| TEAM | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | TOTAL |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ravenwood | 3 | 17 | 3 | 3 | 26 |
| Maryville High School | 7 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 17 |
Raptors Kick It
In the last football game of the high school season, scoring started and ended with kicks by Crews Holt.
The Tennessee Titans Mr. Football Kicker of the Year made four field goals to give the Ravenwood Raptors a decisive edge in their 26-17 win over the Maryville Rebels in the Class 6A Blue Cross Bowl on Saturday night at Tennessee Tech.
Holt hit field goal attempts of 23, 27, 42 and 33 yards, with two boots being the only points scored in the second half of the defense-heavy rematch of last year’s championship, which Maryville won in overtime 35-34.
Look at this @wcsRHSwh holding Blue Cross Bowl Gold Football @williamsonsrc pic.twitter.com/IAh3r8zmZ4
— donna vissman (@DonnaVissman) December 6, 2015
The Raptors waited all year for another shot at the Rebels, who had their 44-game win streak snapped as Ravenwood won its second-ever state title.
“Not a lot of people said this rematch would even happen, but these kids played their guts out,” William Hester, Ravenwood head coach, said. “These 36 [seniors] refused to have their senior season defined by what they did as juniors.”
At a few points early in the game it looked like it would not happen.
Ravenwood scored first with Holt’s first make, but a little bit into the second quarter it looked like Maryville might pull away after scoring 10-straight points to lead 10-3.
But just when the Raptors needed it- and just like he has all year- Chris Rowland came to the rescue.
The dynamic senior RB/WR, somehow still without a single offer from a Division I college, is the scariest return man in the state and a constant big-play threat. A couple minutes into the second quarter he slashed and cut and scored on a 63-yard pass from senior quarterback Andrew Rappe that, with the Holt PAT, tied the game at 10. Rappe finished 9 for 14 for 151 yards, a touchdown and an interception, adding 56 yards rushing.
It was a moment when both teams seemed to realize that this would be knock down, drag out, like early in the Rocky fight scene when Apollo Creed realizes he might have met his match.
But if last year was Rocky, this year was Rocky II for Ravenwood- the one where the ultimate underdog proves to the world he is the champion he always knew he could be.
Maryville took little more than a minute to counter, with Dylan Hopkins finding Brian Tillery for a 12-yard touchdown that gave the Rebels their second lead of the game 17-10. Hopkins, a dual threat quarterback, went 9 for 23 for 139 yards, 2 TDs and 3 INTs, while gaining 15 yards on 11 carries.
With about eight minutes left in the half and Ravenwood down by seven Holt hit his second field goal, which the Raptors followed- capitalizing on one of what would be four Rebel turnovers- with a Rowland pass to Carter Nelson for a 5-yard touchdown. The score and the PAT gave Ravenwood the lead into halftime and for good.
On the night Rowland rushed for 46 yards, caught five passes for 117 yards and a score and finished 1 for 1 passing for 5 yards and a touchdown. He was true to game-changing form, after scoring on a 80-yard kickoff return last week in the semifinals against Whitehaven that gave the Raptors the edge.
The Ravenwood win sealed one of the most successful football seasons ever for Williamson County football, with three of four possible state titles coming back west. Independence won Class 5A and Brentwood Academy won in Division II-AA. Christ Presbyterian Academy could not repeat as Class 3A state champs.
For all the scores from the four Williamson County schools that played for state championships this weekend check out our Scoreboard.
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