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CHATTANOOGA – McCallie slowed Baylor’s high-octane offense just enough Thursday night at Finley Stadium. And in the process, the Blue Tornado powered up its own in the Division II-AAA BlueCross Bowl.
The result? The Blue Tornado claimed its fourth TSSAA football championship in five years and fifth overall with a 34-28 win against Chattanooga rival Baylor. All five — dating back from 2001 to this season — were won by McCallie coach Ralph Potter during two coaching stints.
McCallie sealed the win when Alabama commit Amari Jefferson was stopped about a yard short of a first down with 1:08 left to end Baylor’s chances. Jefferson finished with eight catches for 210 yards and two TDs.
McCallie (12-1) finished with 474 total yards. Vanderbilt commit Jay St. Hilaire threw for 309 yards on 22 of 28 passing with four touchdowns and an interception. That included eight catches for 173 yards and a TD by Enrique Leclair. And Ja’von McMahan rumbled for 122 rushing yards and a TD.
Baylor (10-3) led 21-14 with 6:25 left in the first half when Nelson McKnight stripped St. Hilaire at the Baylor 2 and returned it 98 yards for a state record fumble return and appeared to sway all the momentum.
But the Blue Tornado responded. Zachary Chari pulled in a 21-yard TD where he appeared to lose the ball around the goal line with a Baylor defender grabbing it. That trimmed it to 21-20 after the missed PAT. Tennessee commit Carson Gentle caught a 7-yard TD pass from St. Hilaire to make it 27-21 at halftime.
More: Why TSSAA doesn’t use instant replay for football championship games while some other states do
Nolan Sergeant’s 5-yard TD catch ended the scoring for McCallie.
Vanderbilt commit Whit Muschamp, the son of Georgia defensive coordinator Will Muschamp, finished 13-of-32 passing for 258 yards and a TD.
Reach Tom Kreager at 615-259-8089 or…
Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/mccallie-beats-baylor-fourth-tssaa-032121222.html
Author : The Tennessean
Publish date : 2023-12-01 03:21:21
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