Five takeaways: How McGavock went from 0-7 to playoff contender with one win

Here are five takeaways from Week 9 of the Tennessee high school football regular season involving Nashville area schools.

McGavock gets first win, in Class 6A playoff picture

One win has put previously winless McGavock back into the Class 6A playoff conversation.

The Raiders upset La Vergne 28-21 snap an 0-7 start to the 2019 season. And if the Nashville Metro school can piece wins over Antioch and Overton in successive weeks, McGavock could find itself in the postseason.

"We told our kids, 'Now next week is important, and if we win that the next week is important,'" McGavock coach Jay Gore said. "All three of these games we should be competitive in."

La Vergne (4-4, 2-2 in 5-6A) is currently in fourth for the final playoff spot from Region 5-6A.

McGavock (1-7, 1-3) owns the head-to-head tiebreaker over La Vergne, which could come into play since La Vergne still has games with Smyrna (4-4, 3-1) and Cane Ridge (6-2, 5-0).

Michael Bryant scored two rushing touchdowns for the Raiders. Quarterback Marcus Johnson had a touchdown run and a pass to Vincent Hamer.

Nolensville's Tim Coutras adds to his interception total

Another game, another interception for Nolensville senior Tim Coutras, a Liberty commitment.

Coutras, the grandson of former Overton football coach Nick Coutras, collected his seventh pick of the 2019 season in a 23-10 win over Maplewood.

Tim Coutras now has 15 interceptions over the past two seasons for the Knights (8-0, 4-0 4-4A). Nolensville will play at Marshall County (7-2, 4-0) on Nov. 1 for the region title.

The Knights are giving up 6.3 points a game.

Amari Jelks becomes Stewarts Creek's all-time leading rusher

Amari Jelks added to Stewarts Creek's record season on Friday night with a record of his own. Jelks became the seventh-year program's all-time leading rusher with 160 yards in a 17-7 win over Lebanon.

Jelks now has 1,825 career rushing yards, surpassing Nathan Wright's 1,822 yards. Wright set his mark last season. Jelks now has 1,331 yards for the season.

Jelks gave the Red Hawks (7-1, 3-1) an early 7-0 lead when he broke a 60-yard touchdown run with 10:20 left.

Tullahoma coach John Olive gets 200th win

Longtime Tullahoma football coach John Olive collected his 200th career win with a 30-7 victory over Lawrence County. Olive is in his 27th year with the program. 

Quarterback Ben Fulton was 12-of-17 passing for 149 yards and had 42 rushing yards and two rushing TDs.

Beech, Gallatin set for battle of unbeatens in Week 10

Beech and Gallatin each won Sumner County rivalry games Friday to set up a battle between 8-0 teams in Week 10 at Beech.

Gallatin's Spencer Briggs ran for 192 yards and scored two touchdowns in a 27-8 win over Hendersonville. Beech had little problems cruising past winless Station Camp 55-7.

The winner locks up the top spot from Region 6-5A for the postseason.

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