2009 Season Review

Maryville snuffs Riverdale's title shot

By JARED HASTINGS • This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it • November 28, 2009

MARYVILLE — In a battle of Tennessee high school football powers, the Riverdale Warriors ran into a heavyweight.

The top-ranked Maryville Rebels dominated the first half and held on in the second, taking a 42-30 victory over Riverdale in the semifinals of the TSSAA Class 6A playoffs.

Sixth-ranked Riverdale ended its season with a record of 11-3, while Maryville (13-1) advanced to the state title game for the sixth consecutive year.

For Riverdale, the loss ends what had been a dream season. One year after winning just five games and missing the playoffs, the Warriors won a share of the District 7-AAA title and were the last Rutherford County team remaining in the postseason.

BY TOM KREAGER • This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it • November 21, 2009

Riverdale senior Brandon Constant calls quarterback Cody West a big brother.

Big brother played big-time Friday night.

Battered and bruised thanks to a night of hard hits that left many players walking off the field limping, West did what he's shown he does best this season.

He sucked it up, forgot about the pain and played football.

Throw out every stat you can Friday night and look at what Cody West did. It's at that point where you find why Riverdale is back in the state championship picture.

West is a winner this year — plain and simple. Oakland hit him hard. The Patriots made him leave the field for a couple of plays.

But he came back to lead the Warriors for the game-winning score.

Now, it's too early to start predicting what Riverdale will do in next Friday's Class 6A state championship game at Maryville. The Rebels, a perennial powerhouse in Class 4A for years, bumped up to 6A this season and played has played with the big boys.

Their 35-14 win over Knoxville Farragut on Friday night showed Maryville will be a tough opponent.

BY JARED HASTINGS • Gannett Tennessee • November 20, 2009

Nothing was keeping Cody West off the Tomahawk Stadium Field on Friday night.

Totaling 205 yards of offense against one of the state’s top defenses, West was the catalyst for Riverdale in the No. 6 Warriors 14-7 victory over archrival and fourth-ranked Oakland in the Class 6A quarterfinals at Tomahawk Stadium.

With the win, Riverdale advances to next week’s semifinals at Maryville needing just one more win to advance to the BlueCross Bowl in Cookeville.

“I don’t know if that was the best game he’s played, but he gets better each week” Riverdale coach Ron Aydelott said of West. “Cody was Cody tonight, and as he goes, we go.”

Making West’s performance even more impressive was the fact that it almost didn’t happen.

Riverdale banishes Blackman from playoffs

BY TOM KREAGER • This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it • November 14, 2009

Two weeks ago, Riverdale's football team watched Blackman dive on a muddy football field at its Tomahawk Stadium, celebrating the Blaze's first win over Riverdale in the school's nine-year history.

The Warriors enacted their revenge Friday night on Blackman's field. And they did so in dominating fashion.

Sixth-ranked Riverdale routed the third-ranked Blaze 31-7 at The Inferno to reach the TSSAA Class 6A quarterfinals, where it will play fourth-ranked Oakland this coming Friday.

Riverdale held Blackman (10-2) to 168 total yards — 104 less than its season average. The Warriors caused four turnovers — three interceptions and a recovered fumble.

"Every practice, our coaches reminded us on how they slid up and down our field," said Riverdale senior Chris Mayes, a Mr. Football finalist. "We used that to fuel our fire to put out theirs."

Riverdale (10-2) will play host to Oakland (10-2) in the quarterfinals.

Riverdale scored 17 unanswered points in the first quarter and 14 unanswered in the third quarter.