A look at the 6A playoffs
A close look at the 6A pairings for the TSSAA Road to the Blue Cross Bowl starts with George Quarles' Maryville Rebels.
If 14 state championships and 13 consecutive District titles isn't enough to make the powerful Rebels the team to beat in 6A a look at how Maryville dismantled the opposition should awaken future foes.
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Maryville outscored its final three opponents 165-14 by disposing of William Blount 66-7, Bearden 51-0 and Farragut 48-7.
The Rebels also have impressive wins over Knoxville Webb 35-15, Alcoa 31-2 and Knoxville West 42-20.
In fact, Associated Press No. 1 ranked Maryville handed second-seed Sevier County a 55-6 beating to give the Smoky Bears their only loss of the 2013 season.
However, Associated Press No. 2 ranked Oakland has played as well as any team in the state and Maryville could have to face either the Patriots or Blackman in the 6A semifinals.
Oakland took a 9-3 victory over Blackman when both teams met with identical 8-0 records.
Quarles and his Rebels should be there to play in the semifinals and a win would put Maryville playing for the school's 15th state title in Cookeville on Dec. 7.
The question is who will be coming out of the west to face Maryville, Oakland or Blackman.
Rodney Saulsberry's defending state champion Whitehaven squad sports an 8-2 record and is thought to be the best team out of West Tennessee.
Brighton (8-2) will argue that the Cardinals could defeat Whitehaven and that opportunity could happen in the third week of the playoffs.
Nashville John Overton has had the best season the Bobcats have had since posting a 10-0 season mark in 1983.
Coach Terry Anderson has been at the school for 22 years and his Bobcats have defeated some strong teams.
Overton started the season with a 28-21 victory over a good Father Ryan squad and knocked Ravenwood from the unbeatens in a 34-33 thriller.
A Look At 6A Teams To Watch
1. Maryville
2. Oakland
3. Blackman
4. Whitehaven
5. John Overton
6. Ravenwood
7. Siegel
8. Brighton