Eleven weeks of the prep football season has come and gone and now we find ourselves in the first week of November looking at the playoff picture.  18 teams in Southeast Tennessee have qualified for the playoffs, so this week we bring you our final Top Ten of the regular season.  We’ll bring you our final look at the top teams in southeast Tennessee the second week in December after all the state championship games have been played.

Interesting Note:  No team in southeast Tennessee made it through the entire season unbeaten.  Everybody has at least one loss this season.

As always our Top Ten Power Poll is brought to you by Chattanooga State.  Check them out online at www.chattanoogastate.edu

1.) Baylor (9-1)  The Red Raiders head into the playoffs as the top ranked team in Division-II.  They have also received a first round bye for this week.  Baylor will face the winner between Briarcrest Christian and Montgomery Bell Academy next Friday night at E.B. “Red” Etter Field.  The pieces are in place for Baylor to play for another state championship.  The Red Raiders have become major players in the state’s toughest classification.

2.) Boyd Buchanan (9-1)  The Bucs rolled over Copper Basin Friday night and continue their dominance within District 5-A.  It’s another District title, another first round bye for the boys in blue.  Boyd Buchanan will sit out the first round and will host the winner of Rockwood/Watertown in the second round.  A third round matchup with Trousdale County will most likely determine the state champs in 2-A in the state.  Unfortunately for the Bucs, that game will be a road trip to Hartsville, which will be a rough environment to try to get a win.

3.) South Pittsburg (8-2)  The Pirate came up a little flat last week against Grace Academy in Knoxville.  The game was scoreless and wasn’t decided until triple overtime on Friday night.  The Pirates had scored in 135 consecutive games before Friday.  The loss also knocked South Pittsburg out of the top seed in their bracket.  The will seek revenge this Friday night against Grace Baptist Academy.  After that the Pirates will need to be road warriors if they want to repeat as Class-A state champs.

4.) McMinn County (8-2) Nice win on Friday night over rival Bradley Central sowed up the District Title for the Cherokees.  The playoff brackets set up nicely for McMinn to make a run in November.  This team may have the best chance of any area team from a larger classification to play deep into November.

5.) Bledsoe County (9-1)  The Warriors are District 7-AA champs.  Their lone loss was to Signal Mountain which was later vacated.  This is a good Bledsoe County team.  They will cruise past Meigs county on Friday.  A visit from Alcoa will have Pikeville rockin’ the next week.  The Tornadoes are not the Tornadoes of old.  Bledsoe County will have a shot at the upset but they’ve got to avoid the big plays from Alcoa’s offense.

6.) Bradley (7-3) Bradley dropped a tough one to McMinn on Friday night.  They will ride the arm of Copeland, the legs of Houston and the hands of Stovall into the playoffs.  This is still a good football team with a chance to win a couple of games in November.  They can beat Cookeville on Friday night even it is on the road.

7.) East Hamilton (6-4)  One of the best stories in prep football this year.  The Hurricanes have announced their arrival with a win over Red Bank two weeks ago.  This team is not quite ready yet for Greenville but they are certainly good enough to advance all the way to the semi’s and a showdown with Greeneville.  No matter what happens in November, this has been a great season for Coach Ted Gatewood and his East Hamilton squad.

8.) Ooltewah (7-3)  The Owls have had their moments this year where they have looked and played really good.  They’ve also looked and played really bad at times.  They will host Shelbyville on Friday night.  Survive and advance, that’s got to be the motto for the Owls starting this week.

9.) Polk County (7-3)  This is not the same Polk County team that we’ve grown accustomed to over the past few years.  They are good but not great.  They have played a tough schedule and that should serve them well as they head through a 4-a bracket that could see them matching up with other area programs in the future.

10.) Red Bank (7-3) The Lions have dropped two straight to close out the regular season.  They need a win in the worst way.  They open the playoffs against Sequoyah, a winnable game.  Too many playmakers at Red Bank to finish the way they did.  This team is better than 7-3 and hopefully will show that starting Friday night. 

Southeast Tennessee Prep Football Football  Top Ten!

Brought to you by Chattanooga State.  Visit them online at www.chattanoogastate.edu

A lot of changes over the last couple of weeks in southeast Tennessee High School Football.   Signal Mountain vacating their wins has left us without an unbeaten team in the area.  So we’re going with a couple of traditional powers at the top of our poll.  Plus we’ll welcome the new kids on the block, East Hamilton who scored a massive win last week over Red Bank.

1. South Pittsburg (8-1)  How good could the 1-A Pirates be if they ever got healthy?  They’ve had as many as six players out during a single game this season.  We still like them to win the 1-A State Title.  Don’t tell us about a 1-A program ranked number one in our all-classification poll.  The Pirates have beaten 2-A Boyd Buchanan and 6-A Franklin County in convincing fashion
2. Baylor (8-1) The Red Raiders still have it all in front of them for a return trip to state finals.  Currently this team is just not beating people like we expect a state champion to do.  We’ll reserve final judgment until December.
3. Boyd Buchanan (8-1)  The Bucs will most likely finish the regular season with nine wins.  However, the Bucs lack that signature win that most were looking for.  They’ve scored wins over larger schools like East Ridge (5-4) and Howard (0-8), but struggled in the second half in a loss to 1-A power South Pittsburg.  The playoff pairings will be key for Boyd Buchanan.  Trousdale County is down by their standards but they will still be a factor in November.  Boyd Buchanan is good enough to get past the Yellow Jackets, however having that meeting in Chattanooga would be huge rather than the long bus ride to Hartsville.
4. Bledsoe County (8-1) One of two feel good stories in Southeast Tennessee Prep Football this year.  Jason Reel has the Warriors believing.  Interested to see how this team fares once they hit postseason play.
5. McMinn County (7-2)  The Cherokees continue to find ways to win.  We like them as the best team in 5-Triple-A.  The showdown against Bradley will be the game of the year in the district this Friday night.
6. Polk County (6-3) It’s a bit of a rebuilding year in Polk County but they still find away to get it done.  They will be district champs again.  Seeding will be important in their playoff run.
7. Bradley Central (7-2)  Nice win on national TV last week for the Bears.  Getting the win over arch rival Cleveland was huge, but there are bigger fish left to fry.  Namely some Cherokees this Friday with the district title on the line.
8. East Hamilton (5-4)  The Hurricanes are the new kids on the block in our poll.  Ted Gatewood has done a great job in building this program from scratch.  The win over Red Bank on Friday was HUGE!!  Great for this program.  There is a new power emerging in Chattanooga high school football.
9. Red Bank (7-2) It’s a down year by the Lions standards but they continue to make a playoff push.  Hard to think that this team can go very far in November.  Don’t count out a Tim Daniels coached team.
10. Sequatchie County (7-2)  There is no district title on the line on Friday night when Signal Mountain visits.  There is plenty of bad blood between these two programs already, then you add in the Signal scandal and Friday night could be explosive.  The Eagles will be too much of a match for the Indians but we like the direction the folks from Dunlap are headed. 

This week's Top Ten Power Poll is brought to you by Chattanooga State.  Check them out online at www.chattanoogastate.edu

Our Power Poll is our on take on the top teams in college football. 

1. LSU (8-0)  The Tigers remain the number one team in our poll.  They’ve been there since the summer and we see no reason to move them out of the top spot now.    The average margin of victory for the Tigers is 28 points per game.  The defense is other worldly and the offense is efficient.  Tough road trip awaits as they face the Crimson Tide on November 5^th.
2. Alabama (8-0)  Much like LSU the Tide has won impressively with an average margin of victory of 33 points per game.  Defense, running game and solid quarterback play has the Tide back in title contention.   The November 5^thhome game against LSU will determine the SEC West and will have a large say in who plays for the BCS title.
3. Stanford (7-0) Nobody is beating people like the Stanford Cardinals.  Andrew Luck and company are whipping opponents by an average of 36 points.  The problem for the Cardinals is the weak PAC-12.  The meat of this schedule is still to come, USC, Oregon, Cal and Notre Dame are all still to go.  They can’t make the BSC Title game without some help.
4. Clemson (8-0)  Boyd and Watkins deserve post-season award consideration and Dabo Sweeney has proved that he can do more than recruit.  The Tigers are the surprise team in college football.  After starting the season with less than impressive wins over Troy and Wofford, Clemson has beaten Auburn, FSU and Virginia Tech in consecutive week.    This week they get a reeling Georgia Tech squad.
5. Boise State (7-0)  Win all you want Broncos it’s not going to matter.  Boise will need a lot of help to reach the national title game.  We like the Smurf Turf and the good story but until Boise gets into a “big boy” conference they will always be on the outside looking.  Conference realignment is the perfect chance to improve your status in college football.  The Big East and the Big 12 reportedly have an interest.  Until Boise gets in a conference where they have to prove it week in and week out, they will always have their doubters.
6. Oklahoma State (7-0)  The computers have OSU ranked number one.  We like the Cowboys but the resume is not that impressive.  A win over an unimpressive Texas team and scare against Texas A&M are the most impressive wins so far.  We will find out more about what the Cowboys are made of in the coming weeks.    Baylor, Kansas State, Texas Tech and Oklahoma are still to come.
7. Oregon (6-1) The Ducks vs. Stanford on November 12^thwill be a make or break game for both teams.  Oregon can’t afford a second loss if they are going to stay in the hunt for a BCS Title.  They will need some help to get there as it is.  Nobody really wants to see a LSU-Oregon rematch.
8. Arkansas (6-1)  The Razorbacks deserve a better fate in the BSC standings.  They are currently 2-1 vs. the top 25 and the only loss is to Alabama.  Bobby Petrino and company can still be a factor in the national title race.  A win over LSU on the final weekend of the season could upset the apple cart and possibly force a three way tie atop the SEC West.
9. Oklahoma (6-1)  You knew it was going to happen.  It happens every year.  Bob Stoops and Oklahoma are highly ranked and yet they find away to lose a game that they have no business losing.  This year it was 41-38 loss to Texas Tech.  Not impossible for the Sooners to find themselves in position to play for a national title, but they are going to need a lot of help.
10. Kansas State (7-0) Congrats to K-State, you’re unbeaten.  Now go beat someone that matters.  Wins over Eastern Kentucky, Kent State and Kansas do not a national title contender make.  Their best win so far is a four point win at home against Miami.  Bigger test ahead including this weekend against Oklahoma, followed by Oklahoma State and Texas A&M.