixson at East Hamilton on Sept. 18. But games at Central and contests up north in the Crossville area could be tough for Chattanooga-area teams if they can’t handle the travel. Nightmare schedule Duff and the Wildcats aren’t shying away from competition. They have a loaded schedule with traditional playoff teams. Predicted order of finish East Hamilton, Livingston Academy, Hixson, Sequoyah, Stone Memorial, Central, Cumberland County.
Ted Gatewood has looked younger.
The reading glasses are a new touch to his look. The spectacles are necessary.
The East Hamilton football coach has an interesting season upcoming, one that he wants to see clearly with the Hurricanes included in a new region that extends all the way to Crossville.
"Last year, I woke up every night on the hour just crying," Gatewood joked. "The biggest thing was injuries, and there were little things, details that we had to improve upon."
His team is limping into 2015 after a disappointing 2-8 year during which the Hurricanes lost their starting quarterback in the first game and had a revolving door at that spot for the rest of the season.
The Hurricanes are in a region with Central, Hixson and a bunch of out-of-town teams including Cumberland County, Livingston Academy and Stone Memorial from the Crossville area.
"The schedule is all new," Livingston coach Bruce Lamb said. "It's going to be interesting to see how it plays out. The unknown is big for us."
Nic Woods returns at quarterback after missing almost all of last season. And both lines return enough starters to make the Hurricanes stout enough to contend into the playoffs.
"We lost (Woods), then lost our backup and had to move a cornerback to quarterback," Gatewood said. "I think our guys have done a great job of pushing past that."
Gatewood has plenty of players who are willing to compete this year.
"The understand what their goals are and what they have to do to achieve those goals," he said. "We're working on getting Nic reps and getting him back into the fold.
"The biggest thing for us this season is going into the season with the right mindset and we have to get better at the simple things like blocking and tackling."
Contact David Uchiyama at duchiyama@timesfresspress.com or 423-757-6484. Follow him at twitter.com/UchiyamaCTFP.