Alcoa’s Caden Buckles celebrates a touchdown against the East Nashville Eagles during the TSSAA Class 3A state championship at W. Max Finley Stadium on Friday, Dec. 3, 2021, in Chattanooga, Tennessee. Alcoa won 45-14. (Photo by Danny Parker)
BY JESSE SMITHEY
CHATTANOOGA — With 9 minutes, 30 seconds, left in the first half of Friday’s Class 3A BlueCross Bowl Championship, Alcoa senior quarterback Caden Buckles powered in from the 1-yard line for a score and immediately sought out teammate Major Newman.
When the two convened at the front corner of the end zone to celebrate, each rose their arms and one leg to mimic the crane kick made famous by the movie “The Karate Kid” and more recently by Alabama receiver John Metchie III.
“It was slightly planned,” Buckles said with a laugh. “We weren’t sure which score it was going to be.
“But we knew we were going to get into the end zone.”
Indeed, they did. A lot.
From there, Buckles, Newman and the Alcoa Tornadoes showed no mercy on their opponent, taking full advantage of East Nashville’s insufficient special teams en route to a 45-14 win at Chattanooga’s Finley Stadium.
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Moreover, the win gave Alcoa (14-1) its seventh consecutive state championship and extended its TSSAA-best mark for all-time football championships won to 20. Alcoa also won seven state titles in a row from 2004-10.
Buckles was named game MVP for the second year in a row. This time, he completed 12 of 17 passes for 117 yards and a touchdown to go along with 52 rushing yards and three TDs.
And for legendary Alcoa coach Gary Rankin, he won his 17th state championship, 13 of which have come at Alcoa since arriving there in 2006. He won four state titles at Riverdale and leads the state in all-time victories with 467.
Victory was in doubt, though, in the early going.
Alcoa entered the contest as a heavy favorite against title-game rookie East Nashville (10-5) but after its fumble inside the red zone at the 4:15 mark of the first quarter, the game remained scoreless.
The Tornadoes finally grabbed some momentum, though, on a 47-yard touchdown pass from Buckles to Isaiah Bryant with 1:26 left in the first quarter.
“We came out slow. Not as fiery as we wanted to be,” said Alcoa junior offensive lineman Lance Williams, who missed the second half with a separated shoulder.
“But once we got locked in, we started scoring as you could see. We just do what we do, you know?”
Buckles’ 1-yard score early in the second quarter that he celebrated with Newman gave Alcoa a 14-0 lead and capitalized on a blocked punt made by Newman.
Another punting snafu by East Nashville with 7:15 left in the half — the punter kicked the ball into one of his own linemen — gave the Tornadoes the ball inside the East Nashville 10.
Alcoa’s Isaiah Bryant (8) celebrates a touchdown against the East Nashville Eagles during the TSSAA Class 3A state championship at W. Max Finley Stadium on Friday, Dec. 3, 2021, in Chattanooga, Tenn. Alcoa won 45-14. (Photo by Danny Parker)
Buckles raced in for a 6-yard scoring run and 21-0 lead with 6:17 remaining before the break.
Alcoa recovered an East Nashville fumble on the ensuing kickoff and capitalized on that mistake with a Jordan Harris 1-yard touchdown.
“Against a team like Alcoa, you can’t make those kinds of mistakes,” said East Nashville coach Jamaal Stewart, whose team was making its first-ever appearance in a state championship.
East Nashville cut the 28-point deficit to 14 by the midpoint of the third quarter.
But following Bacon Lauderback’s 20-yard field goal for Alcoa with 2:14 left in the third, East Nashville imploded a bit more with another kicking gaffe. They shanked a punt and gave Alcoa the ball at the East Nashville 43 in the final seconds of the third.
Itty Salter cashed in with a 24-yard, highlight-reel-worthy touchdown run with roughly 11 minutes to go. That gave Alcoa a 38-14 advantage and all but wrapped up another gold trophy.
Buckles swept the leg for good measure. His 3-yard touchdown run with 6:23 to play bumped the lead to 31.
Meanwhile, East Nashville sat there at that point in the game with just 139 yards of offense. Star running back Amarion Ford finished with 29 carries and 102 yards.
Alcoa finished with 333 yards.
“For the seniors to go out with four trophies — obviously, I only got two because I got here late (after transferring from Catholic) — it’s huge,” said Buckles. “I want the seniors to win it next year and the ones after that.
“It’s big for this program — and it shows we’re never going to stop.”
5STAR PHOTOS: Alcoa Tornadoes 45, East Nashville 14 – 2021 BlueCross Bowl (3A)