It has been 11 long years since the Baylor Red Raiders have been involved with a State Title football game but not since 1973 since they’ve tasted the sweet, sweet nectar of victory in said State Title Game and this Thursday at 7 p.m. they’ll have their shot against a very, very talented Montgomery Bell Academy squad from Nashville. The Big Red are currently a perfect 12-0. These two teams actually matched up earlier this season in October where MBA came away with the 42-34 victory at home so revenge will be on the mind for Baylor in this one. There was no shortage of offense in the previous meeting as both teams combined for 982 total yards, including 430 passing by Baylor junior Whit Muschamp who had a shot to deliver a win at the end but his throw into the end zone as time expired came up incomplete.
As for the Red Raiders, they’re 10-2 overall and are coming off of a narrow victory on the road at Brentwood Academy two weeks ago 44-39. Their first-year head coach, Eric Kimrey is one of the winningest high school football coaches EVER and is back in a spot where he’s very comfortable, a State Title Game, where he won 12 State Titles including six straight at one point. His overall record at Hammond High School was 194-20, yeah, he’s used to this level of success, but as they say, close only counts in horseshoes, you’ve got to win.
Kimrey certainly has the horses to help win but MBA is no joke. Let’s take a look at what Baylor is all about first and foremost.
Offensively, the Red Raiders have no problem putting up points as they’ve averaged 40 per game this season with a plethora of outstanding/dangerous weapons. They sport a solid QB with good football bloodlines in Whit Muschamp, yes, the son of Will Muschamp, who throws an incredible ball coach Kimrey has lamented to us many a times. At running back they’ve got a Mr. Tennessee Football Finalist in Caleb Hampton who is an absolute beast when it comes to toting the rock. Wide receiver Amari Jefferson (1,169 receiving yards, averaging 18.3 yards per catch, and 10 touchdowns) is one of the smoothest on the outside that you’ll see at this level and is a stud of an overall athlete. Finally, at offensive line the star is Ole Miss commit and four-star recruit, Brycen Sanders. Sanders recently joined the High School Football Review Show, check it out here.
I have no concerns when it comes to the offense but as far as the defense goes, they’re led by former Red bank head coach, Chris Brown, and have been good but not great just yet this season. As a whole, they’re giving up 21 points per game but in seven games starting with the McCallie win, they’ve allowed nearly 29 points per game. Chris Brown is a phenomenal coach and if his unit can hold the Big Red to under 35 points, they should have a good shot at winning this game.
As far as MBA goes, they’re no strangers to this spotlight as they’ve reached the BlueCross bowl six of the last nine years but haven’t won since 2014. From an offensive standpoint, they’ve averaged a very hefty 38.5 points per game themselves while allowing just a little under 17 points per game. The also sport a star QB named, Marcel Reed who did in fact, ball out in the previous meeting with Baylor by throwing for 306 yards and accounting for two touchdowns through the air and three on the ground. The senior is an Ole Miss commit and Baylor DC Chris Brown will have to find a way to slow him down this time around.
All in all, this should be a great match-up between two highly competitive programs.
The game is scheduled to kick off on Thursday, Dec. 1st, 2022 at 7 p.m. from Finley Stadium.
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