TSSAA Division II-AA Brackets Released

The TSSAA announced its playoff brackets over the radio this morning. In years past, the bracket has been finalized by midnight of the last Friday of the regular season, but because of the new playoff system that the TSSAA is employing this year, things are a bit different. Amid all of the strange playoff shenanigans, all Ensworth fans need to know is that they have a first round bye and will face the winner of BGA at MBA. That second round game will be at Ensworth. The full brackets can be found here.

6 in 6 Part 1: Hunt Baker

Hunt Baker is a Senior assistant captain who has played hockey for Ensworth ever since the inception of the team in 2007.

Q: Who is your favorite NHL player of all time?

A: Jordan Staal because he is about the same size as me. He's a big guy and has good physciality, and he's a work horse. He had 7 short handed goals his rookie year. He's not really a superstar, he's not fancy, and he plays a simple game, but he is still effective for his team.

Q: What is the biggest change you see in this year's team compared to Ensworth teams of the past?

A: I would say we're all skating now by virtue of experience, and everybody has a lot of hockey sense. Lee Srebnick is also a big addition to the team.

Q: How does the team replace a player like Evan Chaberski?

Well, you really can't. It's kind of like a double-edged sword. He brought a lot of offensive fire power and intensity but now we have a lot more guys stepping up.

Q: What are your goals for this season?

A:We would like to get several wins, and we would like to improve as a team. We would like to win some games and have some people respect us as an athletic team. Also, we want to have more people outside the hockey team to be more interested and have more people show up at the games.

PERFECTION! EHS 35 BGA 9

AP: www.ensworth.com

Although the Ensworth Tigers were missing their leader in the backfield, another stepped up Friday night as junior Rodney Anderson took over and rushed for 147 yards and 1 TD on senior night at Tiger Stadium to put the exclamation point at the end of Ensworth's second consecutive undefeated regular season.

Both of BGA's first two drives ended in interceptions by Myers Beaird and Rico Watson (3rd INT in 3 career games).

After CJ Beathard's first interception at the BGA 23, Anderson ran the ball 3 times before Cody Tollison scored on a 9 yard TD run of his own. After the 2nd INT at the BGA 28, the Tigers ran 3 plays to the BGA 10 before Myers Beaird would take it to the end zone to put the Tigers up 14-0.

BGA responded with a 64 yard drive of their own; however, they only came away with three points on a 31 yard FG by Ben Butler.

After 3 and outs from both teams, Ensworth got the ball on their own 40 yard line. After two big gainers by Anderson, the Tigers found themselves at the BGA 22. During a 3rd down play that looked like it was going to be a disaster for Ensworth with the defense breathing down Tollison's neck, the senior QB bought just enough time to find Jacob Carter all alone in the end zone to put the Tigers up 21-3 and the score remained the same during halftime. If you have been keeping track, the first three TD's were scored by Seniors.

The next score would come in the 3rd quarter when Anderson burned the Wildcat defense with a 45 yard TD run.

In the fourth quarter Tollison would strike again, this time on 3rd and 21, and would find senior Corey Sacks for the 40 yard score. Tollison would finish the game 7-13 with 83 yards and 2 TD's.

The Tigers will have a bye week next week. They will play the winner of MBA VS BGA the following week.

Passing

Ensworth:
Cody Tollison 7-13 83 yards 2 tds
Wirth Campbell 2-5 20 yards 1 int
BGA:
C.J. Beathard 11-22 58 yards 2 ints

Rushing
Ensworth:
Rodney Anderson 11 carries 147 yards 1 td, 13.4 yards/carry
Cornelius Elder 3 carries 34 yards, 11.3 yards/carry
Myers Beaird 5 carries 30 yards 1 td, 6 yards/carry
Cody Tollison 4 carries 8 yards 1 td, 2 yards/carry
BGA:
Keenan Bass 7 carries 46 yards 1 td, 6.6 yards/carry
Josh Copeland 7 carries 37 yards, 5.3 yards/carry
Michael Moore 12 carries 34 yards, 2.8 yards/carry
C.J. Beathard 6 carries -26 yards, -4.3 yards/carry

Receiving
Ensworth:
Jacob Carter 4 catches 40 yards 1 td
Corey Sacks 2 catches 47 yards 1 td
Daniel McFadden 1 catch 16 yards
David Dingess 1 catch 4 yards
Rodney Anderson 1 catch -4 yards
BGA:
Jordan Smith 4 catches 45 yards
Josh Smith 2 catches 12 yards
Michael Moore 2 catches 7 yards
Owen Meadows 1 catch 4 yards
Michael Smith 1 catch 4 yards
Josh Copeland 1 catch -14 yards

Team
Ensworth:
219 yards rushing
103 yards passing
322 yards total offense
21:17 time of possession
BGA:
91 yards rushing
58 yards passing
149 yards total offense
26:43 time of possession

Ensworth VS BGA Preview

Once again the Ensworth Tigers (8-0) have another chance for the second straight year to finish the regular season undefeated. However, they will have to do it without their offensive workhorse.

The Tigers will have to face the Wildcats of Battle Ground Academy (5-4) to finish with a 9-0 mark. Without Orleans Darkwa it could end up being a tougher test for the No. 64 team in the country than some may think. The Wildcats feature leading rusher #30 Michael Moore with over 1,400 rushing on the season along with leading receiver #2 Kenny Bass.

How To Win

The Tigers have to establish the passing game with Cody Tollison under center to replace the lost yardage that comes with the injury of your best offensive threat. Players like Rodney Anderson, Quinn Hamilton and Corn Elder have to step up in the backfield in order to stay undefeated.

The Wildcats will have to control TOP with their running game if they hope to stay in it. On defense they will have to defend the pass and not give up big plays; without Orleans, this team has yet to prove that they can consistently start and finish drives.

Prediction

The Tigers in my mind are definitely the better team. They will find ways to run the hall behind Antonio Richarson and Keenan Crenshaw. So far Cody Tollison and Jacob Carter have been able to step up in the passing game. Tigers finish the regular season with perfection. EHS 28 BGA 14.

Coming Soon: Ensworth Live

Ensworth Live will be a series of web shows broadcast by the EHS Broadcast Club. The first episode premieres this Wednesday at 8 PM at www.ensworthlive.com.

The first episode is actually a political talk show. The political talk show will include Aubrey Moore, Nathan Caplan, Sam Devane and Edward Gore.

The sports show will premiere on Monday at 8 PM featuring myself, Aaron Crowe, William Joy and Nick Smith.

Keep up with Ensworth Live on Facebook and follow on Twitter.

Tigers Remain Unbeaten: Ensworth 29 Baylor 15

AP: www.ensworth.com

In an Ensworth offense that is ruled by the run, the pass took command for the first time this season.

The Tigers took an early lead when Senior RB Orleans Darkwa found a new gear and took the ball 79 yards to the end zone during the Tigers' second offensive play from scrimmage. From then on, Coach Bowers decided to open the playbook a bit with the pass. After 4 completions by Ensworth QB Cody Tollison, the Tigers found themselves 7 yards away from the Red Raider end zone. However, the Baylor defense stood strong on 3rd down, and the Tigers settled for 3 with Clayton McGlasson's 24 yard field goal.

Baylor then went on an 8:26 drive to the Ensworth 8 yard line before Junior LB Nantambu Fentress returned the favor. Fentress intercepted Jacob Huesman's pass in the end zone. Unable to put together a last minute drive with 1:24 left in the half, the Tigers took a 10-0 lead to halftime.

To the start the 2nd half the Tigers went to the air. On the second play of the half, Tollison hooked up with Senior WR Jacob Carter, who had been out for the past several weeks nursing a leg injury, on a 38 yard pass. The very next play Darkwa extended the lead by 6 on a 20 yard run.

Baylor's next drive ended with another interception; this time sophomore CB Rico Watson came up with the pick. The interception is his second in his last two games.

Unfortunately, on the Tigers' next offensive drive, Orleans Darkwa went down with a neck injury and did not return. Early indications are not serious, but he will get his neck X-rayed to take necessary precautions. Darkwa walked off the field under his own power. Darkwa finished with 133 yards on 11 carries and 2 TD's.

Baylor's next drive ended up being worth 8 points after driving the ball 51 yards. The touchdown and the two point conversion were both scored by Huesman out of the Emory and Henry formation.

The Tigers then added two more TD's with a 4 yard run by Tollison set up by his 18 yard pass to Jacob Carter and a 9 yard TD run by freshman RB Cornelius "Corn" Elder. Elder's TD is his first of what looks to be many at EHS.

Baylor scored once more on Huesman's 5 yard pass to RB Nelson Pinkstaff.

The Tigers finished with a season high 132 passing yards.

The Tigers will take on BGA next Friday. The Wildcats are coming off a 23-20 win over JPII.

More stats courtesy of Alex Boehm:

Passing:
Ensworth:
Cody Tollison 8-12 128 yds
Wirth Campbell 1-2 4 yds
Baylor:
Jacob Huesman 20-36 214 yds, 1 td, 2 ints

Rushing:
Ensworth:
Orleans Darkwa 11 carries 133 yds, 2 tds, 12.1 yds/carry
Cornelius Elder 2 carries 27 yds, 1 td, 13.5 yds/carry
Cody Tollison 7 carries 2 yds, 1 td, 0.3 yds/carry
Rodney Anderson 6 carries 0 yds
Baylor:
Sam Williams 11 carries 23 yds, 2.1 yds/carry
Jacob Huesman 13 carries 16 yds, 1.2 yds/carry
Nelson Pinkstaff 4 carries 7 yds, 1.8 yds/carry

Receiving:
Ensworth:
Jacob Carter 4 catches 85 yds
Sam Cooper 1 catch 27 yds
Corey Sacks 1 catch 9 yds
Myers Beaird 1 catch 5 yds
David Dingess 1 catch 4 yds
Rodney Anderson 1 catch 2 yds
Baylor:
Deosha McColley 7 catches 69 yds
Charbo Clark 5 catches 62 yds
Sam Williams 3 catches 42 yds
Michael Trundle 2 catches 15 yds
Josh Ernest 1 catch 17 yds
Nelson Pinkstaff 1 catch 5 yds
David Helton 1 catch 4 yds

Team:
Baylor:
46 yds rushing
214 yds passing
260 yds total offense
26:41 TOP
Ensworth:
162 yds rushing
132 yds passing
294 yds total offense
21:19 TOP

Ensworth VS Baylor Preview

AP www.ensworth.com

Last Friday the Ensworth Tigers were again pushed to their limit against a quality opponent in Father Ryan, but will the same fate lie ahead when the Tigers face Baylor? The Baylor Red Raiders will come into Nashville with an impressive 6-2 record including wins against arch rival McCallie and most recently a 51-7 win over JPII. Their only two losses came against MBA and Brentwood Academy.

Players To Watch

#14 QB Jacob Huesman- Great dual threat QB. He has passed for 1067 yards and rushed for 685 through 8 games.

#22 RB Nelson Pinkstaff- Leading Rusher at RB

#13 LB David Helton- Leading Tackler

#19 DB Channing Gordan- Leads the team with 3 INT's

Prediction

Baylor has played pretty good defense up to this point only giving up 15.5 points a game. The question is, can they stop Darkwa? The only team to come close was Oakland. I say that Ensworth will not commit as many errors as they have in their last few games against good teams, but they will not run away. EHS 35 Baylor 21

Tigers Hold On: EHS 35 FRHS 27

AP: www.ensworth.com

In Ensworth's first 2 seasons in Division II Father Ryan had always showed up to play, and this year was no different.

In the early going, it did not look like the game would be a mirror image of the close games in the past. Ensworth Senior Orleans Darkwa led the Tigers on a lengthy 85 yard drive and capped it off on a 13 yard TD run.

The Tigers forced a three and out on the ensuing Irish drive. Darkwa again drove the Tigers down the field and scored on a 2 yard TD run. Clayton McGlasson's PAT was blocked.

The Irish drive once more was halted on 4th down which forced another punt. Darkwa 'n' company again drove the ball all the way to the Irish 5 yard line. From that point, Darkwa would score his 3rd TD of the half. Cody Tollison's 2 yard pass to Malcom Grigsby was good for the 2 point conversion.

The Tigers were looking at a possible 28-0 lead before the half but Tollison's 70 yard pass to Daniel McFadden was called back due to an ineligible receiver downfield. The Tigers then had to punt from their goal line, but the snap went over McFadden's head and out the back of the end zone for a safety.

The Irish drove the ball after the free kick to the EHS 35 yard line. Irish kicker Nick Pollard set up for a 52 yard field goal and knocked it through the uprights. The score at halftime was 21-5 in favor of EHS.

The Irish drove the ball down the field 60 yards to set up a 9 yard TD run from QB Trey McPhail. The Irish's attempt at the two point conversion was good. They were down only 21-13 in the 3rd quarter. But the madness had just begun.

The Tigers responded with a TD drive of their of their own with a 1 yard TD run by Darkwa which was set up by a 43 yard dash by Darkwa. The score put the Tigers up 28-13.

On the ensuing kickoff WR Joe Francescon took the kick 90 yards to the house, but on the very next kick Darkwa took one 95 yards to paydirt. Darkwa finished the night with 364 rushing yards and 469 all purpose yards with 5 TD's. The 15 point advantage to the Tigers still stood at 35-20.

The Irish offense drove the ball down the field once again. RB Nick Bateman scored from 8 yards out to put the Irish within 8 points of a tie with the score at 35-27.

The Irish then went for the on-side kick and succeeded. The Irish received the ball at the 50 yard line but only went backwards from there and were forced to punt. However, Rodney Anderson muffed the return and the Irish got the ball back at the EHS 25. But, once more, the Irish could not convert. On 4th and 11 Sophomore DB Rico Watson intercepted McPhail's pass at the EHS 22.

Once more the Irish had an opportunity after forcing an Ensworth 3 and out. On 4th and 16 McPhail's pass to Alex Shoulders was less than one yard too short of the 1st down marker. From then on EHS ran out the clock and took the 35-27 victory.

The Tigers will take on Baylor next Friday at Ensworth. Baylor crushed JPII by the score of 51-7 on Friday night.

Here are some more stats from Friday's game...

Passing:
Tollison 1-4 3 yards 1 int
McPhail 12-21 122 yds 1 int 4 sacks

Rushing:
Darkwa 40 carries 364 yards 9.1 avg 4 tds (469 all-purpose yards and 5 total tds)
Bateman 17 carries 45 yards 2.6 avg 1 td

Receiving:
Alex Shoulders 5 rec 53 yards
Jackson Coursey 3 rec 22 yards

Returns:
Joe Francescon (kickoffs) 5 ret 165 yards (90 long) 1 td
Orleans Darkwa (kickoffs) 2 ret 105 yards (95 long) 1 td

Team:

Father Ryan:
11 first downs
37 rush yards
122 passing yards
159 total offense
3.1 yds/play
23:02 TOP

Ensworth:
18 first downs
384 rush yards
3 passing yards
387 total offense
7.7 yards/play
24:58 TOP

Ensworth vs. Father Ryan Preview

While the Father Ryan Irish haven't had the best talent on the field during the last couple of seasons, they have sure made a lot of games interesting. In 2007, the Irish defeated the favored Tigers in their own backyard. In that game Ensworth turned the ball over on 5 separate occasions. In last season's game, Ensworth star RB Orleans Darkwa was unavailable for the entire 2nd half and the Irish took a 1 point lead in the 4th quarter before former Tiger Tavarres Jefferson returned the ensuing kickoff almost all the way back before Ensworth took the lead back. Father Ryan could not answer as LB Myers Beaird returned an interception for a TD.

The Irish are lead by QB Trey McPhail, RB Nick Bateman and WR Joe Francescon. However, their top DI prospect is the kicker Nick Pollard, who can hit easily from 50+ yards. The Irish are definitely an offensive minded team but are coming off a heart breaking 7-3 loss against long time rival MBA. They are 5-2 on the season with their other loss coming against Overton High School.

The Tigers are definitely the favorites in this game, but Ryan has given them trouble in the past. Ensworth should be able to use their running game to keep them in control, but Darkwa has been limited in games so far this season. The Irish are definitely going to give it their best like they have in the past, so who knows? But also, I'm not one to compare scores but Father Ryan only held off JPII by a 7 point margin (the same team the Tigers beat last Friday 42-17). Discounting any injuries or any other irregularities Ensworth should roll in this one. EHS 49 FRHS 14.

The game is at 7PM at EHS. Live webcast can be found at ensworthlive.com.

Karro's Recruitment Tracker: October Edition

The Junior DL standout sent shock waves through the college football recruiting world when THE Miles Karro recorded one tackle against JPII, a career first. The last time someone named Miles Karro made a tackle against a high school team with a Knight as their mascot was in 1969 when Sacramento School for the Blind Donkeys gave the I.P. Freely High Knights a 70-0 blow out loss. Miles Karro went on to play college football at intramural powerhouse Bob's Tire College in Wasilla, Alaska .

After achieving the amazing feat offers from all over the country started to pile up in the Karro household's mailbox. Most notably Penn State University and University of Florida have extended offers to the upcoming superstar on his 17th birthday. After Georgia's blow out loss to Tennessee this past weekend UGA head coach Mark Richt gave a verbal offer to Karro Monday morning in desperation since they obviously need improvement along their defensive line. When asked about the verbal offer Richt responded,"What! I didn't do that! Get off my lawn!" I guess he didn't want this to come out quite yet but you guys are first know.

Miles told RUMBLE after the offers came in, "I'm still waiting on that Tennessee offer, I wait to meet Layla...I mean...Lane Kiffin."

Handler Noland Moorer said, "I just want the best for this kid. He his a perfect example of a leader on and off the field."

Tigers Trample Knights 42-17

As many anticipated, the Tigers rolled in this one, and the charge was led by #10.

The Tigers got out to a fast start. On their first possession, when the Tigers were backed up on 3rd and 16 from their own 14 yard line, when the Knights thought they had the Tigers pinned, Orleans Darkwa broke an 86 yarder for the score. The touchdown put Ensworth up 6-0 after Clayton McGlasson missed the PAT. That run also put Orleans in the top ten all time for most career rushing yards in the state of Tennessee; we’ll have more on that later.

JPII then responded with a 28 yard Michael Colello TD pass to Tyler Tinker right before the end of the 1st quarter. Unfortunately, that would be the only score for the Knights until the 2nd half.

Darkwa then went on to lead another drive that took 9 plays to go 80 yards capped off by a 13 yard TD run by Darkwa. He then converted on the 2 point play to put the Tigers up by 7.

The Tigers would score once more after facing a 3rd and 9. Rodney Anderson would take the ball from the JPII 44 to the house to put the Tigers up 21-7.

Darkwa would lead yet another drive with a 31 yard run down to the Knights' 4 yard line. Darkwa would take it in himself 2 plays later from only 1 yard out to put the Tigers ahead 28-7 at the half. Darkwa finished the game with 256 yards rushing and 3 TD's.

Cody Tollison and Malcom Grigsby both added 15 yard runs on the Tigers first two possessions of the second half.

Game Notes

THE Miles Karro recorded his first career tackle in the 4th quarter. There are rumors that Penn State and University of Florida have already sent in written offers to the junior DL standout.

The Tigers finished with 417 Rushing yards but only 17 yards passing.

The Tiger defense held JPII to only 38 rushing yards on 30 attempts and picked off two passes.

On Friday the Tigers will take on the Father Ryan Fighting Irish at Ensworth. The Irish are coming off a heartbreaking 7-3 loss against longtime rival MBA.

RUMBLE Gallery: EHS Hosts Special Olympics

Gallery

Tavarres Jefferson Scores First TD as a Blue Raider!

Former Tiger great and MTSU Blue Raider freshman Tavarres Jefferson showed up Tuesday night against Troy with 7 REC, 79 Yards, and 1 TD. Not bad for a freshman, but unfortunately, the rest of the team didn't come to the party as MTSU dropped this one to Troy 31-7.

Tigers Escape from Eagles 15-9

Friday night was Ensworth's homecoming and they did not dissappoint the visiting Tiger alums as they beat Brentwood Academy for the first time in school history.

The game began with an Ensworth 3 and out, and after a long BA punt return the Eagles had great field position. Cody Nelson hooked up with Lucas Brooks for a 13 yard touchdown reception and took the lead 6-0 after a failed PAT by Nathan Renfroe.

The Tigers then drove down the field to take the lead after Orleans Darkwa took one in from 11 yards out.

The Eagles responded right before halftime with a 24 yard field goal by Renfroe. The score at the half was 9-7 with the Eagles leading.

Once more, the Tigers found a way to win in the second half. Orleans Darkwa led the Tigers on an 85 yard drive capped off by a 10 yard touchdown of his own. Cody Tollison converted the 2 point play with a 2 yard run. Orleans finished the game with 308 rushing yards and 2 TD's.

After Ensworth turned the ball over on downs at the Brentwood 20, the Eagles took over, and Brentwood quarterback Cody Nelson completed three consecutive passes to move the ball to the Ensworth 40. On Nelson's 4th pass he was intercepted for the second time by Corey Sacks at the 2, who took it out to the 30 yard line.

The Tigers will take on JPII next week in Hendersonville. JPII is coming off a 20-13 loss against Father Ryan.

11 in 38,748,237 Part 11: Teddy Reeve

Finally we have reached the final interview of the 11 in 11 series. We end with Senior center Teddy Reeve. Teddy is as consistent as they come. He has started at center for the past two seasons for an offense that averages over 30 points a game. If the Tigers need their team to be anything right now, they need to be consistent to say the least against Brentwood Academy this Friday.

Q: Teddy, how big of a role does the offensive line play in this year's rushing attack?

A: The offensive line plays a huge role in the rushing attack this year. Coach Caudill has put in a game plan that allows for us to be successful and use our strengths to the fullest. We just make the holes, and with a high-caliber back like Orleans, we are able to capitalize. We have only scratched the surface of what this offensive line is capable of.

Q: What are some areas do you feel that the offensive line can improve on?

A: Communication: when we are all on the same page we are unstoppable; when we are all over the place we tend to make mistakes and not get the job done. If we can be on the same page we can go far this year.

Q: Are you looking to walk on and play college football next year?

A: If I have to I will walk on, but at the moment I'm not looking to go that route. I have been in contact with many D1-AA and Ivy League schools, and I plan on playing for one of them this time next year.

Q: How big is this year's BA game?

A: This game is the biggest game this year for us, and the biggest BA game thus far. They have kept us from the title game two years running, and this time it's the regular season, but we are treating it like the playoffs. To be the first Ensworth team to beat BA would be huge and would give us confidence that we can build on as the season rolls along.

Q: What does the offensive line have to do against BA to have a shot at beating them for the first time on homecoming?

A: We just have to work as a unit, if we are together, BA will have their hands full tomorrow night.