By SAM McGAW
Division II-AA State Championship at Tennessee Tech University
Brentwood Academy (9-2) vs. Montgomery Bell Academy (10-2), 7 p.m. Thursday
There won’t be a shortage of points when Brentwood Academy and Montgomery Bell Academy battle in Thursday’s Division II-AA state championship.
BA, which is led by quarterback Jeremiah Oatvall, averages 39 points per game. MBA, which features Division II-AA Mr. Football Ty Chandler at running back, averages 34 PPG.
“This will be a fun one,” BA head coach Cody White said.”Both of us deserve to be here. We’re ready to play whatever type of game we have to.”
Last year’s title game between the rivals featured 111 points and 1,039 total yards, as BA squeaked out a 56-55 win in double overtime.
Their most recent meeting on Oct. 7 was more tame, however, as the Big Red took a 31-24 win.
Chandler torched the Eagles with 333 rushing yards and four touchdowns in that matchup.
The senior Tennessee commit has known nothing but success against BA. He’s racked up 936 rushing yards and 12 total touchdowns (1 kickoff return) over their last four meetings.
Six of his touchdowns were on gains of 61 yards or more.
“He’s a spectacular back, but it’s not just him — they’re very good up front,” White stated. “The quarterback also does a nice job. They complement well.”
“For us, scheme-wise, there aren’t any secrets. You have to get people in the box and hope they don’t beat you with a play-action pass. I guess you take that as the lesser of two evils.”
Safety Camron Johnson leads the Eagles’ defense with 21 tackles, five interceptions (2 returned for TDs), three fumble recoveries (2 returned for TDs), one blocked punt and a blocked punt return for a touchdown.
Even if BA struggles to bottle up Chandler, its offense is geared to endure a shootout.
Led by Oatsvall, the Eagles have scored 35 points or more in all but two games this season.
Oatsvall recorded 228 yards, 39 rushing yards, two touchdowns (1 run) and one interception in his last bout with MBA.
The Austin Peay commit enters this week with 2,111 passing yards,642 rushing yards and 32 touchdowns (13 run).
His top weapon is Johnson, who has 41 receptions for 638 yards and five touchdowns at wide receiver.
MBA’s defense allows 15.83 points per game.
“They’re sound on defense,” White said. “They’re never out of position and they play good, technical football. They’ve been doing what they do for a long time and they understand it well. We just have to do a good job of managing the box with our offensive line.”
