In the rivalry’s first 100 years, the audience was limited to mostly local spectators. For the better part of the past decade, as Chattanooga’s preeminent private schools began to dominate Tennessee’s toughest classification for prep football, the eyes of the entire state turned toward the Scenic City with keen interest.
Now the Baylor-McCallie matchup has expanded beyond those boundaries to reach unprecedented levels of recognition and respect. The annual rivalry game will take center stage Friday night — kickoff is set for 7:45 p.m. at McCallie — as the high school football focal point of a nationwide audience as the NFHS Network makes the game available to a viewership that reaches millions.
In addition, MaxPreps has designated the TSSAA Division II-AAA East Region matchup its national game of the week, owing to the same website ranking both teams among the top 25 in the U.S., with the visiting Red Raiders at No. 23 and the Blue Tornado at No. 25.
Heady times, indeed.
As the rivalry’s influence grows beyond state and even national borders — both have multiple international athletes on their rosters — a much broader audience will come to recognize what those of us who grew up in or around Chattanooga have understood for decades: It’s not just an exceptional on-field matchup of two talented teams.