Who is the best team ever in TSSAA history?

[missingthesouth]

Good post GWAVE1. Gallatin had the late Corey Lewis (class act), Bubba Dunn, Gibson, and Talley. Great team. Would have been state champs had the game been 3 quarters. Gallatin ran out of steam at the end.

[JanetLaws]

The 1995 and 1996 BA teams have to be mentioned, back to back class 5A state championships, i think they went undefeated both years as well, but im not positive. On a side note in 96 they beat riverdale in the 5A finals in front of the largest crowd in state championship history, if i am not mistaken

[johnnyboy]

What happened to Corey Lewis?

[Ti-Ta]

chattanooga central purple pounders were #1 in america for a number of years in the '60s, they got  their name for killing so many teams then.  my dad use to tell me hardly anyone in the city would play them so they had to play teams in many other states.  i would put my 2000 red bank team up there too amongst the greatest too, how bout GERALD RIGGS' 182 RUSHING YARDS LAST NIGHT!!!

 

any of you riverdale fans remember that snowy state title game in 2000? cold as crap

825469804[/snapback]

 

I second that the Red Bank team in 2000 was as good as any that has won a state

championship, even Rankin said they were one of the best he hah seen play the game.

[warriordawg31]

Who was the Riverdale player from the '94 team that went to the NFL?  One thing that keeps coimg up is the "Mythical National Title".  I don't understand how any news service can possibly say one high school on the East coast is better than one on the West coast.  I wish they would stop doing this for the most part, because it's causing alot of teams to go out and embarass other teams for no real reason at all!  There was a kid a few years ago that rolled up over 600 yds. rushing against some small school just to get the USA Today rushing title.  There's no need in that.  As far as the best team in TN history, as bad as it hurts me to say it, I think it's the '04 Riverdale team.  That team is just plain sick!  But there are other school from back before the reclassification and playoff systems that might have competed.  It's really just too hard to pin down one squad over another from a different time.

825477101[/snapback]

Fernando Bryant is the player from Riverdale in the NFL.

[Guest catfish-hunter]

The best team ive seen was the 1997 Pearl Cohn team with John Henderson Santonio Beard and In Fitzgerald and if im not mistaken Ron Slay played to.

I probaly havnt seen as many great football teams as you all have but that was the best team ive seen

825468626[/snapback]

 

The '97 Pearl Cohn Firebirds were probably the most gifted team to ever step onto a football field in this state's history. Coach Fitzgerald's son "Buck" played quarterback and boy was he athletic. He looked like Mike Vick before his time out there, but unlike Vick he had a tremendous supporting cast. The tailback on that team was Santonio Beard. In high school most backs either have speed or they are powerful runners, but Beard was a powerful back who could outrun almost anybody in the open field. The smallest player (in terms of weight) on the entire offensive line was the tight-end. Pearl's tight-end was a guy named John Henderson (who is now an all-pro defensive tackle in the NFL). Ron Slay and another guy named J.R. Pratt played the two wide out spots. They were both big athletic guys who could catch the ball if "Buck" threw it anywhere near them. This does not even include the guys who went on to enjoy successful college football careers such as Kenneth Gates, Wesley Holmes, Damien Harris, Antonio Whitehead, Jonathan Samuels, Joey Martin, Albert Washington, etc. I don't really know if they were the "best team ever in this state" but I do know that if I could take one team to coach in any game, then I'd sure take this team and feel very confident in my chances of winning no matter who the opponent is.

 

Here are some of the best teams I've seen from all of the classes:

 

1A- DCA (2004)- beat Boyd Buchannan in the state title game

2A- Huntingdon (2003)- beat David Lipscomb in the state title game

3A- Portland (2000)- beat Covington in the state title game

4A- Pearl Cohn (1997)- beat Maryville in the state title game

5A- Riverdale (2001)- beat Hendersonville in the state title game

[REBELRON]

Here are the best teams in the Classes I have seen.

 

1A. Tie between 97 Trousdale County,2001 Ezell Harding and 2000 CPA. Those teams were awesome.

2A. Tie between Alcoa 2000 and Huntington 2003.

3A. Melrose 1996

4A. Cleveland 1993

5A. Brentwood Academy 1995-96

 

I never got to see Riverdales 1994 team so I can't comment on them.

[rollredroll]

The '97 Pearl Cohn Firebirds were probably the most gifted team to ever step onto a football field in this state's history...I don't really know if they were the "best team ever in this state" but I do know that if I could take one team to coach in any game, then I'd sure take this team and feel very confident in my chances of winning no matter who the opponent is. 

825478437[/snapback]

 

That team was indeed awesome, but seeing that they lost a game (to MBA), and the team that beat them didn't even win the state title in its league (Father Ryan did with a 12-0 record), I'm not sure we could vote the '97 PCHS team as best ever. They certainly had some studs, though.

[REBELRON]

Pearl Cohn was the most talented team I ever seen. They had no discipline at all. They had over 200 yds in penalties in the state title game vs Maryville. I can see why a team like MBA beat them. I believe that Maryville had stage fright in that game. Maryville was behind 36-9 at halftime. Pearl Cohn scored on a blocked punt and interception return. Pearl Cohn was a much better team than Maryville.

[rollredroll]

Pearl Cohn was the most talented team I ever seen. They had no discipline at all.

825478830[/snapback]

 

I was thinking the same thing (re: discipline). Fundamentals and discipline can be a great equalizer in high school football when there's a disparity in talent between two teams.

 

200 yards in penalties? Wow. If a team has, say, 8-10 possessions per game, 200 yards in penalties translates into 20-25 yards in penalties per drive. That makes 20-yard FGs turn into 40-45 yard FGs - a tall task in high school for many kickers. In a close game, those yards matter.

[d1future]

1993 Cleveland State champs allowing only 42 points on defense scoring 48 of they're points on defense three running backs rushing for 1000 yards out of the potent wing t attack keith cobb kevin cobb and i fogot the fullback's name but i remember cause he had 1000 right on the nose they beat a very good brentwood academy who had tito lee whho u would be hearing about in the nfl too bad he commited suicide i sure would like to of seen how far that would have went

[THE SQUAD]

1967

Cookeville Central Cavaliers.

 

9-0 regular season,beat Clarksville in Civitan bowl to finish 10-0

finished season ranked #2

 

All State Quarterback Watson Brown.

 

Evidently state playoff system hadn't started yet,anyone know exactly what year that started?