Wayne Turner tore into his Tyner football team after what he called a poor start to the Rams' two scrimmage periods Friday in the Best of Preps Jamboree at Finley Stadium.
The teaching moment carried some weight as Turner's Rams rallied late to top Boyd Buchanan 14-7. But it was a 19-0 victory over Hixson in their second contest that proved to the veteran coach his players still listen.
"First time we played earlier, we didn't play with much intensity or aggressiveness and we made a lot of mistakes," Turner said, "but you have to give Boyd credit for playing us hard. We regrouped ourselves and were clicking on both sides of the ball against Hixson. I was real proud of the way we rebounded."
That rebound started with a 70-yard touchdown run on the scrimmage's first play by Tyner's Rashun Evans on a jet sweep. After getting the ball back after a three-and-out, quarterback Martavius Ryals connected with his favorite target, elite wideout prospect Jeremiah Batiste, for a 58-yard touchdown.
Best of Preps Jamboree
Saturday, Aug.17, at Finley StadiumHoward vs. Copper Basin, 3:30Cleveland vs. Red Bank, 4Howard vs. Signal Mountain, 4:30East Ridge vs. Copper Basin, 5Walker Valley vs. Red Bank, 5:30Sale Creek vs. Signal Mountain, 6Walker Valley vs. McMinn County, 6:30Brainerd vs. McMinn County, 7Brainerd vs. Sale Creek, 7:30Notre Dame vs. Ooltewah, 8Baylor vs. Soddy-Daisy, 8:30Notre Dame vs. Soddy-Daisy, 9Baylor vs. Ooltewah, 9:30
"We came out sloppy in the first game before picking it back up," Ryals said. "In the second game we played with a lot of intensity and energy. We can be very good. We have so many weapons that teams don't know who to watch for to stop us."
Jeremiah Sawyer capped the scoring with an 11-yard run, giving Turner more reason to smile - if only for a few moments.
"We've got some things to straighten out," he said, "but we've got a whole lot of weapons offensively. We're trying to get our offensive and defensive lines to jell. If they keep improving like they have the last couple of weeks, we'll be ready to roll."
In the jamboree opener, Tyner trailed 7-6 and was facing fourth down at the Boyd Buchanan 35 when Ryals scrambled out of trouble and hit Ronnie Neal for 35 yards to the 5, and Kamden Edwards ran it in two plays later. Eli Morris and Eli Evans hooked up for a 70-yard touchdown pass for the Buccaneers.
» Chattanooga Christian 0, Grace Academy 0: The Chargers ran 19 plays to only seven for the Golden Eagles, but a tackle for loss on fourth down by Grace's Tillman Smith and a sack by Mason Long on CCS's last drive kept the Chargers out of the end zone. Roderick Young had 31 yards on three carries for CCS.
» Boyd Buchanan 7, Grace 7: Sophomore quarterback Cooper Knecht hit Tillman Smith with a 15-yard touchdown pass on the period's final play to salvage the tie for the Bucs. A fourth-down personal foul for a late hit on Knecht extended the drive one more play, and the 6-foot-3 Tillman made it count with a leaping grab in the corner. Morris and Evans proved they will be a connection to worry about for the Golden Eagles with four hookups. Morris also found JaMicheal McGoy Jr. for a 38-yard touchdown
» East Hamilton 14, CCS 14: Chargers junior quarterback Sam Hall passed to freshman Javoris Havis in the back right of the end zone for a 25-yard score as time expired. East Hamilton defensive back Chandler Foster intercepted a pass, and teammate Cade Meeks showed off his awareness keeping both feet in bounds at the back of the end zone on a 25-yard score from Haynes Eller.
» McCallie 21, Hixson 0: The Blue Tornado defensive line was a brick wall, devouring any play that came its way, and top area prospect Jay Hardy (6-5, 285) rumbled 43 yards to the end zone on a swing pass from DeAngelo Hardy. BJ Harris broke a 30-yard run on the first play from scrimmage and scored twice.
» Bradley Central 14, Central 7: Bears junior quarterback Javin Burke avoided pressure outside the pocket and threw a 50-yard pass to a 6-5 rising star in junior Tray Curry, who stiff-armed his way to an 80-yard score. Burke added an 11-yard rushing touchdown and completed a 53-yard pass to Kanon Hall. Hunter Jones exploded on the first play for a 70-yard untouched score for the Purple Pounders.
» East Hamilton 10, Bradley Central 6: Adam Caudle's burst out of the backfield was difficult to defend, as the Hurricanes' talented runner gained 78 yards on just four carries. Caudle broke a 30-yard touchdown to provide the difference as his offensive line opened a big hole. Kicker Alen Karajic split the uprights from 38 yards out. The Bears got a 13-yard touchdown catch by Hall.
» McCallie 14, Central 7: DeAngelo Hardy threw a 43-yard strike to Thompson Byrd for a quick score on the first possession for the Blue Tornado. Central's Jones got around the left end on a touchdown run of 11 yards, but McCallie scored late to cap a 2-0 day.
Contact Lindsey Young at lyoung@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6296. Follow him on Twitter @youngsports22.
Contact Patrick MacCoon at pmaccoon@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6291. Follow him on Twitter @PMacCoon.