Sparked by three touchdowns from JaMichael Baxter, Chattanooga Christian raced past third-ranked Knoxville Grace 59-48 for a key Division II-AA East Region road win Friday. Tink Scott, Sam Hall, Boo Carter and AJ Walker also found the end zone for the Chargers.
"That was probably one of the biggest wins in the history of our program," Chargers coach Mark Mariakis said. "We had never beaten them before and to do it the way we did, with a lot of guts and perseverance, says a lot about the character our kids have and the culture that has been developed. I've been coaching for 36 years and considering everything that's been going on with COVID-19 and having to go on the road to get it done, I don't think I've ever been more proud of a team."
CCS (2-2, 2-1) will host Notre Dame next week in another key region game.
READ MORE: Final scores and photos from Friday night's Chattanooga-area high school football games
* Bledsoe County 20, Monterey 14: The Warriors built a two-score lead in the second half and then held off a late rally, securing the nonregion win only after Harmon Keith's interception at the Bledsoe 15 with 40 seconds remaining.
Cadillac Siever led Class 2A's fifth-ranked Bledsoe (7-0) with 161 total yards, incluidng 111 rushing on 15 carries and also had a 2-point conversion run. Dylan Robeck added 64 rushing yards and scored a touchdown and Keith added a short scoring run as well.
* McMinn Central 21, Copper Basin 7: The Chargers forced four turnovers and out-gained Class 1A's second-ranked Cougars 225-191 yards. Jace Derrick ran for 106 yards and a touchdown and Novice Cox added 54 yards for the Chargers.
Joe Boggs started for injured Cougars quarterback Bryson Grabowski and completed seven of 10 passes for 76 yards and a touchdown, while Sebastian Baliles ran for 94 yards for the Cougars (7-1).
* Father Ryan 35, Baylor 28: The Irish rallied for three touchdowns in the final 3:11 to stun the Red Raiders, who had taken a two-score lead on Neyland Jean's 8-yard run early in the fourth. After a pair of Stefan Ponder scoring runs, Father Ryan took its first lead when Aden Nelson returned a blocked field goal 33 yards for what would be the game-winning touchdown.
Elijah Howard ran for 118 yards and a score as Baylor out-gained the Irish 362-340 in total yards.
* Howard 41, Sequoyah 0: The host Hustlin' Tigers improved to 4-3 on the season against winless Sequoyah. Deoriean Elder scored four touchdowns for the winners, who host Hixson at Howard next Friday. Tyler Brundidge also scored for the Tigers, while and Courtney Walker and Chris Hall added interceptions.
* Polk County 21, Sweetwater 7: Polk County went on the road to notch its second victory in seven starts. Jace Derrick rushed 18 times for 106 yards and one touchdown and had 20 tackles, while Jyrel Arnwine also ran for a score. Polk hosts Signal Mountain next Friday.
* Grundy County 28, Whitwell 0: Grundy County earned its first win thanks to two touchdowns and two interceptions from Trenton Ashley. Jacob Dixon and Jacob Hackworth also scored for the Yellow Jackets and Dixon added two two-point conversions. Whitwell fell to 0-6 heading into next week's Region 3-1A game against South Pittsburg.
Contact Stephen Hargis at shargis@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6293. Follow him on Twitter @StephenHargis.