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Alcoa coach Gary Rankin is proud of his team for finishing the regular season undefeated, the first time the Tornadoes have done so since 2000.

Both unbeaten seasons were punctuated by wins over long-time rival Maryville. But undefeated regular seasons aren't the reason the Tornados are five-time defending state champs.

"Going undefeated is a good accomplishment for our kids, especially when you play such a tough schedule like we have," Rankin said. "But it carries absolutely no weight now that we're in the playoffs."

No. 1 seed Alcoa will host No. 6 seed Tyner in the first-round of Class 3A playoff action today at Goddard Field, with kickoff set for 7 p.m.

Although the playoffs bring a clean slate, Alcoa will have momentum headed into tonight's game. The Tornadoes are coming off a 24-7 District 4-AA championship win over previously unbeaten CAK, in which they amassed 410 total yards and held CAK to under 100.

Rankin says he has no trouble motivating his team for the playoff road ahead, despite the changes to this year's playoff system.

"It was uncomfortable for a while there," said Rankin, referring to TSSAA's playoff bracket mix up, in which a second bracket was released to replace a faulty first one.

"But it was an honest mistake and they did their best to correct it."

Rankin wants to keep things simple for his team in practice however, "Playoff preparation is a matter of keeping fresh while still working hard," Rankin said.

"They (Alcoa players) know the routine, and we've been here before."

Chattanooga Tyner, (6-4, 6-1 District 6-AA) is a tough first-round draw according to Rankin, "like a lot of teams out there, they are better than their record shows."

All four of Tyner's losses have been to ranked teams in higher classifications, including a 21-10 loss to undefeated Class 6A Red Bank.