When you're on top, the target is always on your back, regardless of the opponent.
Friday night, Red Bank survived a strong showing by East Ridge to earn a 21-12 Region 3-4A home win and remain unbeaten.
Red Bank (7-0, 4-0), ranked No. 4 in its classification, was led by senior AD Crutcher, who rushed for 107 yards on 18 carries and scored a touchdown in a game that remained in doubt well into the second half.
Lions coach Ted Gatewood was happy with his team and was not surprised by the fight put on by East Ridge, despite the record of the Pioneers (1-7, 1-3).
"This was just one of those good hard football games," Gatewood said. "The thing about it is people on the outside don't know what to expect. We know what to expect. We know what our opponents are like and what their capabilities are."
(READ MORE: Final scores and photos from Friday night's Chattanooga-area high school football games)
The Pioneers struck first and turned a Lions mistake into early points. Hasani Jackson intercepted a Jake Brune pass and returned it to the Red Bank 2-yard line. The Lions held East Ridge out for three plays, but on fourth-and-goal from the 1, quarterback Jermaine Blackstock dove into the end zone. Red Bank blocked the extra-point attempt, but the visitors led 6-0 at the end of the first quarter.
Crutcher's touchdown gave the Lions the lead in the second quarter, the back capping a 14-play series with a 3-yard run. Crutcher carried the ball six times for 36 yards, including an impressive 16-yard run on fourth down to keep the drive alive.
"Every game we've got to trust our offensive line and trust the people around us," he said. "That's what we harp on because we're an offensive running team. That's how we thrive."
Red Bank extended its lead late in the half thanks to an interception by the Lions' Kobe Smith. Three plays later, Brune connected with sophomore Daune Morris for a 26-yard touchdown pass and a 14-6 halftime lead.
The Pioneers showed they still had fight in the third quarter when Blackstock connected with Cadion Harris for a 92-yard touchdown pass on third-and-15 to cut the Lions' lead to 14-12. The teams held each other in check until a Blackstock fumble gave the Lions a short field and Brune found Tyler Wright for a 9-yard touchdown pass with 7:37 remaining for the final score.
Chad Barger, in his first year as East Ridge's head coach, was proud of how his team played.
"These kids are resilient, and we've got a lot of kids coming back next year," he said. "The future is bright at East Ridge, so I'm just so proud of them. We've just got to love them up and keep fighting."
Red Bank now turns its attention to next week's trip to a fellow undefeated, Class 1A's Fayetteville, before back-to-back region games at East Hamilton and Sequoyah to close the regular season.
"Our kids rose up to the challenge tonight, and we learned a great deal about ourselves and what we need to work on and clean up," Gatewood said. "It's an ongoing process of getting better each week. We've got to break it down, move forward and get better."
Contact Jim Tanner at sports@timesfreepress.com.