Sept. 7, 2021
The Ensworth Tigers High School football team traveled from Nashville to the Christian Brothers High School (CBHS) campus to open conference play for both teams. It was a highly anticipated matchup that did not live up to the hype, and the Brothers suffered their first loss of the season. The 45-19 final score of Ensworth over CBHS was not indicative of how good both these teams are this season. The game had snowball effect on the Brothers from the first drive, and it continually got worse throughout the entire game.
Both Ensworth and CBHS are loaded with talent on both sides of the ball and are both very well coached teams. CBHS head football coach, Thomas McDaniel, has made CBHS a more consistent highly seeded playoff team and has done a great job with his play calling, and he has done an exceptional job developing his players. Coach McDaniel is the perfect head coach for CBHS football. All you have to do is look at this year’s senior class, and where some of his players will be playing football on Saturdays next season. The best two examples are Senior running back, Dallen Hayden, who will be playing for the Ohio State Buckeyes next fall, and Senior offensive lineman, Patrick Kutas, who will be playing in the Southeastern Conference (SEC) for the Arkansas Razorbacks. I think those two players are all the proof I need to standby my statement that Coach McDaniel knows how to develop his players to go play for major a college football in one of the four major conferences. To me, that’s the definition of a great high school head football coach.
Former Ensworth head football coach and current Athletic Director, Ricky Bowers, assembled Ensworth’s football program into a perennial powerhouse in only three years. Bowers became the Ensworth’s head football coach in 2004 and led them to the Playoffs by the 2007 season. He then made Ensworth football a perennial playoff team, as Bowers lead the Ensworth Tigers to the playoffs in ten consecutive seasons. In those ten seasons, Bowers made the state championship game in five consecutive seasons and winning four out the five state championship games. games. Bowers led Ensworth to four consecutive state championship titles in 2010, 2011, 2012, and 2013. They were the state championship runner-up in 2014. However, he has since stepped down and handed over the head football coach of the Ensworth Tigers job to Roc Batten. Batten was Bowers Defensive Coordinator since 2005 before accepting the head coaching job. Today, Bowers remains the Athletic Director of the Ensworth Tigers, and he was inducted into the Tennessee Football Coaches Association as a member of the 2017 Hall of Fame class.
Ensworth came into Friday night’s game already suffering one loss the previous week to Chattanooga Baylor High School, 52-28, and after Friday night’s game, Ensworth and CBHS share the same record of two and one. However, these two teams are not nearly as far apart as the final score would indicate, but Friday night was not the Brothers night. Friday night belonged to Ensworth.
I mentioned the snowball effect, and it began when Ensworth received the opening kickoff and drove down the field to score the game’s first touchdown and go in front 7-0. The Brothers had multiple chance to stop Ensworth’s opening drive, but they could not find the third down stop they needed which seemed to frustrate the CBHS defense from the beginning. On the kickoff following the Ensworth touchdown, Ensworth surprised the Brothers with a pooch kick that caught the Brothers off guard and was recovered by Enswroth.
At this point, the CBHS defense that was already a bit frustrated after not getting a third down stop on multiple occasions during Ensworth’s first drive, now had to immediately take the field again with practically no rest. Ensworth’s recovery of their pooch kick set the Tigers up with great field position and added to their momentum, while CBHS didn’t even have the chance to talk about any changes they needed to make on defense. These factors helped make for an easy second touchdown drive from Ensworth, giving Ensworth a 14-0 lead in only 3 minutes and 22 seconds of game time.
Ensworth continued to pooch their kickoffs every time throughout the entire game, but CBHS was ready for it the rest of the game. CBHS responded with their own drive with Senior running back, Dallen Hayden, doing gaining most of the yards. However, the Brothers offense stalled at the 19-yeard line and their field goal attempt was blocked by Ensworth.
After the blocked field goal, Ensworth drove down the field and scored another touchdown to extend their lead to 21-0 with just over ten minutes to go in the first half.
The Brothers would get on the scoreboard before halftime with a Dallen Hayden touchdown run, but CBHS hooked the extra point wide left. However, Ensworth would answer a couple more times before halftime, including causing a turnover and another short field for their offense.
Honestly, I think it was just one of those nights with CBHS riding high off their overtime win against Germantown High School in Week 1, and with their 59-0 shutout over Sheffield High School the previous week. Ensworth was coming off a blowout loss to Chattanooga Baylor, and I think they felt like they had a lot to prove in this game. Ensworth just seemed to make the plays on offense and defense every time they needed to, and I think the Brothers became more and more disappointed with their play throughout the game.
It did not help CBHS that their starting Senior quarterback, Ashton Strother, was out again this week still healing from his injury prior their game against Sheffield last week. The ball seemed, to me, to bounce Ensworth’s way all game, and that Ensworth gave them the early momentum in the game. In my opinion, the biggest difference in the game I saw was how Ensworth not only grabbed the early momentum and never gave up the momentum, but also how Ensworth continued to grow their momentum throughout the game.
I believe with Ensworth having continuous growing momentum all game is the reason the score was so lop-sided, and Ensworth probably would’ve still won the game without all having the momentum all game on Friday because they were the better on that night. However, I think if they play again that it will be a completely different game. I think CBHS would be more focused and ready for the Ensworth Tigers, and the Brothers would be looking for payback. Meanwhile, I don’t think Ensworth would be as prepared for a rematch as they were on Friday, and possibly be overconfident heading into a rematch.
It was a bad night the Brothers football team, but every great team has a bad night a time or two throughout a season. However, it wasn’t all bad for CBHS as Dallen Hayden continued to do what he does every week by rushing for 212 yards on 24 carries and scoring three touchdowns.
Honestly, my overall opinion about Friday night’s game is that CBHS had an off night while Ensworth was clicking on all cylinders and came out swinging, and they were landing haymakers on the Brothers right from the start. I think those first two early touchdowns with the recovered pooch kick after their first touchdown in between stunned the Brothers, and CBHS could not get themselves back on the right track.
I truly believe that if CBHS plays Ensworth again, it will be an immensely different football that could go either way in the end. I am positive it would be a much closer game, and CBHS would have an adequate chance at winning a rematch.
I just think the Brothers were out of sorts with their play, while Ensworth might’ve played their best game of their season and it happened to come at the expense of CBHS. I believe that the Brothers will bounce back, and I am hopeful the Brothers use Friday night’s loss as motivation heading into their next game this Friday at Tom Nix Stadium against the Spartans of White Station High School.
I think the Brothers next game is tremendously important to their season. The Brothers need a bounce back win after the Ensworth game to help them regain their momentum and propel them to more wins this season, and I am confident CBHS will get that bounce back win they need at home against White Station this upcoming Friday night. I believe CBHS will be sure to find a way to get the win against White Station, because I believe in this CBHS team and its drive, talent, and most of all its cohesiveness.
Tripp Vistica
Tripp Vistica 