EVENSVILLE, Tenn. — Jaxton Schmitt needed a moment to himself.
As Zeke Romero lay motionless on the Rhea County sideline with 56 seconds left in the third quarter Friday night, the Golden Eagles’ senior quarterback stepped away from the crowd gathered around his teammate. Players from both the home team and Walker Valley knelt during a delay of roughly 10 minutes before Romero, the team’s leading tackler, was carted off and taken to a hospital as a precaution. He was alert and had some movement.
“That’s one of my best friends, man,” Schmitt said. “He’s taken me through so many hard times. He’s such a man of God. He does the right thing every day. And just to see him go down like that, it really took a toll on me.”
(READ MORE: Rhea County beats McMinn County, sets up region title repeat bid)
When play resumed, Rhea County finished the job. Schmitt threw for 313 yards and two touchdowns, and his 40-yard run with two minutes left sealed a 31-24 win that allowed the Golden Eagles to repeat as TSSAA Region 3-5A champions. Rhea County finished 6-0 in region play, the Mustangs wound up 5-1, but both teams are 8-2 overall and will host first-round games next week as the state playoffs begin.