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McMinn County beats Walker Valley for region revenge victory

Staff file photo by Robin Rudd / McMinn County quarterback Luke Lawson (4) helped lead the Cherokees to a road win Friday night in a TSSAA Region 4-5A showdown with Walker Valley to close the regular season.
Staff file photo by Robin Rudd / McMinn County quarterback Luke Lawson (4) helped lead the Cherokees to a road win Friday night in a TSSAA Region 4-5A showdown with Walker Valley to close the regular season. Staff file photo by Robin Rudd / McMinn County quarterback Luke Lawson (4) helped lead the Cherokees to a road win Friday night in a TSSAA Region 4-5A showdown with Walker Valley to close the regular season.

By Gene Henley 3 min read

CLEVELAND, Tenn. — It wasn’t very difficult for McMinn County football coach Bo Cagle to get his team focused for Friday night’s game at Walker Valley.

The Cherokees remembered how the regular season had ended for them a year ago, with a disappointing 17-14 home loss to the Mustangs that gave Walker Valley the region championship.

“I didn’t have to say much,” Cagle admitted about his team’s preparation this week.

Apparently, it was more than enough.

McMinn County came in as the more prepared, more locked-in team, pouring it on for a 37-6 win that gave the Cherokees a share of the TSSAA Region 4-5A championship. They will split the title with East Hamilton, which defeated Rhea County 20-7 to secure the region’s top seed for the Class 5A state playoffs.