CLARKSVILLE, TN (CLARKSVILLE NOW) – It was always expected to be a shootout, and on Friday, October 29, the Kenwood Knights and Northeast Eagles delivered on that promise. After a back and forth game, the Eagles emerged victorious, 32-29, over the Knights, who were celebrating their senior night.
Kenwood came in hot, having put 81 points on the Northwest Vikings a week prior. Northeast was bouncing back from a tough loss to Henry County, 40-44. Conditions were muddy and slick, resulting in several miscues on both sides.
According to one of the game officials, this was also one for the history books. This marked the first TSSAA Friday night football game to be run by an all-Black officiating crew.
1st Quarter
The scoring started early. After Kenwood’s senior quarterback Jaylen Washington fumbled a snap on the second play from scrimmage, Northeast gave the ball to sophomore Khameron Athy, who ran it in from 42 yards out. The Eagles failed the 2-point conversion and led 6-0.
That lead would not last long. On the ensuing kickoff, junior Keontay Showell returned the ball straight to the end zone for the Knights, who punched in the PAT to go up 7-6.
The game was paused for an extended period after an injury caused Kenwood’s senior Quentavius Barnes to exit the contest for good. Afterwards, neither team found any success in the remainder of the first quarter, with both squads seeking to reclaim their earlier momentum.
2nd Quarter
In the first big play of the period, Washington, now playing defense for Kenwood, snagged an interception. A block in the back erased his pick six, but he went right back in under center and lobbed a touchdown pass to senior Corben Howard, putting Kenwood up 14-6 with 7:10 left in the half.
Northeast responded in kind, with two juniors, quarterback Jaiden Puig and wideout Dez Fort, connecting for a touchdown from 34 yards out. The Eagles saw their second attempt at a 2-point conversion fail as well and found themselves trailing 14-12. They attempted an onside kick, but Kenwood recovered the ball.
In what seemed to be the closing seconds of the half, the Knights passed the ball to sophomore Jo Jo Smith, who broke through some tackles on his way to the end zone. There was still enough time on the clock for the kickoff, however, and Northeast punished Kenwood for this by returning the kick for a touchdown. After missing their third 2-point conversion, the Eagles entered halftime trailing by three, 18-21.
3rd Quarter
Receiving the ball to start the second half, the Eagles piled on the points with a 32-yard pass from Puig to sophomore Taylor Cramer. Missing the 2-point conversion again, the visitors reclaimed the lead, 24-21.
The Eagles were not as successful on their next possession, however, as Kenwood’s sophomore Frederick Ellis recovered a Northeast fumble. The Knights were unable to capitalize, missing their field goal attempt and turning the ball over on downs. Kenwood’s defense stepped up and forced an Eagle punt from the end zone by Dez Fort, who almost went down for a safety. Instead he scrambled out of the end zone and was hit after running out of bounds. Kenwood took possession, but found themselves backed up by the dead ball foul and unable to score on the drive.
4th Quarter
The two teams traded running touchdowns and successful 2-point conversions to start the final quarter. Athy took it to the house again for Northeast while Washington ripped a 54-yard run for Kenwood. For the last 7 minutes, the score remained 32-29, Northeast. Kenwood’s attempts in the final minute were stifled by a pair of low snaps, so the Eagles reclaimed the ball on downs before assuming the victory formation.
Playing in a Pig Pen
Northeast head coach Brandon Clark expected an offensive duel, but the field conditions gave him some pause. “I thought early on, maybe it won’t be as much of a shootout because of the way this field is. I’ve never been in a game with this horrible of a field and still…[61] is a lot of points scored for playing in a pig pen. We expected a shootout and we got one.”
“We really worked hard at trying to focus on running the ball this week. I feel like we were able to – when we needed to power in the ball, we were able to do that. Our two running backs, Ty’Kease Blanton and Khameron Athy, did a good job of turning negatives into positives, so that’s a huge help right there.”
With Portland losing to Henry County, Northeast was eliminated from playoff contention despite the victory, and their season came to an end. “Obviously, we’re disappointed that we’re 3-7,” Clark admitted. “We’re not happy about that. Last year we went to the quarterfinals so we all had high expectations.
“But we were able to stay together as a unit and keep battling every week through adversity,” he continued. “We had some heartbreaking losses – we lost to Portland by one point and almost beat Henry County – we didn’t fall apart, we kept it together. We had a lot of young guys, so they probably grew up a lot this season, from the beginning to the end.”
Reflecting on the senior class, Clark said, “I told them I’m very proud of them…They fought their butts off all season. Your heart goes out to seniors on a season like this – nobody wants to end their senior season like this [not making playoffs], but they helped provide leadership tonight, the backbone to hang in there and win this game.”
Playoff Picture
The Knights ended 5-5 and will travel to Memphis Central for the first round of playoffs as a three seed. They join two other area schools who will hit the road, Clarksville High at 6-4 and Montgomery Central at 8-2. Clarksville will play at Cane Ridge (7-3) while Montgomery Central will take on Jackson South Side (5-5).
Rossview finished the season at 2-8 (1-4), Northwest at 1-9 (0-5), and West Creek at 2-8 (0-5).