Games to Watch : Week 1

A Pre-Season look at games to keep an eye on for Week 1....

IMG @ Lipscomb Academy: It's been a long time since a team as highly ranked as IMG (top 5 in most national polls) has traveled to TN. Lipscomb will be a significant underdog, but this is a game that's winnable. Obviously a big game for Lipscomb, but also for TNHSFB.

Cane Ridge @ Mt. Juliet: A match-up of two good 6A programs that have aspirations of deep runs into the playoffs. A win in a game like this is a big start to the season.

Bearden @ Knox West: West kicks off its defense of their 5A title against a young but talented Bearden team. Both teams have questions that need to be answered,  this game will answer alot of them.

Pearl-Cohn @ MBA: Pearl has state championship aspirations in Class 4A and we'll get to see how far along they are when they open the season. This is a series that has been dominated by MBA but PC has won 2 out of the last 3.

CPA @ Brentwood Academy: BA's revamped offense gets their first test against CPA. This could be a match-up of 2 teams that win a championship in their respective classes.

Huntingdon @ McKenzie: This match-up is a series that dates all the way back to 1930, this game will be the 95th in the series. McKenzie will be keen to get their 1A title defense off to a good start, but Huntingdon has championship aspirations of its own in Class 2A.

Alcoa @ Ravenwood: Alcoa begins its search for a 9th straight 3A title on the road against Ravenwood. This is a big time test for the Raptors who are looking to bounce back after an up and down 2022 campaign.

Anderson Co. @ Powell: Anderson Co. begins its defense of its first state championship against a program that is familiar with the challenge they face, Powell. Both teams have plenty of questions marks but both teams also regularly field teams that have no problem putting pts on the board, will not be surprised if it's a shootout.

Smith Co. @ Gordonsville: Another series that has largely been dominated by one team (Smith Co. leads 69-21-2), but is still heated nonetheless. Both programs have the potential to make deep runs in their respective classes

Tyner @ Red Bank: Tyner finds itself in a new classification this season, moving up to Class 3A after winning its 2nd state title . This will be the first time these 2 programs have faced each other since 2014

Cleveland @ Clinton: This game features 2 programs on the rise and are very different from each other on the offensive side of the ball. Cleveland might still be adjusting to their uptempo offense, so they'll need help from their defense to come away with a win

Page @ Giles Co.: This game features two programs that are no strangers to deep playoff runs.  Page should be the favorite, but wouldn't be surprised if GC got the W.

Fayetteville @ Upperman: One of the better match-ups of teams in the the smaller classes. Fayetteville has gotten the better of Upperman the last 2 seasons, but the Tigers are replacing alot of production. 

White House @ Portland: One of the truly great rivalry games in TNHSFB. Neither team will be a title contender, but it's still worth the trip

Bartlett @ MUS: Bartlett has a team many people consider the favorite to make it to the BlueCross Bowl from the west side of the bracket. MUS is always solid, this game should a good barometer to see where each team is at.

Other games considered: Independence @ Oakland,  Elizabethton @ Science Hill, Clay Co. @ York Institute,  Brentwood @ Blackman, Hendersonville @ Gallatin, Dyer Co. @ Dyersburg 

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