Cosby falls to Unaka 54-12 in region finale

BY BRIAN HAMILTON COSBY – The Eagles’ defense played well early, but Unaka’s high-octane offense was too much to handle in the end, as Cosby lost its final region game by a score of 54-12. Devonte Wigfall intercepted Unaka quarterback Landon Ramsey on the Rangers’ first drive to give Cosby good field position for their first possession. The Eagles drove to the Unaka 5-yard line, but turned the ball over when quarterback Tyler Turner fumbled a handoff, which the Rangers recovered. Unaka capitalized on the turnover when Ramsey hit Caleb Lydick for a 68-yard touchdown to take an 8-0 lead. …

West hangs 76 points on Cocke County

BY BRIAN HAMILTON NEWPORT – Senior night did not quite go as planned for Cocke County on Friday night, as top-ranked West came in and destroyed the Fighting Cocks 76-7. The Rebels amassed 609 yards of total offense, with 490 of those yards coming on the ground. West averaged 19 yards per play. The rout began on West’s first play from scrimmage, as Brayden Latham sliced the Fighting Cock defense for an 89-yard touchdown run for a 7-0 lead just under two minutes into the game. The Rebels took a 14-0 lead when quarterback Carson Jessie found Jaqurius Wrenn for …

Seymour

Seymour defeats Grainger to clinch first playoff berth since 2015

BY BRIAN HAMILTON RUTLEDGE – Seymour clinched a playoff birth with a 35-14 win over Grainger on Friday, one year after going winless. “The turnover game is very important,” Seymour head coach Scott Branton said. “Whoever wins the turnover battle and runs the football better usually wins.” Seymour forced seven Grainger turnovers and slightly outrushed the Grizzlies 131 to 125. Grainger’s first turnover came on its first snap of the game, which was recovered by Seymour’s Tyler Rogers. The Eagles took a 7-0 lead in the first quarter on a 5-yard run by Kai Thompson with 7:34 left, capping a …

Hammonds

Gatlinburg-Pittman trounces Northview Academy 48-6 behind 5 Hammonds TDs

BY BRIAN HAMILTON KODAK – Gatlinburg-Pittman started fast on Thursday night and took a 41-0 halftime lead, en route to a 48-6 win, keeping the Highlanders in position to finish second in Region 2. Gatlinburg-Pittman hadn’t played in three weeks, due to a bye week followed by a COVID forfeit by Hampton last week. “It helped that we got out to a big lead, but we haven’t played recently, so we’ve got to play,” Gatlinburg-Pittman head coach Brad Waggoner said. “We’ve just got to keep getting better. I was really pleased with the way we came out, but we gave …

Sevier County players have record setting night in 42-0 win over Heritage

BY BRIAN HAMILTON SEVIERVILLE – Sevier County kept Heritage winless on Thursday night, as quarterback Collin Shannon threw for 283 yards, helping him surpass the school passing record of 6,288 career yards. Linebacker Garrett Hawkins also recorded 10 tackles, making him the Smoky Bears’ all-time leader in tackles. Sevier County opened the game with an 80-yard touchdown drive to take a 7-0 lead with 10:29 remaining in the opening quarter. Heritage would fumble on its first possession, giving the Smoky Bears a short field, which led to another score, putting the Mountaineers in a 14-0 hole less than three minutes …