SOUTH PITTSBURG, Tenn. – The third-ranked Class 1A football team in Tennessee welcomed the state’s second-ranked 2A team to Beene Stadium, and the action started early Friday night.
South Pittsburg scored three plays into the game as Demetric Johnson plunged into the end zone from 3 yards out, but the Pirates wound up losing 47-27 to Grace Christian from Knoxville.
The opening drive covered 83 yards, highlighted by a 65-yard run by Corbin Hale.
The Rams started the ensuing drive at their own 46-yard line and answered with a 12-play drive that culminated with a 5-yard run by Naval Academy commitment Will McKamey. That knotted the score at 7 with 5:40 to go in the opening quarter.
The Pirates were plagued with turnovers on their next two possessions. Bryson Shelton scooped up the second of those and raced 27 yards for a 14-7 Rams lead on the last play of the first quarter.