Baylor wins semifinal, to face McCallie in BlueCross Bowl again

The Baylor Red Raiders play their home football games each season at Heywood Stadium.

They play their final game at Finley Stadium.

Baylor will compete for the TSSAA Division II-AAA state championship for a third consecutive season under the direction of third-year coach Erik Kimrey, clinching that accomplishment Friday night with a 35-21 semifinal victory over Brentwood Academy. The Red Raiders, who defeated Nashville's Montgomery Bell Academy for the 2022 BlueCross Bowl crown and lost to McCallie in last year's title showdown of Chattanooga teams, are the state's top-ranked team this season with their 12-0 record.

One more triumph would not only result in Baylor's second state championship in three years but the first undefeated season since the Red Raiders went 13-0 in 1973 and were recognized as national champions.

"This year has been different for sure," Baylor senior running back Shekai Mills-Knight said. "Every team brings their best energy against us, because we're No. 1 in the state, so we get everyone's best game. We just still go out there and do what we do."

Mills-Knight, an Ole Miss commitment, did plenty in his Heywood Stadium finale, rushing 26 times for 252 yards and four touchdowns. His 80-yard scoring run at the 9:08 mark of the third quarter came on Baylor's first offensive play of the second half and put the Red Raiders up 21-7.

His 44-yard sprint down the middle of the field with 4:19 remaining in the game sealed the win by providing Baylor its largest lead at 35-13.

"I'm not surprised," Kimrey said when told of Mills-Knight's eye-popping totals. "You're talking about a kid who has unselfishly shared the backfield with (sophomore) David (Gabriel-Georges). We didn't have David again tonight because of a lower-body injury, so I'm proud of Shekai, but I'm not surprised at all. It's what he's done all year, and I can't speak more highly about our offensive line."

Said Mills-Knight: "The O-line played amazing. I stayed behind my pads and used the gifts that God gave me. That's the first time I've had that many carries, but I felt good. We have a great strength and conditioning program, and I stayed hydrated."

Baylor took the opening possession 80 yards in eight plays, grabbing a 7-0 lead on Mills-Knight's 23-yard touchdown run. The Red Raiders needed 12 plays to travel 80 yards on their second drive, with Mills-Knight's 2-yard touchdown run giving them a 14-0 advantage and giving him 12 carries for 94 yards.

The only score in the second quarter was an 11-yard touchdown run by Larry Sanders II in the final minute of the half to pull the Eagles within 14-7 at the break. Sanders converted a fourth-and-3 with a 5-yard run to the 11 the play before.

"We had a lot of big plays that were taken back by penalties, but we felt good at halftime," Eagles senior quarterback George MacIntyre said. "We're a team that has faced a lot of adversity, and we thought we could fight through it, but they were just too talented."

Which was evident when Mills-Knight raced 80 yards to make it a multipossession game the rest of the night.

"I didn't think it was going to do that, but we shifted and caught them spinning and going the other way," Kimrey said of Mills-Knight's longest run. "Ben Darnell had a great block on the perimeter, and then Shekai did his thing."

MacIntyre, a Tennessee commitment, wound up 0-4 as the starter against Baylor. The Red Raiders also knocked the Eagles out of the 2022 semifinals, when MacIntyre was a sophomore.

Brentwood Academy finished this season with a 9-4 mark.

"They're just bigger, faster and stronger," MacIntyre said. "They've done a good job recruiting the last couple of years, and they're a really tough team to play. They match up well with anyone they play, and they're good at what they do."

Baylor learned after the victory that its opponent for the Dec. 5 championship will again be McCallie (11-2), which hammered Ensworth 31-7 in Nashville. The Red Raiders thumped the Blue Tornado 44-12 at Heywood Stadium on Oct. 4, building a 27-0 halftime lead.

"You just have to accept the fact that was a month ago or several weeks ago," Baylor defensive coordinator Chris Brown said. "We're a different football team, and they're a different football team. The tendencies are different. The personnel is different.

"You have to approach it as a new game, because it is."

Contact David Paschall at dpaschall@timesfreepress.com.
Baylor wins semifinal, to face McCallie in BlueCross Bowl again | Chattanooga Times Free Press
 

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