Quarterfinal showdown 'just another ballgame'

Cascade's defense is looking for a repeat performance where they held Jo Byrns to 22 yards passing back in October. (T-G Photo by Danny Parker) [Click to enlarge]

Afterward, Cascade was full throttle toward their first-ever undefeated regular season and Region 5-A championship thanks to the thrilling 15-14 win at Jo Byrns.

The landscape of the rivalry between the two schools changed as well. After being outscored 106-13 over three straight losses, the Champions finally broke down a concrete barrier and came to the realization that they were indeed one of the top football teams in the state of Tennessee.

That showdown had been circled on the calendar for some time and the entire region took notice. Now, the two square off yet again. This time it's win or go home in the TSSAA state quarterfinals.

Kickoff is at The Stable on Friday night at 7.

"For us, it's just another ballgame, seriously." Champion coach Kenny Parker said. "We've got to come out, execute and play well. They've got a good football team and everybody around knows they've got a good football team.

"We were fortunate enough to come from behind at their place. So, they're going to be that much hungrier."

Cascade, one of four teams in Class A entering Friday night 12-0, has never been this far in the postseason. For that matter, no Bedford County high school football team has advanced to the quarters since Shelbyville Central did in 1995.

Turnovers did that Golden Eagle team in as they gave it away five times and fell 44-20 at undefeated Cleveland.

The Champs don't appear to be fazed by the circus coming to town.

"To them it's just another week that they get to do something that they enjoy doing," Parker said.

It will be Jo Byrns' third road playoff game in the past four years. The last time they left Cedar Hill for the quarterfinals they returned home with a 30-28 loss thanks to Mt. Pleasant in 2006.

The teams are familiar enough with one another at this point, that Parker likened the matchup to the Tennessee Titans and Jacksonville Jaguars butting heads in an NFL divisional game.

"Everybody knows everybody. You know what they're going to do. We know each other inside and out.

"You can't put in a whole new different something this week, try to go out, execute it and think you're going to beat them."

Cascade's offense enters averaging 40.9 points per game after taking down McEwen 55-20 last week, a game in which they ran for 293 yards and passed for 110 behind arguably the top blocking performance by the O-line on the year.

Jo Byrns (11-1) is coming off a 33-6 beating at Region 6 champion Wayne County in which they held the Wildcats to only 49 yards rushing.

If the Orange and Black want to reach the semifinals, they likely will need to get more production on the ground against the stingy Red Devil defense. They had only 20 yards on 17 carries before Matt Henderson's 41-yard carry with less than five minutes left in the fourth quarter.

"We've got to execute better," Parker said. "We've got to hold our blocks better. They do a good job of getting off the block and running to the ball.

"We made a lot of mental mistakes up front and a few missed assignments, but against a good football team, a few missed assignments is going to cost you. That will get you in down-and-distance situations that are tough to overcome."

The key for Jo Byrns is to get their running game going with Kevin Ashabraner, Isaac Bourne and Brandon Holt. Holt rushed for 179 on 31 carries back in late October.

"They've got some good linemen and in crunch situations they like to run behind them. That was obvious up there the first time when they continued to run behind (Matt Bohler) and (David Nordy) with a senior (Bourne) leading at fullback.

"Now, it's pretty much going out and executing."

Cascade shut them out for a little over three quarters then partially by taking quarterback Scott Adkins out of the equation. The senior finished just 3-for-8 passing for 22 yards with one interception.

"We got a little pressure on him the first time. We're going to have to be able to do that again," Parker said.

"Last time we went up there and played them I thought our defense probably played the best game they've played all year. We've got to have another effort like that."

The Red Devils have made an adjustment with their conversions, opting more often now to kick extra points with Clint Morris, who nailed 5-of-6 versus Moore County in the first round of the playoffs.

For the first time since the teams were placed in the same region, the field surface should be in decent shape after a week without rainfall. However, the wind chill is expected to be in the low 20s.

"The field's in good shape," Parker said. "It won't be anywhere near what it was last week. The footing's good. We just won't have the green plush grass on it that had. We're going to play on about what the Titans play on."