Rhea County has run with the big dogs, well enough to win last year’s Region 4-5A football title, but it likely will take more than a steady gallop for the Eagles to repeat.
While Ooltewah, McMinn County and Cleveland have been bounced up to Region 2-6A, Walker Valley and Soddy-Daisy remain with Rhea’s Eagles. And there are newcomers Lenoir City and Knoxville Catholic, the latter of which has been voted the preseason title favorite.
“If Catholic keeps getting those transfers, they’ll be unbelievable,” offered Rhea County coach Mark Pemberton, who directed Catholic to a state championship in 2008.
Those latest transfers are DeSon Bussell, a receiver from Fort Wayne, Ind. who already has offers from several Big Ten schools, and running back/defensive back Raynoch Thompson Jr., son of the former standout linebacker at Tennessee. They strengthen a team that already has a half-dozen college-committed players, including two-way lineman Cade Mayes, a 6-foot-6, 315-pounder who’s pledged to Butch Jones’ Volunteers.
“The amount of talent they put on the field is unmatched in the region,” said Soddy-Daisy coach Justin Barnes.