MTCS football breaks TSSAA playoff records in victory
Cecil Joyce
During Friday's 54-42 win over Jackson Christian, Middle Tennessee Christian managed to rack up more than 600 yards by keeping things almost solely on the ground.
The Cougars attempted just three passes (completing them all for 38 yards) while rushing for 581 yards and eight touchdowns on the ground, which broke the TSSAA state playoff record (previously held by Trousdale County in 1998 with 546).
Senior Drew Berry exploded for 353 yards and six touchdowns in the win, while junior Kemari McGowan added 197 yards and two scores.
Berry's big night wasn't a school record, however. McGowan rushed for 397 yards in a regular-season win over DCA last season.
He did, however, tie a TSSAA playoff record for touchdowns in a game, joining South Pittsburgh's Sam Pickett (1999) and Huntington's Terrance Bell (2003).
MTCS plays at Fayette Academy in the state quarterfinals Friday.
Wild division
The Cougars' wild win over visiting Jackson Christian surprisingly wasn't the highest-scoring game of the playoffs Friday night.
It wasn't even the highest in Division II-A.
The two teams combined for 96 points, but the DII-A first-round game between St. George's (49) vs. Hardin Academy (48) totaled 97 points, which set a TSSAA playoff record.
The third-most points also were scored in a DII-A game, as Lausanne (62) and Goodpasture (28) combined for 90 points.
Bracket breakdown
In the TSSAA Class 6A state playoff bracket, the top seeds haven't disappointed their fans thus far.
Of the eight second-round matchups on the slate, six involve No. 1 vs. No. 2 seeds, including Friday's Hendersonville at Oakland and Blackman at Mt. Juliet matchups.
The winners of those two games will clash in the state quarterfinals.
All No. 1 seeds won first-round games and only two No. 2 seeds fell on Friday (Smyrna, Cordova).
Not only were there few upsets in the first round in 6A, but only three of the 16 games were decided by a touchdown or less. Oakland's 49-10 win over Rossview was the biggest margin of victory in the bracket.
Reach Cecil Joyce at cjoyce@dnj.com or 615-278-5168 and on Twitter @Cecil_Joyce.
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