There are few prep football classifications remaining in Tennessee in which Chattanooga teams have struggled on the state level more than Division II-AA.
Mid-state teams have completely dominated the mid-sized private school league since it was formed, while Scenic City programs competing in the league have reached a state title game only twice in the past 20 seasons.
Neither of those two appearances — Notre Dame in 2017 and Boyd Buchanan in 2024 — resulted in a championship.
Having seen the level at which the Nashville-area teams operate, Chattanooga’s foursome of Boyd Buchanan, Chattanooga Christian, Notre Dame and Silverdale Baptist began taking steps to close the gap, upgrading the talent on their rosters and coaching staffs in recent years. Despite those efforts, however, three of those local teams have combined to lose in the playoffs to a mid-state opponent by an average margin of 26 points over the past three seasons, while Notre Dame has not reached the postseason since 2018.
Local DII-AA teams closing the gap on mid-state football powers
With Christ Presbyterian Academy moving up in classification, after having played in seven straight DII-AA title games (winning three), this could finally be the year for a local team to break through.