Recap: Riverside football wins first state title with Class 2A championship game win over East Robertson
Riverside football grinded out a win to earn its first state championship.
The Panthers scored a go-ahead touchdown with 1:14 left in the third quarter and held on for a 13-7 victory over East Robertson in the Class 2A state championship game.
Desmond Thomas had both touchdown rushes for Riverside, the first to cap an opening drive scoring drive in the first quarter on an 11-yard touchdown carry.
Thomas pushed the Panthers ahead late in the third quarter with a five-yard carry. Riverside's defense made two late stops, including a fourth down stop with less than four minutes left, to preserve the win.
Isaiah Groves had the lone score for East Robertson, a 3-yard touchdown run late in the first half.
Recap the Class 2A state championship game below:
TSSAA football championship game live updates: East Robertson vs. Riverside in Class 2A state championship game
Follow along with our Tennessee high school football follower updates on Twitter.com
FINAL: Riverside 13, East Robertson 7
FINAL: @_RHS_Football wins its first football state championship with a 13-7 win over East Robertson for the Class 2A title. pic.twitter.com/MsXRYidupu
— Tyler Palmateer (@Tpalmateer83) December 2, 2023
Riverside 13, East Robertson 7, 3:10 4Q: East Robertson turns ball over on downs
East Robertson gets the ball back with good field position after Elijah Groves recovers a fumble. But the Indians cannot convert a 4th and 19, and Riverside is a couple first downs away from a state title.
Riverside 13, East Robertson 7, 1:14 3Q: Riverside retakes lead
Riverside retakes the lead on a Desmond Thomas 5-yard touchdown run, his second TD of the game. PAT no good. Riverside leads 13-7.
The score was set up by a Jager Couples 31-yard catch where he bounced off of several East Robertson defenders to set up 1st and goal.
Riverside 7, East Robertson 7, 1:09 2Q: Isaiah Groves puts East Robertson on the board
Isaiah Groves runs through a couple tackles and dives into the end zone for a 3-yard touchdown carry.
PAT good. East Robertson evens the score at 7-7. Groves jumpstarted the drive earlier with a long run down the right sideline.
.@_RHS_Football 7, @er_football 7. Isaiah Groves 3 run. 1:09 2Q. @Kreager @Cville_Sports @Tpalmateer83 @NashvillePreps pic.twitter.com/gk7P6F0k3j
— Cecil Joyce (@cecil_joyce) December 2, 2023
Riverside 7, East Robertson 0, 8:18 1Q: Panthers open game with TD drive
Desmond Thomas was excellent for Riverside on the opening drive, and he spins and drives through defenders to complete the drive with an 11-yard touchdown run.
PAT good. Both teams will want to run the ball today. Riverside's rushing attack looks good through one drive.
.@_RHS_Football 7, @er_football 0. 8:18 1Q. Thomas 11 run. @Kreager @Cville_Sports @Tpalmateer83 @preps_sun @NashvillePreps pic.twitter.com/idX09ROuk5
— Cecil Joyce (@cecil_joyce) December 2, 2023
Pregame reading for East Robertson vs. Riverside TSSAA football Class 2A state championship game
PICK 'EM: Predicting every TSSAA football state champion in 2023 BlueCross Bowls
SATURDAY'S PREVIEW: TSSAA football playoffs: What to know about Division II state championships in Chattanooga
How to watch TSSAA football playoffs: BlueCross Bowl games
The championship games will be televised across the state on these stations (channel numbers over the air, cable channels can be found here):
Nashville: WUPX MyNetwork TV Channel 30
Memphis: WMC-TV+ Channel 5.5
Knoxville: WKNX Channel 7
Chattanooga: WFLI MyNetwork TV Channel 53.2
Jackson: Jackson Energy Authority E+ broadband Channel 6 (not OTA)
Tri-Cities: WCYB.2 CW Network Channel 5.2
Saturday's TSSAA football championships schedule
Class 4A: Upperman (14-0) vs. Pearl-Cohn (14-0), 11 a.m. ET/10 a.m. CT
Class 2A: East Robertson (13-1) vs. Riverside (12-2), 3 p.m. ET/2 p.m. CT
Class 6A: Oakland (12-2) vs. Houston (12-2), 7 p.m. ET/6 p.m. CT
This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: TSSAA football scores: East Robertson vs Riverside live updates