Tag: Tennessee high school football

Tennessee football coach says he wasn’t aware of grade changing scandal

Clinton High School football head coach Darrell Keith says he is a scapegoat in the fielding of an ineligible player.

The head coach of a Tennessee high school football team that fielded an ineligible player has denied having any knowledge of a grade-changing scandal. He also believes he is a scapegoat in the situation.

This week, the Tennessee Secondary School Athletic Association (TSSAA) ruled that Clinton High School (Clinton, Tennessee) will vacate all of its football wins from last season.  Per WVLT 8, a student-athlete who played for the football team “did not earn the required number of credits the previous school year to be academically eligible.”

A controversy alleging that the grades of Clinton students were changed has also rocked the school. Because of the scandal, principal Dan Jenkins resigned and two teachers were terminated (according to WBIR television in Knoxville).

The contract of Darrell Keith, the head football coach at Clinton, was not renewed.

In speaking about the situation, WVLT reports that Keith “had had no access to change grades.”

“I’m a scapegoat,” Keith told WVLT. “I spent 27 years, faithfully in the United States Military. I don’t know if it was because I am Black or an easy target. I’m really hurt; I’m really torn up about it.”

Keith is considering legal representation with regards to the situation.

Lipscomb Academy, football coach Kevin Mawae part ways after Tennessee playoff ban

Lipscomb Academy and head coach Kevin Mawae parted ways after a playoff ban related to recruiting violations, as ruled by the TSSAA.

Pro Football Hall of Famer and Lipscomb Academy football head coach Kevin Mawae parted ways on Friday, a week after the team received a two-year postseason ban from the Tennessee Secondary School Athletic Association (TSSAA) for a recruiting violation.

Lipscomb Academy headmaster Brad Schultz said in a statement to The Tennessean that Mawae and the academy “mutually agreed to part ways.”

“We appreciate Kevin’s service as head of the coaching staff and for leading the Mustang football team as it transitioned into a higher level of competition this season,” Schultz said in the statement.

Mawae served as head coach for one season, stepping in after former coach and NFL star Trent Dilfer left the program for the UAB head coaching job. After winning back-to-back DII-AA state championships under Dilfer, the team moved up to the DII-AAA division and went 4-6 under Mawae.

One of those losses was the forfeit of a win over Briarcrest after the TSSAA ruled that Notre Dame quarterback commit Deuce Knight and three-star prospect Kohl Bradley “did not have a bona fide change of address when they moved to Mississippi,” The Tennessean wrote.

That was one of two findings of the TSSAA. The other was a recruiting violation “based on a brief text conversation between a football assistant coach and a former parent.” TSSAA executive director Mark Reeves wrote to Schultz that the organization’s findings suggest a coach “was offering to ‘intercede’ with donors to help secure financial assistance for the family,” according to the Tennessean. Read more here and here.

In February, the Lipscomb Academy athletics program was placed on probation and fined by the TSSAA for a social media post featuring a girls basketball player that the organization said broke a recruiting rule.

Lipscomb Academy loses heartbreaker in overtime on missed PAT

The effort fell just short in the extra period – and in the worst possible way. 

During the 2022 season, the Lipscomb Academy (Tenn.) varsity football team went undefeated, going 13-0 against the competition, winning a state title, and finishing the year slotted at No. 13 in our national Super 25 power rankings. However, each new season represents a different challenge, and it hasn’t taken long for the Mustangs to learn that lesson in 2023.

Last Friday night, Lipscomb opened their regular season schedule with a brutal matchup against national powerhouse IMG Academy (Fla.), and they lost by a score of 35-10. IMG is a tough out for anybody, but what happened this week wasn’t supposed to happen to the reigning state champions.

Lipscomb played their second game of the 2023 season on Friday on the road against Saraland (Tenn.) and suffered a heart-breaking one-point defeat in overtime. The Mustangs found themselves trailing by 10 points with only a few minutes left to play in the fourth quarter. The team rallied and forced overtime, in part thanks to an onside kick recovery. However, the effort fell just short in the extra period – and in the worst possible way.

Lipscomb scored a clutch touchdown to make it a one-point game, only to miss the extra point, ending the game in a win for Saraland. Watch.

Now 0-2 to start the season, Lipscomb will try to bounce back next week on the road against Briarcrest Christian (Tenn.).

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Tennessee high school football: How to watch the 2023 season

Stream 2023 Tennessee high school football on the NFHS Network.

Tennessee high school football has kicked off across the state, beginning another chapter in the longstanding history of top-tier gridiron action.

The state has produced more than a few top prospects and featured impressive teams, with squads like Lipscomb Academy and Oakland creating a buzz in the Super 25, complementing the outstanding programs all over the HS landscape.

For fans looking to watch the state’s high school football action this season—from their area teams and beyond—the NFHS Network has you covered.

The collaboration with over 40 high school state athletic/activities associations and PlayOn! Sports allows fans to live-stream high school sports on any device, from wherever they are: 27 different regular season and postseason sports, plus other high school activities that highlight the accomplishments of student-athletes, student-broadcasters, and high schools.

Find your Tennessee high school football teams

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Pearl-Cohn’s Zeion Simpson runs the ball during their scrimmage at Lipscomb Academy Friday, July 28, 2023.

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Watch: Bear runs across Tennessee high school football field

A black bear was seen running across the Gatlinburg-Pittman High School football field in Tennessee before practice this week.

This Tennessee high school football team may have just found an unstoppable defender to add to its unit.

A black bear was shown galloping across the field of Gatlinburg-Pittman (Tenn.) High School in a video taken by head coach Brad Waggoner on Monday. In the tweet showing the bear running across the field, Waggoner posted the caption, “Just another day in The Smoky Mountains.”

Gatlinburg, where the school is located, is a mountainous town that serves as the gateway to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, according to USA TODAY. Waggoner told WBIR that the bear started in the home stands, ran across the field, and exited the visitor stands after struggling to find its way out for about 10 minutes.

This took place before practice started, according to WBIR, and there are no reports of injuries. It does not appear the bear did any damage to the field — which is also good because the Highlanders are kicking off their season this week.

Last year, the varsity Gatlinburg-Pittman team went 11-2 but fell in the quarterfinals to the eventual champion Alcoa (Tenn.) High School. The Highlanders will look to improve upon that season, returning several key players like senior quarterback Brady Hammonds, who threw for 35 touchdowns to just four interceptions last year; junior running back Tegan Avera, who broke 2,000 rushing yards as a sophomore; receiver Carlos Orr, who had 1,035 receiving yards and nine touchdowns; two-way star Whitman Whaley, who posted 1,387 receiving yards, 19 touchdowns, 77 tackles and 11 tackles for loss; and linebacker Luke Burkett, who led the team with 97 tackles (all stats according to MaxPreps).

With players like that, maybe the team doesn’t need any more bear-like ferociousness after all.

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4-star QB Kenny Minchey decommits from Pitt

Pople John Paul II (Tenn.) four-star quarterback recruit Kenny Minchey decommits from Pitt.

The University of Pittsburgh took a hit in their 2023 recruiting class on Monday when four-star quarterback Kenny Minchey announced on Twitter that he’s decommitted from the school.

Minchey (6-foot-1, 207 pounds) plays for Pope John Paul II (Tenn.), where he posted 3,280 yards, 32 touchdowns and nine interceptions his Junior season. The Knights lost their playoff matchup with Brentwood Academy (Tenn.) this past weekend, so their season is over. However, Minchey will be participating in the All-American Bowl on January 7, which will be on NBC.

According to 247 Sports, Minchey is the 12th-best quarterback in his class and No. 4 overall in the state. Steve Wiltfong reports that Notre Dame is a school to watch for Minchey, who will visit South Bend for this weekend’s game against Boston College. Minchey has 16 offers total, including ones from Memphis, Michigan State, Tennessee and Wisconsin.

The news dropped Pittsburgh to No. 44 in the 2023 recruiting rankings. Of their 16 current commits, none are four or five-star prospects and they now have no quarterback in this recruiting cycle.

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