By SAM McGAW
Brentwood High, Brentwood Academy and Ravenwood have to endure rematches Friday to keep their postseasons intact.
Brentwood visits Memphis Central in a rematch of last year’s first-round playoff meeting.
BA hosts McCallie after defeating the Blue Tornado two weeks ago.
Ravenwood travels to battle Mt. Juliet after taking down the Golden Bears in Week 3.
See below for a closer look at those matchups:
Brentwood (7-4) at Memphis Central (10-1), 7 p.m.
The Brentwood Bruins hope to enjoy this week’s trip to Memphis Central as much as they did last year.
As a No. 4 seed entering last season’s Class 5A playoffs, the Bruins throttled the top-seeded Warriors 52-7.
This year, they travel back to Memphis Central with an offense that’s geared to put up points in a hurry.
The Bruins enter the second round of the Class 5A playoffs riding a wave of momentum. Last week’s 55-28 win over Kirby was their sixth victory in their last seven games.
Quarterback Carson Shacklett led the assault with 189 passing yards, 125 rushing yards and six touchdowns (2 run).
He enters Friday’s matchup with 1,706 passing yards, 552 rushing yards, 33 touchdowns (14 run) and three interceptions.
Memphis Central will present Shacklett with one of the toughest matchups he’ll see this year.
Prior to last week’s 47-24 win over Rossview, the Warriors held opponents to 15 points or less in nine straight contests. They allow an average of 11 points per game.
While Brentwood’s offense has been on fire lately, its defense has proven to be vulnerable, especially against the run. The unit gave up 298 yards on the ground against Kirby.
It’s allowed an average of 267.5 rushing yards over the past four games.
Memphis Central posts 27.54 PPG. It’s scored 42 points or more in three of its last four contests.
McCallie (7-4) at Brentwood Academy (7-2), 7 p.m. Friday
Brentwood Academy begins its final push towards its second straight Division II-AA state title Friday when it hosts McCallie in the quarterfinals.
BA, which had a first-round bye, defeated the Blue Tornado 42-32 in the regular-season finale two weeks ago.
Quarterback Jeremiah Oatsvall torched McCallie for 356 passing yards, 82 rushing yards and five touchdowns (3 run) in the victory.
A major factor in his success was the play of wide receiver Camron Johnson. After an overall quiet season on offense, the junior exploded for 174 receiving yards on 11 receptions.
The duo has a chance to put up another big outing against a defense that’s allowed 149 points to BA over their last three matchups.
While McCallie’s defense has struggled to stop the Eagles in the past, its offense has kept the games competitive.
The unit has scored 32 points against BA in each of their last two meetings.
For BA, the key to stopping them is limiting quarterback Robert Riddle.
Riddle recorded 405 passing yards, four touchdowns (1 run) and two interceptions in their last matchup.
The winner of Friday’s contest will take on either Baylor or Memphis University School in the DII-AA semifinals.
Ravenwood (6-5) at Mt. Juliet (9-2), 7 p.m. Friday*
The Ravenwood Raptors handed Mt. Juliet its lone league defeat on Sept. 2. On Friday, the Raptors will aim to end the Region 3-6A champion’s season.
Ravenwood, which beat the Golden Bears 12-7 earlier in the year, enters the second round of the Class 6A playoffs on the heels of a 45-14 win at Houston.
It was the second straight game the Raptors scored 41 points or more.
Running back Carter Nelson has been the key cog in the recent offensive success.
The senior, who started at inside linebacker for most of the season, has rushed for six touchdowns over the past two games.
The Raptors need to get him rolling against a Mt. Juliet defense that’s allowing 15.4 points per game. He had two carries for 75 yards in the first meeting.
Mt. Juliet has rattled off eight straight wins since its loss against Ravenwood. Its offense has been dominant during that span, averaging 43.5 PPG.
The Raptors held the Golden Bears to 154 total yards in their previous battle.
The winner advances to face either Collierville or Cordova in the quarterfinals.
Sam McGaw is sports editor of Home Page Media Group. Email him at [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter @SamMcGawSports.
