KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — Three high schools from our area will try and live the dream of winning the state championship in football this weekend.
Alcoa is no stranger to the big game, Anderson County has never been to the state championship and West hasn't been there in quite some time.
All three schools will play at Finley Stadium in Chattanooga.
ALCOA TORNADOES
In the 3A classification, Alcoa looks to do what they seemingly always do, win the state championship.
When the Tornadoes go up against East Nashville on Friday afternoon, they will be seeking their eighth straight state title,
"It means a lot, just playing in this type of program," Tornadoes quarterback Zach Lunsford said. "It's a big game. It's almost like a tradition to play in the state game for Alcoa, so I'm looking forward to it and having one last game with my teammates."
In typical Alcoa fashion, they had no trouble in the playoffs and only had one blemish on the record, which was a loss to 5A state title contender West.
Seniors on the team have won the state title every year, that's been something that has happened the past few years.
They know the stakes and the weight of getting the job down at Alcoa. They're up for the task.
"A four-time state champion to end my senior year? That would mean a lot," Alcoa linebacker and wide receiver Aaron Davis said.
Alcoa has two Mr. Football Finalists on their team in offensive lineman Lance Williams and wide receiver and defensive back Jordan Harris.
Alcoa and East Nashville play on Friday at 11 a.m. in a rematch of last year's 3A state championship. The Tornadoes won that game in a blowout, 45-14.
ANDERSON COUNTY MAVERICKS
In 4A, Anderson County looks to make program history.
The school has never played in a state championship game and therefore has never won a state championship.
The Mavericks have taken care of business in the playoffs, taking down Greeneville along the way who has knocked them out of the playoffs plenty of times in recent years.
Last week, AC came from behind against Red Bank in the state semifinal. They scored 29 unanswered points to win 29-13.
The team is undefeated and the community is hyped up as can be for the state title game.
"It's been a long time coining," Mavericks head coach Davey Gillum said. "Our community has been waiting for this for a long time. This is a football-crazy town and every year we have aspirations of this. To finally get here is a reward to see how excited everyone is. Win or lose, these boys have brought a season to the community that they'll be proud of and remember for a long time to come."
The players hope to deliver a big win for the community and the school too.
"Man I'm pumped," Anderson County running back and linebacker Gavin Noe said. "You know this community is pumped and we're going to get after it on Saturday hopefully. This is probably the most excited I've seen this community and I've been here for a long, long time. Everybody is pumped, everybody is talking about it. It's all I hear about nowadays, even in my calculus class."
The Mavericks have a Mr. Football finalist in quarterback Walker Martinez who has been lighting up the field.
Anderson County will play on Saturday at 11 a.m. against Pearl Cohn for the title.
WEST REBELS
In 5A, West looks to claim its first state championship since 2014 when they take on last year's state runner-up Page.
The Rebels have had a fantastic season, going undefeated so far. They're coming off a thrilling 28-21 win over defending state champions Powell in the semifinals.
This will also be the first state title appearance since they won it all in 2014.
One of the Rebels' leaders is Mr. Football's finalist running back and defensive back Brayden Latham.
As a senior, he has seen the disappointment in prior seasons as the teams he was on came up short of their goal of reaching and winning a state championship.
He is ready for this opportunity.
"We fell short a lot of times my freshman, sophomore and junior year," he said. "It's been nice to make it this year with my brothers and stuff because we definitely wanted it. We've gotten here and now we just have to bring it home."
Latham says either way it will be emotional playing his final game, but he is excited about the chance of winning it all.
"It would mean a lot," he said. "I'm going to cry, I;m definitely going to cry. Win or lose, hopefully, it's a win, it's going to mean a lot. Especially for all of our fans and people who support us because like it's not just us, it's the whole West community. I'd be very proud for us to do that for them."
West plays Page at 7 p.m. on Friday night.
