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Week 9 Blitz
Your guide to this week's games across rural West Tennessee.
Early look at playoff races in each region
Who's in the playoffs, who's not, who's in contention for region championships
Week 8 Takeaways
What to take away from each result in rural West Tennessee in Week 8
Week 8 Blitz
Your guide to this week's games across rural West Tennessee.
West TN Blitz top 10 after Week 7
Here's a look at the latest top 10 in rural West Tennessee
Week 7 Takeaways
What to take away from each result in rural West Tennessee in Week 7
Week 7 Blitz
Your guide to this week's games across rural West Tennessee.
West TN Blitz top 10 after Week 6
Here's a look at the latest top 10 in rural West Tennessee
Week 6 Takeaways
What to take away from each result in rural West Tennessee in Week 6
Week 6 Blitz
Your guide to this week's games across rural West Tennessee.
Week 5 Blitz
Your guide to this week's games across rural West Tennessee.
Week 4 Takeaways
What we took away from the results from Week 4
Quick hits
The 2025 season may have been one of the best overall coaching jobs by head coach Darren Bowling in his entire career. The Lions didn’t have a lot of high expectations outside their fieldhouse because a number of guys who graduated the previous spring took a lot of school records with them. But Bowling put the ball in the hands of his best players early on and developed more talent with experience as the season progressed.
The 48-0 win over First Assembly Christian School last year was Win No. 250 for Bowling as a head coach.
There’s a change in TCA’s game schedule this year as the Lions needed to pick up Westwood in Week 4 on Sept. 11 for a home game. They played West Carroll in that week last year, but Bruceton called them wanting to renew their Carroll County rivalry after Bruceton lost its Week 4 game, so the Lions will now entertain a Memphis team that week.
While Bowling didn’t inherit a “bad” program when he arrived on campus in the spring of 2023, he has worked since his arrival to mold it into the type of program he prefers to have. It’s a more physical style of football as Bowling is an old-school type of coach who teaches mental and physical toughness before focusing on the playbook with the athletes.
The Lions take a week-long trip to camp in Columbia in Middle Tennessee every year to build the cohesiveness and camaraderie among the players and coaching staff Bowling says a team needs to really persevere together through the grind of a season.
Position groups
Offensive line — The running theme for this year’s team is most of their players are coming back, but the ones they lost were important. Four of five starters are back up front. But they need a new leader with Boyle graduated.
Backfield — Joe Cole will be the starting running back. When he got in the game last year, he showed some flashes of what he can do for the team on a consistent basis. Bowling had the good problem of having three quality athletes to choose from for starting quarterback. Greg Carter, Rider Weaver and Jantzen Gray were all competing before camp in late July. Bowling said no matter which one gets the job, the other two will be somewhere on the field.
Receivers — Lake Helton was one of the main players who showed development last year from Week 1 to the state semifinals. Cam Hardin will probably move to the other edge opposite of Helton. Reed Williamson also had some big receptions down the stretch of the season.
Defensive line — The same guys who play on the offensive line will also be the ones playing on the defensive line. This is where the conditioning and mental toughness come into play for Bowling. A large chunk of the offseason was dedicated to ensuring the Lions will be able to handle a competitive four-quarter game before temperatures and humidity lower about halfway through the regular season.
Linebackers — Last year’s starting running back, Hank Miller, was already a known commodity for Lion fans as an effective linebacker, so he hardly ever left the field last year because of that. Cole will be called upon to have a similar workload.
Secondary — The Lions’ secondary will be going up against some of the top passing attacks on this end of the state, particularly in region play. But they also have to be prepared for playing some top attacks from the Middle/East when they get to the postseason.
Special teams — Ty Carlson was the kicker last year as a freshman. He’s back this year as a sophomore.
2026 stats
No stats yet this season. They appear here once a game's book has been read and checked.