Brentwood football, coach Clint Finch are back in TSSAA quarterfinals. Next up: Ravenwood
BRENTWOOD — Just in case Brentwood football coach Clint Finch didn't know what was at stake Friday night, one of the Bruins' team managers let him know beforehand.
"Our manager kind of reminded me that we haven't gotten past this game the last two years," Finch said with a chuckle. "Well thanks, I appreciate the reminder."
In 2021, Finch's first season as coach, Brentwood fell to Summit 21-3 in the second round of the TSSAA playoffs. Last season, it lost 28-7 to Bartlett in the second round.
Friday, the Bruins climbed up to the ceiling they'd run into the past two seasons and smashed clean through it. Not only did No. 3 Brentwood cruise past Summit 38-14, but it improved to 12-0 for the second time in school history and first time since 1998.
"I'm just really happy for our kids," Finch said. "This is a really special group of kids. They've worked incredibly hard. They've done everything we've asked him to do."
The Bruins will host Region 6-6A rival Ravenwood (9-3) in next Friday's Class 6A quarterfinal. The Raptors beat Smyrna 38-9 in the second round.
Finch was the Bruins' offensive coordinator from 2006 to 2012 and again from 2015 to 2020, both times coaching under Ron Crawford. During those stints, he coached in eight quarterfinal games. While he's not an assistant anymore, he knows the drill: in each round, the competition and talent gets better.
"You have to keep improving just like everyone else keeps improving," Finch said.
And there's a case to be made that Brentwood is doing exactly that. It recently got running back Trey Dorris, who rushed for 98 yards and found the end zone twice against Summit (5-7), back from an injury. Baylor Hayes threw for 261 yards and three touchdowns on 23-of-29 passing, with two of those TDs going to Clayton Merrill (12 catches, 151 yards). In all, the Bruins' 38 points and 377 yards of offense were its most since beating Overton 38-0 in Week 6.
While Finch built his reputation on offense, Brentwood's defense is allowing just 9.2 points per game and hasn't given up more than 21 all season.
"It makes it a lot easier to call plays and coach the game when you know you can trust your defense," Finch said.
MORE: How dangerous is undefeated Brentwood? Here's Bruins' path in TSSAA football playoffs
Brentwood, Ravenwood set for Battle of the Woods rematch in quarterfinals
Brentwood's public address announcer gave the score of the Ravenwood-Smyrna game multiple times Friday night, so the Bruins were already aware they'd be facing the Raptors again just after the final whistle.
Brentwood beat Ravenwood 17-0 on the final night of the regular season to claim the region championship.
For Hayes, who moved from Florida to Tennessee last winter, his first Battle of the Woods experience lived up to the hype. His teammates told him to stay level-headed leading up to the game, advice he'll have to put to use once again.
"It was an incredible atmosphere, but the stakes are even higher now," Hayes said. "It’s a big game, and I’m ready for it. We’re all ready for it."
Brentwood and Ravenwood are familiar TSSAA playoff foes
Finch knows better than to overlook the Raptors just because of what happened two weeks ago. In 2018 and 2019, the Bruins beat Ravenwood during the regular season, only to suffer season-ending losses to the Raptors in the quarterfinals.
Brentwood and Ravenwood have met four times in the playoffs, with the Raptors holding a 3-1 advantage. Three of their four playoff matchups have been won by the team that lost the regular-season meeting.
"What happened in the past happened in the past," Finch said.
Jacob Shames can be reached by email at jshames@gannett.com and on Twitter @Jacob_Shames.
This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Brentwood, Ravenwood football get rematch in TSSAA quarterfinals
