Memphis area’s top high school football games for the 2021 season
The Tennessee high school football season starts next week.
Here are the 20 biggest games scheduled for the Memphis area as picked by The Commercial Appeal.
1. Germantown at Christian Brothers
When: Week 1 (Aug. 21)
The season kicks off with a Saturday night matchup featuring three of the state’s top prospects.
Each side has a Big Ten commitment in Christian Brothers running back Dallan Hayden (Ohio State) and Germantown’s Kody Jones (Michigan). Christian Brothers lineman Patrick Kutas is an Arkansas commitment.
2. White Station at Central
When: Week 2 (Aug. 27)
Central, which moved down to Class 5A, takes on a former region foe.
Central’s Quincy Briggs (Yale commitment) is one of the state’s top-rated athletes. White Station quarterback Braylen Ragland has multiple Power-5 offers as a junior.
3. Houston at Collierville
When: Week 8 (Oct. 8)
Collierville, fresh off of its first quarterfinal appearance since 1993, hosts rival Houston. The Mustangs have one of the area’s top sophomore prospects in defensive lineman Kavion Benton, who has offers from Florida and Louisville. If the game comes down to the wire, the Dragons can call on Hudson Hollenbeck, who is one of the area’s best kickers.
4. Freedom Prep at MAHS
When: Week 7 (Sept. 30)
This small school matchup features a potential head-to-head battle between Mississippi State commitment Tyler Woodard, a defensive back, and Tennessee commitment Cameron Miller, a wide receiver.
5. ECS at Lausanne
When: Week 8 (Oct. 10)
These two teams have been at the top of DII-AA West for the past five years, and won state titles during that span. ECS running back Jaylen Greenwood rushed for over 2,000 yards last season, and Lausanne quarterback Brock Glenn has offers from Memphis and Kentucky among others.
6. Bartlett at St. Benedict
When: Week 2 (Aug. 27)
The Joey Magnifico era at St. Benedict kicks off with the Eagles hosting Class 6A semifinalist Bartlett in their first home game. Bartlett closed out the year winning eight of its last nine games.
7. PURE Academy at Briarcrest Christian
When: Week 8 (Oct. 8)
Former Briarcrest star Melvin Cole returns to Eads as coach of PURE Academy, a boarding school that is in its first full football season. PURE quarterback Tevin Carter is choosing between Memphis, Texas A&M, Georgia Tech and Ole Miss. Briarcrest receiver Max Carroll caught nine touchdown passes last season.
8. Hernando at Southaven
When: Week 7 (Oct.1)
Hernando, which made the second round of the Class 6A playoffs, returns Southern Miss quarterback commitment Zach Wilcke. The Southaven defensive line features the state’s No. 10 prospect Aaron Bryant.
9. Horn Lake at Lake Cormorant
When: Week 6 (Sept. 24)
Versatile Mississippi State commitment Jarnorris Hopson, who is being recruited as a receiver but also takes some snaps at quarterback for Horn Lake, gets a chance to show what he can do. Lake Cormorant quarterback Telvin Amos threw for 1,700 yards and 15 touchdowns last season.
10. Christian Brothers at MUS
When: Week 9 (Oct. 15)
The last time these rivals met, Hayden rushed for 258 yards scored all four of Christian Brothers’ touchdowns in a 28-7 win. With MUS having made two of the last three state title games and Christian Brothers making last year’s quarterfinals, this matchup should have a playoff feel to it.
11. Whitehaven at Germantown
When: Week 3 (Sept. 3)
Whitehaven has an explosive talent in sophomore running back Joe Williams, who already has offers from Memphis and Tennessee. Germantown has a pair of the area’s top prospects in Jones and wide receiver Tahj Shabazz. Former Whitehaven star Gene Robinson coaches in his first region game against his alma mater.
12. Southwind at Kirby
When: Week 2 (Aug. 27) A late-august rivalry game that opens conference play for a pair of teams that haven’t played since 2019. Even though Kirby is in Class 4A now, these schools are keeping the rivalry alive.
13. Munford at Covington
When: Week 1 (Aug. 19)
These Tipton County rivals open the season against each other. Munford, which was 9-4 last season returns Region 8-5A defensive player of the year Icarius Hodgin. Covington, which went 8-3 before COVID ended its season, features defensive back Anthony Mason, who has an offer from Tennessee.
14. Fayette-ware at Wooddale
When: Week 11 (Oct. 29)
This is a chance to see quarterback Kyle Lowe, who recently committed to Middle Tennessee State, play in the city. Wooddale was 11-3 in 2019 and fell to Covington by a point in the playoffs before missing last season.
15. Whitehaven at Bartlett
When: Week 11 (Oct. 29)
Class 6A powerhouse Whitehaven travels to Bartlett, which has improved rapidly under third-year coach Lance Tucker. Both teams have a lot of unknowns as Whitehaven missed last season and Bartlett graduated many key players from its Class 6A semifinalist team from last year, but this still has the potential to be a big-time matchup.
16. White Station at Christian Brothers
When: Week 4 (Sept. 10)
Both teams have a big-time prospect on offense in Hayden and Ragland. Another potential matchup that could be intriguing is between sophomores Isaiah
Cobb (White Station) and Jaxon Hammond (Christian Brothers). Both play wide receiver and defensive back and are bring recruited by Power Five schools.
17. Hernando at Lausanne
When: Week 5 (Sept. 17)
Two of the area’s best quarterbacks, Hernando’s Wilcke and Lausanne’s Glenn go head to head. Both teams have strong rushing attacks too, with Brody Martin and Craig Cunningham carrying the ball.
18. Houston at Whitehaven
When: Week 5 (Sept. 17)
The last time these teams met was in the 2019 Class 6A quarterfinals. This year’s matchup features two of the area’s top sophomore prospects in Benton and Williams.
19. Ridgeway at MUS
When: Week 1 (Aug. 20)
The public school faces off against the private school from right across the street.
20. Bartlett at Collierville
When: Week 10 (Oct. 22)
This is a rematch of the Class 6A quarterfinals and 7-6A region championship game. The region title game came down to the wire, with Bartlett winning on a play-action pass on the final play.