Trophies and awards gather dust, and letterman’s jackets often become too snug for comfort over the years, but the one thing that remains perfectly pristine are the memories.
As the current prep football regular season edges closer to the playoffs, setting the stage for new memories to be made, this year marks the anniversary for three unique storylines in the Chattanooga area. It was 20 years ago that tiny Tennessee Temple Academy began a program that compiled a brief but newsworthy run of success, it’s been 30 years since Cleveland set off on what would become a TSSAA-record 54-game winning streak — with the Blue Raiders also winning the first of their three consecutive state titles — and this fall marks the golden anniversary of Baylor’s Red Raiders being named national champions.
“I’ve still got everything. Clippings, trophies, game film, pictures, rings, you name it,” said Kevin Cobb, an all-state running back and defensive back on Cleveland’s ubertalented 1993 squad.
Cobb went on to have a memorable college career at Memphis that included winning an ESPY Award from ESPN for his 95-yard kickoff return for a touchdown during the Tigers’ upset of Tennessee in 1996.
“The high school highlights stand out more than anything from college,” Cobb added. “I’ll always remember high school more because we were such a close group of guys, so it was like playing with a group of brothers.