Ooltewah entered this high school football season seeking successors for just about every starting position on a defense that helped the team reach the state quarterfinals last year. And the way things went for the defense early in the 2016 season, it didn't look like the Owls were going to be making any repeat appearance in the quarterfinals.
But here they are.
Ooltewah plays tonight at 7 at Farragut in a Class 5A quarterfinal. The winner will play tonight's Morristown West/South Doyle winner next Friday with a berth in the state final on the line.
Ooltewah comes in averaging 41 points per game, which has a lot to do with this year's success. But the steady progress for the defense may be the biggest reason the Owls haven't turned in the equipment yet.
"We've always been a defensive football team here," said Mac Bryan, who was hired as head coach before the 2013 season. "If you can't stop them, it's not a good day."
Ooltewah had a couple of not-so-good days in the first half of the season. Defensive coordinator Doug Greene said before the first playoff game he counted 24 players playing significant roles who were on junior varsity last year.
"We lost nine starters on defense," Bryan said. "Six of them were three-year starters and one was a four-year starter. That's a lot of experience. I've thought this team, as a whole, has gotten better as the year has went along. The group of seniors that graduated played a lot of football. This group of seniors has not played a lot of football. They've gotten better.
"We knew we had good players. It was just a matter of them getting some experience."
A 28-6 loss at Rhea County on Sept. 16 left Ooltewah at 3-2 heading into its off week. That proved to be the pivotal point in the season.
"We really took advantage of our bye week," Greene said. "It was probably the most productive bye week we've ever had."
Proof is in the numbers. After giving up 140 points in those first five games, the Owls have allowed 106 in seven games since, all victories.
"We started off kind of slow, but we've picked it back up," senior defensive end Will Whitson said. "The defensive line kind of came together a little better. There were some others that have come around, with the coaching we have. They figured it out."
Greene said Whitson has been one of the few mainstays throughout the season, his third as a starter. He's been in on 62 tackles, tied for the team lead with junior linebacker William House, and he leads the team with 13 tackles for loss and six sacks.
"He's not a vocal leader," Greene said. "He's just solid. He comes to work every day at practice. You know what you're going to get from him on Friday night."
Senior Grayson Avans and junior Jaylin Rogers have 12 and 11 tackles in the backfield. Andrew Manning, who with a broken finger was one of a few who battled injuries early in the year, is the interceptions leader with four.
One of Ooltewah's key losses to graduation is University of Tennessee at Chattanooga signee Rashun Freeman. Senior Kendel Robinson, who missed the first two games recovering from a separated shoulder, has filled that secondary spot.
Led by a strong back half of the season, Robinson leads the Owls with 17 pass break-ups and four fumble recoveries. He's also tied with senior Corey Morgan for the team lead with three forced fumbles, and he's tied for second with three interceptions with junior Jake Sullivan.
"Not many mistakes can be made at the free safety spot," Greene said. "He's become a lot more consistent. And he has the capability of making explosive plays."
Robinson and his fellow defensive backs can expect a stern test tonight from Farragut (11-1), which is averaging 43.5 points per game led by senior quarterback Adam Fulton (2,439 passing yards, 30 TDs).
"I've been studying a lot of film," Robinson said of preparing for the Admirals. "I see that their quarterback throws a nice deep ball. They run it some, but maybe not as good. They really execute well offensively. We're going to have to be ready to stop their passing game. If we can get them to run the ball, we'll be good."
Robinson said practices have been going well, especially in recent weeks.
"Everybody's been going hard," he said. "We've just been grinding."
Winning tonight would ensure another week of practice, which would give the Owls more chances to keep improving.
"I do think we're a whole lot better off now," Whitson said. "If we keep playing like we are now, staying together and playing like we know how, we can go as far as we want."
Contact Kelley Smiddie at ksmiddie@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6653. Follow him on Twitter @KelleySmiddie.