Mt. Juliet wins Titans' 7-on-7 passing tournament for first time

The Titans crowned a new champion Wednesday in its fifth annual 7-on-7 tournament.

Mt. Juliet beat Ravenwood 14-8 in overtime to win the event and in the process became the first team other than Brentwood Academy and Oakland to win it.

"I told somebody that we went to Charlotte last year and paid close to $4,000 and got close to the same competition (Wednesday) and it was free," said Mt. Juliet coach Trey Perry.

The win over the Raptors came with former Mt. Juliet defensive standout Reggie Grimes II now a linebacker at the Williamson County program.

The Golden Bears finished 12-1 in Class 6A in 2018, falling to state champion Oakland in the state quarterfinals. However, Mt. Juliet is breaking in a new quarterback this year in Brice Messinger, who hit Jamari Sowell for a fourth-down, game-winning touchdown pass.

That came after Ravenwood failed to score in its overtime offensive possession.

"Every game is set up different, but these are set up as pressure games," Perry said. "They are quicker games You have to maximize your possessions and maximize your downs.

"Defensively, you have to be a lot quicker because the quarterback is not getting any pressure."

Mt. Juliet defeated Gallatin, Brentwood Academy and Pearl-Cohn to reach the finals.

Reach Tom Kreager at 615-259-8089 or tkreager@tennessean.com and on Twitter @Kreager.