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MURFREESBORO — It will be a day long remembered.

The end of the doubting. The end of the pressure. The end of the rhino with four horns in the room that wasn’t acknowledged. The end of the standard on what is and is not possible among the state’s high school football ranks.

Maryville, by virtue of championship game timing, became the second program in Tennessee history to win four-consecutive state titles with Saturday’s 28-13 win over Maplewood. The four-peat did not take the sting from the lost quad-champ season that died in the infamous Morristown semifinal in 2003. It did, however, convert the rhino from ominous stumbling block on the floor to a trophy head stuffed and mounted on the wall.

More invasive and potentially more dangerous to the title team than four-peat fever was the 60-win syndrome that appeared and disappeared through the season like some malignant spirit.

“We never mentioned the win streak (this summer), but we talked about how (these seniors) had the opportunity to go through their high school careers and never lose a game,” said Maryville head coach George Quarles, who has worked to separate a team from a legacy to avoid undue pressure on the players. “To realize that goal is pretty special.

“I’m really proud of this (title) because these kids had such pressure on them. People talked about the win streak and what it meant, and they battled through it to win anyway.”

Quarles spent a season reiterating his career-long mantra that this season belongs to this team. That their achievements are theirs and any expectations their own.
Never has the coach who has orchestrated Rebel wins in 99 of the last 100 games been more profound.

Tyler Maples made not one play Saturday night at Floyd Stadium. Neither Adrian “Tank” Baker nor Carl Stewart had a single carry. Cade Thompson didn’t attempt a pass for the triumphant Rebels. They are the, heroes of a championship program — a legacy that undoubtedly benefits a team but plays no downs and produces no wins and certainly guarantees not a single title once those players’ careers are complete.

As a team, the 2007 Rebels won a state title and had an undefeated season as they played together and improved this team together.

“A lot of people doubted us all year. We didn’t get off to the greatest start and we weren’t the best team in the state every Friday night, but we kept getting better throughout the year,” said Quarles. “We peaked at the right time.”

The plays and character of the 2007 seniors now become part of the program’s legacy. Brent Burnette will join Thompson as one of the Rebels’ great signal callers. Stephen Shiver, Tyler Clendenen and Caleb Clement will become part of the Saturday morning debates over Maryville’s best receiver.

“For most of these guys over here, it’s gone because they’re gone,” said Quarles. “You can’t say enough about them. They never lost a game in their careers on a Friday night or a Saturday afternoon or any other time.”

And for this one moment in time — on a day sure to be long remembered — the Maryville players of 2007 celebrated a 4A state title. A program comprised of coaches, players, both past and present, along with its fans, celebrated the fulfillment of a historic 60-game win streak, a fourth-consecutive state title and a decade of dominance.

Marcus Fitzsimmons is a sports reporter at The Daily Times. Write to him at M. Fitzsimmons, c/o The Daily Times, P.O. Box 9740, Maryville, TN 37802-9740, or e-mail him at: marcus.fitzsimmons@thedailytimes.com