High school notes: remembering the top 10 football games from the 2025 season

Doing my best impression of San Diego radio host Sammy Levitt — "and with that, the 2025-2026 school year comes to an end. Good night." With that in mind, let's take one last look at the Top 10 high school football games from last fall. As usual, the list is never easy. There were a lot of one-possession games from which to choose. The two-week TSSAA dead period begins after this weekend. But once we get on the other side, we'll be on the final countdown leading up to the 2026 high school football season. It should be noted the 10 games below aren't ranked in any particular order, except the date they happened. Several factors were considered, including team success and the impact of each particular game. Naturally, there's more at stake later in the season, which is why you'll find several games from October and November. Week 1 Science Hill 27, Elizabethton 20 The 101st installment of the history rivalry went to Science Hill, when Lane Clement hit Nalique Anderson for a 9-yard touchdown with around four minutes in the game. Clement threw for 129 yards, with an earlier 6-yard TD to Darren Hill. Aiden Perry (36-run) and Ian Mathes (18-run) both scored in the first quarter. Rhett Slagle threw for 138 yards and 2 TDs to Justius Wallin for the Cyclones, after Justin Whitehead threw a 75-yard TD to Zack Wallin. Johnson County 26, Sullivan East 21 Brayden Dickens scored the winning touchdown from 17 yards in the fourth quarter, and the Longhorns held Sullivan East on fourth-and-goal in the final seconds to start 1-0. Dickens ran for 133 yards, and Johnathan Lisi 101 with 2 scores while Juan Mejia added 86 and another TD. Peyton Lingerfelt ran for a score and threw 2 more for East (26 yards to Haden Jones, 68 to Blue Proffitt). Week 3 Dobyns-Bennett 28, Gate City 20 Levi Chappell passed for 210 yards and 3 touchdowns to help D-B survive a determined Gate City team. Zayden Hayes caught Chappell's 64-yard TD pass on the opening play and grabbed the eventual winning interception with two minutes left. Jaylen Thomas caught 8- and 21-yard TD passes from Chappell, and Zabian Goodwin returned a punt 61 yards to the house. Walker Hillman ran for 133 yards and a TD for Gate City. Kaden Houseright (15-pass from Zayne Reed) and Corey Byrd (2-run) scored TDs as the Blue Devils stayed toe-to-toe throughout. Week 4 David Crockett 29, Morristown West 27 The Pioneers stopped a late 2-point conversion to take down their Region 1-5A rivals. Zeke Slone ran for a touchdown and caught a 17-yard TD from A.J. Wynn (12-of-14 for 124 yards). Sam Casey ran for 111 yards and a TD, Jaxon Overstreet caught 6 passes for 104 yards and Carson Bradburn scored on a 50-yard interception return. Riley McClellan threw for 197 yards and 3 TDs for MoWest. Week 5 Happy Valley 26, Unicoi County 23 Gabe McDougald ran for a 4-yard touchdown with 41 seconds left, as the Warriors won this Week 5 thriller between two teams that combined to go 20-4. It was McDougald's second TD of the game, with Keelin Releford scoring on 36- and 35-yard runs. Kolby Jones ran for 2 short touchdowns and threw for 194 yards, while Blaze Rice scored the third Unicoi County touchdown for a 23-20 lead in the fourth quarter. Week 9 Cloudland 58, North Greene 51 Landon Barnette ran for 160 yards and 4 first-half touchdowns, helping the Highlanders score a major Region 1-1A win on the road. Bryce Birchfield ran for 131 yard and 2 scores, and Grayson Cole added 119 yards with 2 TDs of his own. Leon Johnson ran for 112 yards and 2 scores to lead North Greene, while Thomas Darnell rushed for a score and threw 3 more. Week 11 Dobyns-Bennett 28, Science Hill 25 Levi Chappell threw for 90 yards with a touchdown to Zayden Hayes, while rushing for a team-high 103 yards with a 4-yard TD to help D-B win its second straight Region 1-6A title. Emmitt Starnes (2-run) and Zabian Goodwin (16-run) both ran for scores, and Noah Raines' late interception sealed the win. Lane Clement threw for 272 yards and 2 scores for Science Hill (67-pass to Tyler Holder, 38-pass to Branson Newberry), while Nalique Anderson ran for 16- and 9-yard TDs. Playoffs Science Hill 35, Oak Ridge 31 Science Hill rallied from a 10-point deficit in the fourth quarter, scoring twice to earn its first road playoff win since 1998. Lane Clement went 13-of-23 for 218 yards and 3 touchdowns. Tyler Holder (24 yards) and Brayden Austin (5 yards) caught Clement's fourth-quarter TD passes. Branson Newberry (80-pass from Clement) and Aiden Perry (50-run) scored TDs in the second quarter, and Darren Hill returned a blocked field goal 83 yards to cut Oak Ridge's lead to 24-21. Blaine Stansberry threw for 308 yards and 2 scores for the Wildcats, but Science Hill picked off three of his passes. Unicoi County 28, Sweetwater 21 Blaze Rice ran for 2 touchdowns in the fourth quarter, breaking a 14-14 tie as the Blue Devils advanced to round two of the Class 3A playoffs. Kolby Jones went 17-of-28 for 260 yards and 2 touchdowns in his final game at Gentry Stadium. His scoring tosses went 86 yards to Avery Hatcher and 36 yards to Alex Laningham. Rye Cove 7, Grayson County 6 The War Eagles punched their ticket to the VHSL Class 1 state championship game, completing their three-game playoff revenge tour with a victory over Grayson County in the state semifinals at Gate City's Legion Field. Cole Barnette ran for a 4-yard touchdown just before halftime, and Maverick Cress' extra point was the difference. Makray Good (10-pass from Maverik Goad) got the Blue Devils within 7-6, but Rye Cove broke up the 2-point try. Will Rollins ran for 107 yards, and Tyler Shupe threw for 83 while hitting Luke Jessee four times for 35. Ben McElroy and Rollins had eight tackles apiece. Honorable mention Elizabethton followed its opening loss to Science Hill with two straight thrillers, winning 26-21 at Tennessee High behind Rhett Slagle and the Wallin cousins (Justius, Zack and J-Bird) and then 21-19 over West Ridge — with Justin Whitehead catching 2 TD passes … Kolby Jones ran for 2 touchdowns and threw another to Avery Hatcher in Unicoi County's 29-27 overtime win at Northview Academy in Week 2 … Jayden Weston ran for 161 yards and 2 touchdowns to help Cherokee take down Seymour 28-21 in Week 6, while Landon Jeffers fired a TD pass to Lofton Hayes … Levi Chappell ran for a touchdown and threw another to Tyree Thomas, before Zabian Goodwin returned the second half kickoff 98 yards for the winning touchdown in Dobyns-Bennett's 21-14 conference win over Jefferson County … Keelin Releford and Gabe McDougald both ran for TDs to help Happy Valley defeat South Greene 20-14 for the Region 1-2A crown … Levi Chappell threw a touchdown to Tyree Thomas and ran for 3 more against Farragut in the 6A playoffs, the third giving Dobyns-Bennett a 27-21 overtime triumph … Cole Barnette ran for 147 yards and 2 touchdowns, helping Rye Cove win at Chilhowie 21-13 in the VHSL Region 1D semifinals and avenge a regular season loss.