The feeling of optimism that permeates prep football’s preseason is a bit thicker for teams competing in TSSAA Class 3A this fall.
That’s because Alcoa, which has been essentially unbeatable in the postseason for decades, opted to make the move up in classification and will compete in 4A beginning this season.
“I’d be lying if I said our kids weren’t aware of Alcoa moving up,” admitted Meigs County coach Nathan Simbeck, whose team is part of Region 2-3A. “We try to preach the opponent doesn’t matter, and you want to play against the best, but honestly I know there are a lot of people who are glad they’re gone.
“It definitely makes things more wide open in the playoffs, and there’s a lot of teams on the east side of the bracket who probably feel like they finally have a shot at making a run. It’s exciting for sure.”
Tennessee prep football’s version of the bogeyman has owned Class 3A since 2009, when the Tornadoes moved up after winning five straight state championships in 2A. They proceeded to win 13 of the past 16 Class 3A BlueCross Bowls, including victories in the past 10. One of their three playoff losses during that stretch was by seven points in the title game, and the other two came to eventual state champion Christian Academy of Knoxville in the quarterfinals (by a combined three points).