I played in Memphis against Memphis and West TN opponents, and in the past two years have seen several games in middle and east TN.
The West isn't weak in 5-A, 4-A, or D-2, but the lower classification teams, especially in the city are suffering from the poor funding that is hurting the entire school system.
But besides Maryville and Riverdale I haven't seen tougher competition than the West. Equal, but not tougher.
I'm still dreaming of the day that playoff games involve more cross state match-ups instead of playing the same people in the first three rounds every year.
This would be the only way to gauge the tougher regions overall, instead of the who has the top teams.
By the way, the D-2 programs in Memphis more than make up for the weakness elsewhere in the West.