Every so often, statistics don’t fully explain a story. This is not one of those times.
When McMinn County’s football team steps on its home field Friday night to face perennial powerhouse Maryville in a showdown of state-ranked teams facing off for the Region 2-6A title, the Cherokees will need to set aside a collection of numbers that are staggering to consider.
First, second-ranked Maryville has not lost to a region opponent in more than 20 years. That’s not a typo. Maryville has reeled off an incredible run of 135 consecutive league wins since falling 21-14 at Halls on Sept. 15, 2000. The Rebels even righted themselves after that loss to eventually win the state championship that season, and during the past 20 years they have earned 13 of their 17 state titles overall.
But as impressive as all of that is, the number that should be of more concern to the Cherokees – and our area in general – is the fact that Maryville has won its past 46 meetings with Chattanooga-area teams.
The last area team to knock off mighty Maryville was Cleveland on Oct. 7, 1994, by a score of 42-6, but since then it has been all Rebels as they have beaten 11 area programs by an average of 42-12, including 25 playoff matchups.