Wildcats round up Mavericks, win AAA District Championship

The Oak Ridge Wildcats football team went undefeated 10-0 in the regular season in 2014 for only the 12th time in school history and the first time since 1999. The Wildcats also won the District 3-AAA title in a Thursday night game against the Anderson County Mavericks at Anderson County High School in Clinton. (Photos by Julio Culiat)

CLINTON—Many players on the Oak Ridge football team don’t remember the last time the Wildcats went undefeated back in 1999. But now, 15 years later, they all have something to hang their hats on: an undefeated season and a district championship.

The Wildcats (10-0, 8-0 District 3-AAA) outlasted the Anderson County Mavericks (8-2, 7-1) to win the district title 28-16 on Thursday at Anderson County High School in Clinton. Oak Ridge was led by the two touchdown catches of sophomore wide receiver Tee Higgins.

Both teams scored one touchdown each in the first quarter, but the usually reliable Brandon Nickle missed a field goal for Oak Ridge. The Wildcats’ touchdown came on a one-yard quarterback sneak by Gavin Warrington halfway through the first quarter.

However, the Mavericks soon proved they deserved to be playing in the District 3-AAA championship. Anderson County faked a handoff up the middle, and quarterback Garrett Johnson, who filled in for injured QB Zane Smith, threw a touchdown pass to Cale Brock.

But the Mavs missed the extra point, making it 7-6 Oak Ridge after the first quarter.

Oak Ridge stepped up on offense and defense in the second quarter. With 8:53 left in the second, senior cornerbacks Jemiah Hall and Ted Mitchell combined for a bone-crushing tackle on Anderson County running back Matt Fox. Mitchell recovered after Fox fumbled, but the Wildcats couldn’t capitalize on the following drive.

With 5:11 to go in the second quarter, Anderson County punted for the first time in the game. After the fair catch, the Wildcats took over on their own 27-yard line. In 11 seconds, quarterback Logan Fadnek, who came in after Warrington started, threw a pass to Higgins, and Higgins took it 73 yards to the house to give the Wildcats a 14-6 lead.

A 29-yard field goal later in the quarter by the Mavs made the score at halftime 14-9 Oak Ridge. That field goal was the only score the Wildcats have allowed in the second quarter all season.

At the half, the Mavericks seemed to have run all over the Wildcats, picking up 120 yards on 25 handoffs. On the other hand, the Wildcats dominated the Mavs through the air, going 6-10 for 122 yards.

“I thought the first half was full of squandered opportunities,” Oak Ridge head coach Joe Gaddis said. “We missed a field goal or two, which is very uncharacteristic…We should have been up by more than 14-9 at the half.”

Oak Ridge Wildcats sophomore wide receiver Tee Higgins (5), who received several scholarship offers this week, had five receptions for 110 yards and two touchdowns.

The third quarter was a repeat of the first, with each team again scoring a touchdown. The Wildcats touchdown was courtesy of a six-yard run by T.J. Allison, and the Mavericks scored on a Johnson run. After three quarters, the Wildcats had a 21-16 lead. Oak Ridge scored one more time in the fourth, thanks to another pass-and-catch from Fadnek to Higgins.

The final score was 28-16, and as time ticked down, the Oak Ridge fan base grew more and more excited. Finally, the clock hit 0:00, and the Wildcats fans were in a frenzy.

“The Oak Ridge city is electrifying, and our community backs us up,” Fadnek said. “I absolutely love it here.”

“(The fan support) is incredibly great,” Allison added.

Fadnek led the team in passing with 127 yards, and he completed eight of his 14 passes. Fadnek also had two touchdowns and an interception. Warrington went 4-6 and threw for 47 yards.

Higgins, who received several scholarship offers this week, racked up the most receiving yards, catching five passes for 110 yards and two scores. Jordan Dunbar had five catches for 31 yards, and Jiminquas Johnson had two catches for 33 yards.

The Wildcats used five different rushers. Allison led the way with 17 carries for 45 yards and a score. Warrington ran six times and picked up 17 yards and a score. Higgins ran once for two yards, Fadnek ran two times for one yard, and Brandon Bonds ran the ball once and picked up -2 yards.

Adam Manookian had 15 total tackles, a team high. Five of those tackles were solo tackles. Manookian also had an interception and returned it for eight yards. Bonds wasn’t far behind him with 13 total tackles. Hall led the team in solo tackles with six.

Oak Ridge Wildcats Alex Alcorn (66), a junior defensive end, and Adam Manookian (35), a junior linebacker, close in on star senior running back Matt Fox (43) of Anderson County. Fox had about 140 yards total rushing in this year’s game, compared to more than 250 last year, when the Mavericks won the district title.

Oak Ridge’s success this season stemmed from multiple sources. The Wildcats only had two interceptions and two fumbles lost on the entire year. They picked up 103 first downs on the year and only allowed 75. The Wildcats outscored opponents 352-73 this season.

Many underclassmen stepped up this year for the Wildcats. Allison, a junior, led all rushers with 536 yards and 12 touchdowns. Higgins led receivers with 27 receptions and 427 yards with seven touchdowns. Fadnek, a junior who was the starting quarterback in most games, went 59-102 on the year, including 909 yards, 11 touchdowns, and only two interceptions.

Even though the team finished undefeated, Coach Gaddis isn’t ready to give the state crown to his team yet.

“We gotta continue to get better,” Gaddis said. “We gotta be able to run the ball better…We didn’t tackle well tonight, and we just gotta keep getting better in all phases of the game…We’re gonna take it one week at a time.”

Fadnek added: “I think that if we keep our heads, and we stay focused, and don’t get selfish, I think there’s a chance we can go all the way. I really do.”

The Wildcats’ next opponent has yet to be determined, but the playoff game will more than likely take place at Oak Ridge next Friday. However, times and places are subject to change.

Anderson County will also have a playoff game next week.

Trenton Duffer is a freelance contributor to Oak Ridge Today.

Oak Ridge Wildcats Coach Joe Gaddis and his football team celebrate the hard-fought win in a post-game huddle.

Here’s a round-up of other Thursday night games from our news partner WYSH Radio in Clinton:

Monterey clubbed Oliver Springs 49-14; Campbell County obliterated Powell 41-0; Rockwood knocked off Grace Christian 22-15; and Sunbright shut out Wartburg 33-0. The regular season concludes tonight with a lighter-than-usual docket, including on WYSH as the radio station brings you Halls at Clinton with a 7 p.m. kickoff. Other games of interest have Central at Gibbs, Greenback at Midway, Coalfield at Oakdale, Kingston at CAK, and a battle of state-ranked powerhouses when Alcoa visits Catholic.

Here are preliminary stats from the OR-AC game courtesy of Mark Haste:

Passing Stats

Receiving Stats

Rushing Stats