TSSAA PLAYOFFS
Here are Friday’s first-round games involving Chattanooga-area teams. All games are scheduled to kick off at 7 p.m. local time.Class 1AClay County (5-5) at Whitwell (10-0)Lookout Valley (5-4) at Jo Byrns (6-4)Monterey (5-5) at South Pittsburg (9-1)Sale Creek (2-7) at Gordonsville (8-2)Class 2ASullivan North (5-5) at Meigs County (10-0)East Robertson (5-5) at Tyner (9-1)Marion County (3-6) at Trousdale County (7-3)Westmoreland (7-3) at Polk County (6-4)Bledsoe County (3-7) at Watertown (10-0)Class 3ASmith County (4-6) at Red Bank (9-0)Brainerd (4-6) at Sequatchie County (7-3)York (8-2) at Signal Mountain (6-4)Class 4AEast Hamilton (4-6) at Greeneville (10-0)Sullivan South (7-3) at Central (5-5)Howard (5-4) at Elizabethton (9-1)Class 5ARhea County (4-5) at Oak Ridge (8-2)Clinton (4-6) at Soddy-Daisy (5-4)Class 6ACleveland (4-5) at Farragut (9-1)Hardin Valley (6-4) at Ooltewah (8-2)Bradley Central (7-3) at Science Hill (5-5)Division II-ATipton-Rosemark (5-5) at Grace Academy (6-3)Division II-AACAK (3-7) at Notre Dame (8-1)Silverdale Baptist (5-5) at BGA (8-2)Chattanooga Christian (5-5) at Knoxville Webb (5-5)Division II-AAAPope John Paul II (5-5) at Baylor (4-6)McCallie has a first-round bye and will play the winner of Father Ryan/Ensworth
Unbeaten but unsatisfied. Three prep football teams from the Chattanooga area finished the regular season undefeated with runaway wins Friday but now turn their attention toward the TSSAA playoffs, where the ultimate goal awaits.
"We have a process that works. It focuses on us being as good as we possibly can be and improving on our fundamentals each day, so we won't change that just because it's the playoffs," said first-year Red Bank coach Chris Brown, who guided the program to its first unbeaten regular season since 2009.
"We're a team full of sophomores with a sprinkling of juniors and seniors. Those sophomores are now playing like they've been in a lot of big games. There's a lot more confidence right now."
The TSSAA released its playoff brackets for all nine classifications early Saturday morning with 27 area teams advancing to the postseason, which begins Friday.
Joining the Class 3A Lions among area teams headed to the TSSAA playoffs with a zero in the loss column are Meigs County in 2A and Whitwell in 1A. Red Bank will take on Smith County, while top-ranked Meigs finished the regular season unbeaten for a second straight year and will welcome Sullivan North.
Whitwell won its first region title since 2001 and enters the playoffs 10-0 for the first time in program history after its sixth win this year by the state's 35-point mercy rule. Whitwell will host Clay County, the team it blasted by 59 points in the first round last year.
"One of our goals coming into the season was to be undefeated and region champions, and we feel good about that, but I reminded the team that there's still work to be done," said second-year Tigers coach Randall Boldin, whose team has averaged 45 points per game this year and set a school record for points scored.
"I've been with these kids since they were sophomores and seen how they've grown, and the thing I'm most proud of is seeing how their hard work is paying off. It's going to be a tough task, and our kids know they can't let up."
Also in 1A, Sale Creek will make its playoff debut when it travels to Gordonsville. Also of note: Soddy-Daisy won its first region title since 1996 and will host Clinton in 5A, and Grace Academy will play at home in the postseason for the first time since 2008 when it faces Tipton-Rosemark.
Although not unbeaten, both Tyner in 2A and Notre Dame in Division II-AA are one-loss teams with the talent to make a return trip to the state finals after each lost a title game last year.
The only first-round matchup between two area teams is Brainerd at Sequatchie County in 3A. Second-year Brainerd coach Tyrus Ward has his alma mater in the postseason for the first time since 2011.
In 4A, East Hamilton travels to 2017 state champion Greeneville, which has won 25 straight games, and Central will host Sullivan South, marking the first time in 34 years the Purple Pounders have hosted playoff games in back-to-back seasons. In 3A, Signal Mountain, which has won six straight games after opening the season with four losses, will host York.
Baylor hosts Pope John Paul II in a Division II-AAA rematch of a seven-point Baylor win in the regular season, while McCallie earned a first-round bye and will host the winner of Father Ryan at Ensworth in the quarterfinals.
Two other rematches from the regular season come in DII-AA, where Notre Dame hosts Christian Academy of Knoxville, which it beat by 16 the third week of the season, and Chattanooga Christian travels to Knoxville Webb, a team the Chargers topped by 28 just three weeks ago.
Contact Stephen Hargis at shargis@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6293. Follow him on Twitter @StephenHargis.