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4—100 Years of Red Raiders

Game 1: 100Th Year Starts On A Sour Note

R ed Raider Football
returned on Aug. 19 at
Carden-Jarrell Field to begin
Two plays into the second
quarter, Konor Heaton ran
up the middle for a 14 yard
took the lead– courtesy of a
rushing touchdown– giving
the team a 14-13 lead.
Sponsored by:

the 100 th year of Red Raider
football. Coffee County
Central High School Football
hosted Franklin County with
a 7 o’clock kick off. The highly
contested game ended with
disappointment for the Red
Raiders, as they fell to the
Rebels 27-20.
Coffee’s first drive ended
in a punt that led to a Franklin
County passing touchdown.
After back-to-back punts,
Coffee County ended the
first quarter in the red zone
threatening to put its first
points on the board in the
2022 season.
touchdown. Elijah McCoy’s
PAT tied the game 7-7.
The Red Raiders’ surprise
onside kick gave them
possession which resulted in
a passing touchdown from
sophomore quarterback Cole
Pippenger to senior wideout
Travis Martin giving Coffee a
13-7 lead.
Defense and penalties
stalled the offenses and
controlled the rest of the first
half as the Raiders held their
13-7 lead at halftime.
Franklin County started the
second half with possession.
In their first drive, Franklin
Coffee County answered
with a turnover on downs,
and back-to-back punts
followed. By the end of
the third quarter, Franklin
County maintained their lead
of 14-13.
Franklin County had the
ball at the beginning of the
fourth quarter, and kicked a a rushing touchdown as the
field goal pushing their lead Red Raiders regained the
17-13 with 10:30 left in the lead 20-17 with only 6:51
game. remaining.
The Raiders’ next drive Franklin County’s next
consisted of a 39 yard pass drive put them in the red
to Jahlin Osborne which
landed Coffee in the red zone.
Heaton ended the drive with See Game, Page 6

Go Big Red!
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100 Years of Red Raiders—5
6—100 Years of Red Raiders
Game 1
Continued from Page 4
zone, but Coffee’s defense
held them to a field goal tying
the game 20-20.
In the final minutes, Coffee
County got the ball back,
but couldn’t get the offense
together, ultimately punting
back to Franklin County. It
seemed the game would go
into overtime until the Rebels
converted on a heartbreaking
68 yard passing touchdown
with only seconds on the
clock.
The Raiders had one
final chance thanks to a
Franklin County penalty.
However Pippenger’s throw
fell incomplete giving Coffee
County a crushing 27-20 loss.
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After the game, Head
Coach Doug Greene said,
““There were a lot of really
good things tonight. We made
some good passes. We ran
the ball good at times. We
just weren’t very consistent,
and we had some mistakes.
We stopped ourselves on
what should’ve been a game
winning drive with a missed
block and fumbled on fourth
down. You can’t do that and Greene finished with, “We
win games.” need to work on blocking
Greene continued, before our next game”,
“Defensively we made some which is a battle for county
nice plays. They did some supremacy on Friday Aug. 26
good things, and we had a few for the annual rivalry game–
busts too. Overall the kicking The Coffee Pot. Coffee County
game was really good for us. will travel to Tullahoma for
We recovered a kick off. The 97 th rendition of the Coffee
return game was good. So Pot with a 7 p.m. kickoff.
overall we have a good team, All game stories written
we just need to eliminate a by Jaxen Waggoner.
few mistakes.”
When asked about Sponsored by:
Heaton’s performance,
Greene said, “Konor Heaton
played well. [Franklin] really
keyed on him. When he would
get loose, he was dangerous.
He’s our best running back,
and I think he got his yards
tonight.”

Game 2: Red Raiders Roast
Wildcats In 97th Coffee Pot
C offee County had fallen to
the Tullahoma Wildcats in
the annual Coffee Pot game since
2016. The last Coffee County win
was when Alontae Taylor, Coffee
County alumni turned NFL draft
pick, played as a Red Raider. But
the Tullahoma winning streak of
five years finally came to an end
last Friday night.
On Aug. 26, Coffee County
traveled to play Tullahoma, the
Class 4A Football State Champion
team, with a 7 p.m. kickoff. Coffee
County came into the game looking
to reclaim the Coffee Pot– and the
trophy finally returned to CCCHS.
After the game began with
neither team scoring, Cole
Pippenger connected with Travis
Martin on a 43 yard pass that
sparked a rushing touchdown
from Konor Heaton, and the Red
Raiders never trailed in the game.
Tullahoma couldn’t answer on
their next possession, and as the
first quarter came to a close Heaton
scored Coffee’s second touchdown
of the game giving them a 14-0
lead.
The Wildcats came into the
second quarter with possession,
however Brendon Sheppard
intercepted a Tullahoma pass.
Unfortunately, the Raiders couldn’t
take advantage of the opportunity.
After swapping punts, Tullahoma
ended the half with a 13-play drive
resulting in a touchdown cutting
the Raider’s lead to 14-7.
Coming into the third quarter,
Tullahoma started quick on offense.
The Wildcats tied the game using
only a minute and 17 seconds with
a passing touchdown.
Coffee County answered with
an 88-yard drive ending with
Pippenger connecting with Jaiden
Foster for a touchdown reclaiming
the lead.
In a post-game interview Coffee
County Head Coach Doug Greene
said this was the moment he felt
they won the game. Greene said,
“When we came out in the third
quarter and it was tied up. I could
tell the guys were dead set on just
driving it down the field, being very
physical. And we just made the
plays we had to make. I mean we
were focused on a goal,”
Greene continued, “We talked
about staying focused all week.
A football play lasts about eight
seconds. So I’m asking them to
focus for eight seconds and then
they did that. I’m really proud of
them.”
The Wildcats could never
answer Coffee County’s offense, as
they failed to score the rest of the
game. Tullahoma had to punt on
their next drive which the Raiders
turned into points courtesy of a
screen pass from Pippenger to
100 Years of Red Raiders—7
Heaton, extending the Red Raiders
lead, 28-14.
Coffee County’s final touchdown
came thanks to a Pippenger pass to
the senior standout receiver Martin
with 10:40 left to play, giving the
Raiders the 35-14 lead that they
carried to the end of game.
As the clock ran out, the Coffee
County crowd roared. The teams
wished one another good game
before Red Raider fans rushed to
join the celebration on the field.
After the game, Coach Greene
said, “Oh, there were several people
who stepped up this game. Konnor
Heaton ran the ball awfully hard.
We really challenged our guards
this week for the offensive line.
And they really played really well.
And our tackles, Jovan and Gilley
played really well.”
Greene continued, “And then
the other guy that people won’t
notice because Tullahoma double
covered and triple covered him
was, Jahlin Osborn. It was so hard
to get him open, but he blocked
like a champ. I mean he was very
unselfish tonight and we were
really, really got a lot of blocks
down field that made small plays
into big plays.”
“Cole played really well. He
made good decisions and ran the
ball really hard. He was able to
create a little bit, but at the same
time, I was pleased that he made
his reads stable within himself.
Didn’t try too, too, too much, which
a lot of times a young guy will do
that.”
“Travis Martin played
outstanding. I mean, it is another
week where he made big plays.
They gave us the out routes early
on and he, you know, the catch
he made on our sideline for a first
down where he got his foot down
was remarkable. But I mean, he
does that every day. He, you know,
he’s great, I would love to have 24
of him, you know, he comes to work
every day. He’s a great teammate,
he’s a leader. He just couldn’t ask
for more from a player,” Greene
finished.
Senior wide receiver Martin
led the way for the Red Raiders,
compiling 156 yards on 6 catches.
Sophomore QB Pippenger finished
14-25 passing for 259 yards and
a pair of touchdowns. He also
added 74 yards on 9 carries. Senior
running back Heaton caught a pair
of passes for 43 yards and rushed
for 81 yards and 3 touchdowns.
Sponsored by:
8—100 Years of Red Raiders

Congrats on an amazing
season!

"Work
"Work Hard,
Hard, Study
Study Hard,
Hard, Play
Play Hard"
Hard"

Jay M. Trussler, D.O. PC

B U R L’ S
URLS
BU COM
STERMITE.C
931-455-3654 Go Big
Go Big Red!
Red!
3055 Hillsboro Hwy.
Hwy
w .
Manchester,
Manchester, TN
TN
800-624-4856
800-624-4856
We like to thank those who have Charter
#3824
served and offer a military discount,
available all year around.
 100 Years of Red Raiders—9

Game 3: Coffee grounds Golden Eagles

C offee County Central High

School hosted Shelbyville on
Sept. 2. The Red Raiders defeated
the Shelbyville Golden Eagles 39-
13.
The Raiders started the
game off strong. Caiden Martin
caught Shelbyville’s kick-off, and
returned the ball to the 1 yard
line– just short of a touchdown.
Just 16 seconds into the game,
Konor Heaton scored followed
by Manny Gonzales’ PAT. Coffee
County led 7-0, and never looked
back.
After several failed drives,
Heaton scored his second
touchdown rushing 36 yards
pushing Coffee County’s lead to
13-0.
The Red Raiders started the
second quarter, but Shelbyville
took over with a pick 6 making
the score 13-7. Shelbyville’s kickoff
resulted in a surprise onside kick
covered by Coffee County.
Shelbyville’s drive ended in a
punt, and Coffee answered with
a 39 yard touchdown when Cole
Pippenger connected with Jahlin
Osborne upping the Red Raider’s
lead 19-7.
With 2:34 to play in the
second quarter, the Shelbyville
Golden Eagles scored a 52 yard
touchdown with a failed PAT.
After a 73 yard drive, Coffee
County ended the half 25-13
courtesy of a 24 yard passing
touchdown from Pippenger to
Travis Martin.
Red Raider Ian Weldon kicked
off the second half. Shelbyville’s
an interception returned for a
touchdown pushing the Raiders
lead 39-13 which they maintained
the rest of the game.
The game ended with a Coffee
County region win— a major step
in one of Coach Greene’s goals for
the year. In a pre season interview,
Greene said, “The goal as always is
that we want to win. We want to
host a playoff game.”
On Friday Sept. 9, Coffee
County travelled to Page for a 7
p.m. kickoff.
Sponsored by:

2X2.25
first drive of the third quarter
ended with a punt after Ashton
Ferrell’s essential sack. Coffee
Congratulations on a County answered with a 21

Toliver’s
yard passing touchdown from
historic season Pippenger to Travis Martin to
finish out the Raiders 63 yard
Red Raiders! drive.
In Shelbyville’s next drive,
Caiden Martin took over with
R
10—100 Years of Red Raiders
Game 4: Raiders fall to Page 28-14
T he Coffee County Red Raiders
traveled to face off against
Page Sept. 9 with kickoff at 7 p.m.
Captains for the game were Ashton
Ferrell, Ian Weldon, Ashton
Swift, and Darryn Strickland.
Coffee County struggled to find
the endzone in the first half of
the game. After Coffee’s first drive
ended in a punt, Page scored
with a good PAT with 8:10 left in
the first quarter. After a Coffee
County punt and Page’s 12 play
drive, the first quarter ended 7-0.
Early in the second quarter, Page
scored with 6:25 left in the half.
After a Coffee punt, Page scored a
touchdown pass pushing their lead
21-0. The Red Raiders made the
first touchdown of the second half
after Page’s turnover on downs.
Cole Pippenger scored with a
good PAT by Manny Gonzales
making the score 21-7. The third
quarter ended soon after a punt
from Page. The beginning of the
fourth quarter was controlled by
penalties and punts, but Page
stopped all that with 4:34 left in
the game when they scored– but
what was truly incredible was the
final drive of the game. In the
final minutes of the game, the
Red Raiders pushed on with a
92 yard drive. Starting from their
own 8 yard line, Coffee County’s
Konor Heaton scored with just 14
seconds left in the game making
the final score 28-14. In a post-
game interview Coach Doug
Greene said, “Basically what we
did [tonight] was we had a lot
Fayetteville, TN 37334
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of really good plays and then we
would mix in a mistake. And
again, when you’re playing a top
team like this, you can’t do that.
You have to be more consistent.
Greene continues, “We had a
good night for Kolby McCormick,
our left guard. Jahlin Osborne
played well, he caught a lot of
balls for us tonight. [He was]
athletic, you know, he was very
physical tonight. So we were
careful with that.” “The biggest
thing [is that] I am real proud of
how our kids responded at the
end of the half, putting together
a drive that gave us a chance to
win. We scored, you know, we put
a nice driveat the beginning of the
second half and had chances to cut
it to one score.”
1816 Huntsville Hwy.
931-228-5585
“Defense gave us a chance.
Also we gave a couple big plays in
the second half were it, that’s all
they had. They just didn’t march
it anymore. I was pleased with
the effort and the adjustments
there, you know, and we’re, we’re
gonna fight to the end and that’s
definitely a big part of it,” Greene
finished.
For the next game on Sept. 16,
Coffee County hosted Lebanon
with a 7 p.m. kick off. Greene
said before the matchup, “Next
game we get to play Lebanon [it’s
a] region game. Win this one,
and you got a chance to win
the region championship.
They’re big, physical, fast. They’re
in the top 5 of 6A, so we’ve got
quite the schedule.”

Game 5: Red Raiders win big on
Homecoming and Alumni Night 42-7
C offee County Central
High School celebrated
Homecoming on Sept. 23.
The Homecoming game was
held alongside alumni night
where former football players,
cheerleaders, and dancers were
all invited to celebrate 100
years of Coffee County Football.
CCCHS hosted Spring Hill for
the game and defeated them
handily 42-7.
Before kickoff at 7 p.m.,
CCCHS Football alumni were
invited out to be honored in the
100th season of Coffee County
Football.
On the track, decades of Red
Raider Football were joined
together and honored on this
special night. The Football
alumni were then invited to sit
back, relax, and enjoy the game.
Coffee County Cheer and
Dance Teams also invited
their alumni out to enjoy the
night and spirit alongside the
team during the first quarter
of the game. The CCCHS
Cheerleaders wore special
uniforms consisting of pieces
throughout the years, and then
cheered alongside their own
alumni. The Raiderette Dance
100 Years of Red Raiders—11
Team also invited out their Sponsored by:
own alumni and danced the
night away.
The game began at 7 p.m.
The captains for the game were
Nate Luttrell, Kendall James,
Blake Phillips, and Robbie
Gilley.
Things started rocky for the
Red Raiders to begin the game.
Coffee County had to punt scoring resulting in a turnover
followed by Spring Hill making on downs.
their way towards the end zone. Coffee County answered
After getting a little too close at that threat with a 93 yard drive
the 4 yard line, a sack by Ashton
Ferrell and an incomplete pass
See Homecoming, Page 12A
prohibited Spring Hill from
12—100 Years of Red Raiders
Homecoming
Continued from Page 11
finishing with a touchdown by
Konor Heaton and a good PAT
by Manny Gonzalez. Spring
Hill had no answer for the Red
Raiders on this night.
After Spring Hill’s drive
ended in a punt, Coffee’s 12-play
drive continued from the first
quarter to the second allowing
the Red Raiders to score early
in the second quarter with
another rushing touchdown by
Heaton making the score 14-0.
Spring Hill’s next drive
ended in a punt caught by
Caiden Martin and returned to
the 4 yard-line. Caiden Martin
set up another short rushing
touchdown by Heaton for the
Red Raiders.
But the Raiders didn’t stop
there. Before the first half
came to an end, Heaton scored
another rushing touchdown
pushing Coffee’s lead 27-0.
After the Homecoming
ceremony, the game continued
on. After Spring Hill began the
second half with a turnover on
downs, Coffee’s second play
had Cole Pippenger pass to
Konor Heaton for a gain of 51
yards. This paved the way for
a touchdown by Kendall James
Congrats o
Congrats onnag reat
great
season a
season nd 1
and 00 y
100 ears o
years f
of
FOotball!
FOotball!
with 5:52 left in the quarter.
Spring Hill had no answer
for the Red Raiders as their
next drive ended in a punt.
Coffee then embarked on a 12-
play drive that reached into the
fourth quarter.
This allowed CCCHS to
score early on in the fourth
quarter pushing their lead 42-
0. The touchdown was made
from Nate Luttrell connecting
with Ashton Ferrell for a 29
yard touchdown.
Coffee County then kicked
off to Spring Hill. In a 69 yard
GoB
Go ig R
Big ed!
Red!
drive, Spring Hill scored with
3:23 left in the game. This cut
Spring Hill’s deceit and Coffee
County won with a final score
of 42-7.
With Head Coach Doug
Greene temporarily away
from the team, Defensive
Coordinator Roger Haynes is
standing in for the time being.
In a post game interview,
Haynes said, “Konor Heaton
had a great game rushing, but
he would not have done that
had it not been for all of the
offensive line. I thought they
played really well.”
Haynes continued, “We had
a very slow start on defense,
but you know, eventually we
came to life there. I thought our
secondary played well. Right.
Well, tonight linebackers got
going after the first quarter and
our D line had a slow start as
well. But, in the second half
they really came on and played
well.”
Newly crowned Homecoming
King Ashton Ferrell had a game
changing sack in the first quarter
followed by a touchdown in the
fourth surrounded by an overall
great game. When asked how
he thinks he performed Ferrell
said, “I personally felt like I had
a great night. I did make a few
small mistakes, but I fixed them
early and picked it up.”
“Overall, our team just
played ball. We didn’t go out
expecting an easy win. We
went out with respect for our
opponents because they do have
athletes that we had to pay kind
to. Even though this team didn’t
play the best that Coffee County
football is capable of.”
On Friday night Sept. 30,
Coffee County travelled to
Warren County for a chance to
move to 3-0 in region play.

Game 6: Red Raiders season takes shape
in defeating defending champions
T his is just awesome. It’s been
a long time since a big game
like this has been played here at
Carden-Jarrell. I’m so proud of
our kids. I mean, we asked them
to play at an uncommon level and
they did it.” - CCCHS Football
Head Coach Doug Greene
On Sept. 16, Coffee County
Central High School Football
hosted Lebanon- the Region 3-6A
defending Champions. The Red
Raiders defeated Lebanon in a nail
biter of 27-23. The captains for
the coin toss were Travis Martin,
Nate Luttrell, Konor Heaton, and
Clayton Proctor.
The game started With
Lebanon receiving, and scoring
“
a touchdown in only 22 seconds.
Coffee County didn’t let that stop
them. In Coffee’s first drive, Konor
Heaton scored with a good PAT
from Manny Gonzalez tying the
score 7-7.
Lebanon then had the ball,
but couldn’t punch the ball in
for a touchdown. However, the
Lebanon Blue Devils scored a field
goal that gave them a 3 point lead.
The rest of the first half was filled
with penalties and punts– but
it was the second half that truly
made the game.
In the second play of the half,
Lebanon intercepted Coffee’s
ball, and scored a few plays later
pushing the Blue Devil’s lead 17-
7. But CCCHS responded quickly
with Quarterback Cole Pippenger
scoring a touchdown for Coffee
only minutes later. The end of the
third quarter saw the Red Raiders
losing 17-14.
Lebanon came back in the
beginning of the fourth quarter,
scoring a passing touchdown with
a failed PAT. But Coffee County
answered soon after with a 51-
yard passing touchdown from
Pippenger to Jahlin Osborne.
Lebanon’s next drive saw three
incomplete passes that ended at
Coffee County’s own 46 yard line.
The Red Raiders then took over in
a drive that won the game. Heaton
scored with 52 seconds to play in
the game, winning 27 to Lebanon’s
23.
Coach Doug Greene said, “This
100 Years of Red Raiders—13
is just awesome. It’s been a long
time since a big game like this
has been played here at Carden-
when they kind of kept creeping
up, creeping up, creeping up, and
we were able to get behind them
Jarrell. I’m so proud of our kids. I a couple times. In the first half,
mean, we asked them to play at an we made some mistakes and you
uncommon level and they did it.” know, I made a bad call and gave
He continued, “You know, [Lebanon] an interception but
we had some things happen that the boys rallied, and we never, we
weren’t good, and they didn’t back never stopped believing.”
down. And we just found a way to “We’re gonna enjoy this
make plays. And I’m just, I’m just one, but we’ll go back to work
so excited for our players and our Monday, I promise you.” Greene
fans. A lot of hard work went into finished. Friday, Sept. 23, Coffee
this.” County hosted Spring Hill for
Coffee County aims to take Homecoming with a 7 p.m. kickoff.
the Region Championship, and
the Red Raiders are on the right
track to do so. Greene said, “Right
Sponsored by:
now we’re 2 and 0 region. We’re
halfway home. Our goal is to win
region. Lebanon is a very good
football team. They were ranked
as high as number three in the
state at one point. So yeah, that
puts us right where we want to be.”
“We played hard, that line was
very physical. It was a very physical
football game. Konnor Heaton ran
the ball hard. We were able to hit
Jahlin Osborne for some big plays
14—100 Years of Red Raiders

TRU E RED RA I DE R SPIRIT

 100 Years of Red Raiders—15

TRU E RED RA I DE R SPIRIT

Check out the
band featured on
page 22 and the
cheer featured
on page 23.
16—100 Years of Red Raiders
Game 7: Red Raiders spoil Warren’s Homecoming
T he Red Raiders traveled to Warren County
on Oct. 1 for their third region game. Coffee
County soundly defeated the Pioneers 34-17 at
Warren County’s Homecoming.
Warren got on the board first with their first
drive ending in a field goal. The Red Raiders
didn’t waste time in answering their opponent.
After 12 plays and 57 yards down the field,
Cole Pippenger rushed for a touchdown with a
successful PAT from Manny Gonzales.
Warren’s next drive ended in a punt, and
things continued to roll for Coffee County.
Coffee scored with only 4:08 left in the first half
of the game. This touchdown pushed CCCHS’
lead 14-3 going into the half.
The second half started out strong for
Coffee scoring fifteen seconds into the
quarter. Cole Pippenger rushed a 34 yard
touchdown. Only minutes later a Warren
fumble recovered by Brendon Sheppard gave
Coffee County the ball back allowing another
began the final quarter with an 80-yard drive
capped by their first touchdown of the game.
Three plays later, a fumble recovery gave
Warren the ball and they scored again with only
49 seconds left in the game. Coffee County’s
win was never in doubt, despite the late heroics
from the Pioneers. The Red Raiders ultimately
won 34-17 remaining undefeated in region play
holding the top region spot.
The Red Raiders were back in action Oct. 14
when they travelled to Cookeville.
Sponsored by:
touchdown a little over a minute later.
A third touchdown in the third quarter was
to follow with Konor Heaton scoring with less
than a minute on the clock.
Warren refused to go away quietly as they
 100 Years of Red Raiders—17

Game 8: Red Raiders take Region

U nder the Friday night lights on
Oct. 14, Coffee County Football
became the undefeated Region
50 yard line for their first drive
of the game. 6 plays into their
drive, Quarterback Cole Pippenger
Sponsored by:

3-6A Champions. “That was one
of the strangest games I’ve ever in
my life been a part of,” said Coach
Doug Greene. He continued, “But,
we are the undisputed first place
Region 3-6A champions.”
Kickoff for the game was at 7
o’clock in Cookeville. Captains at
the coin toss were Robbie Gilley,
Ashton Ferrell, Nate Luttrell, and
Jahlin Osborne. The Cookeville
Cavaliers began the game with the
first 12 plays of the game including
a muffed punt recovered by
Cookeville, three penalties, and a
blocked field goal.
Coffee County took over at the
rushed the ball for 21 yards putting
the Raiders in the red zone at the
11-yard line.
Konor Heaton then took the
ball even further reaching the
3-yard line when back to back
penalties against Coffee County
pushed them back to the 13 yard
line. CCCHS then opted for a
successful field goal that put them
in the lead 3-0.
Coffee carried that lead through
the second quarter to halftime.
Neither the Raiders nor Cookeville
could get much farther than the
opposing team’s 25-yard line for
the entirety of the second quarter.
As the clock ran out towards
halftime, Cookeville was sacked by
Red Raider Blayne Myers for a loss
of 8 yards pushing them back to
the 38-yard line. In the last play of
the half, Cookeville threw the ball
deep, hoping for a touchdown, but
the pass was intercepted by Caiden
Warren.
The second half began with a
Red Raider return to Coffee’s own
43-yard line. Heaton then rushed
14 yards for another first down
followed by a 43-yard touchdown
early in the third quarter with a
good PAT kicked by Manny
Gonzales.
After Cookeville’s drive ended
in a punt, chaos ensued with a
coach ejection, fumble recovery
confusion, and 3 unsportsmanlike
flags. At the end of it all, Coffee
County moved 66-yards due
See Region, Page 18

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18—100 Years of Red Raiders
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Region
Continued from Page 17
to penalties putting them at
Cookeville’s 19-yard line.
Just a few plays later,
Pippenger connected with Jahlin
Osborne resulting in a touchdown
pushing Coffee’s lead 17-0.
Cookeville answered with a 10 play
drive filled with flags ending in
Cookeville’s first touchdown of the
game towards the end of the third
quarter.
In the beginning of the fourth
quarter, Coffee made their way
toward the end zone. Pippenger’s
pass to Travis Martin landed
the Raiders at the 5-yard line.
Unfortunately for the Raiders, a
late flag called for a personal foul
pushed them back to the 20-yard
line and resulting in a turnover on
downs.
Cookeville took over at their
20-yard line. In the fourth play of
the drive, a sack from Coffee took
the ball from the 21-yard line to the
12 forcing a turnover on downs.
This allowed the Red Raiders to
take over at the 12-yard line. After
reaching the 5 and 3 yard lines,
Cookeville took possession of the
ball at their own 3-yard line.
Cookeville’s quarterback took
the snap in his own endzone but
was sacked by Jayden Carter
resulting in a safety awarding 2
points. Shortly after, the Raiders
began their next drive at their own
38.
As Coffee was getting ready
to punt, another unsportsmanlike
conduct call was made on the
sidelines, and Cookeville was
penalized 15 yards putting Coffee
at the 27-yard line. Two plays and
a flag later, Pippenger rushed for
35 yards resulting in a touchdown.
After kickoff, Cookeville
returned the ball to their own 27
to start the final drive of the game.
Two plays later, a Raider penalty
resulted in a move to Coffee’s 47-
yard line. After a few plays, Tyler
Martin intercepted the ball as it
reached the end zone preventing a
Cookeville touchdown.
As the clock ran out, Coffee
County won 26-7 and the
Red Raiders became Region
Champions.
“We talked about this a year ago
in November, and set that as a goal
and a target and this, that, and the
other. And, we did it,” said Coach
Doug Greene. He continued, “Now
we’ve still got more fish fry being
first place that guarantees it’s a
home playoff game first round,
and second round actually if we
can win the first one.”
“So yeah, Coffee County’s never
won a playoff game. And that’s
another goal of ours. We figured in
our hundredth year of football, we
need to make some history.”
Greene continued, “But these
young men, these guys they
just stayed at it. They kept their
composure through the penalties,
through all the weirdness and
managed to stay focused and
make some plays. I’m so proud of
the players and coaches.”
“Blayne Myers took over on
defense. Quarterback, made some
plays. We blocked. All was well for
the running backs in the second
half. We had some big catches that
we needed to, so it was all around,
you know, a little kicker. They did
a great job.”
Greene finished saying, “I’m
overwhelmed by the excitement
of the community. Manchester’s
such a good place full of so many
good people. I can’t think of a
better group of people to represent
and make proud.”
The Coffee County Red Raiders
travelled to Rockvale Oct. 21 for a 7
p.m. kickoff.
 100 Years of Red Raiders—19

Game 9: Coffee rolls Rockvale 35-14

T he Red Raiders traveled to
Rockvale Oct. 21 to gain their
7th win of the season. Coffee
Sponsored by:

County beat Rockvale 35-14 with

touchdowns from five different
players.
Captains for the game were
Ian Weldon, Russell Ralph, Tristin
Galy, and Darryn Strickland. With
a 7 o’clock kickoff, Coffee began
with the ball, but their first drive
After Coffee’s touchdown,
quickly turned to a punt. Rockvale
Rockvale reached the 8-yard line–
answered with a punt of their
a little too close for Red Raider
own, but Nate Luttrell blocked the
comfort, but failed to capitalize on
punt and scooped up the ball for a
their opportunity. The first half
touchdown followed by a good PAT rest of the first quarter was filled Rockvale failed to capitalize on the ended with Coffee County in the
kicked by Manny Gonzales. with missed opportunities. opportunity. Coffee then scored lead 14-7.
Rockvale followed up with The second quarter started only plays later. Konor Heaton The third quarter just saw
a 90-yard drive capped with a with Coffee County on offense, but rushed for a touchdown with 4
touchdown tying the game 7-7. The their drive ended in a blocked punt. minutes left in the half. See Game 9, Page 20
20—100 Years of Red Raiders

Game 9
Continued from Page 19
punt after punt after punt until
the Raiders scored with only 24
seconds left on the clock. Cole
Pippenger connected with Ian
Weldon for a 24-yard passing
touchdown pushing Coffee’s lead
21-7.
The Raider scored again about
four minutes into the fourth
quarter when Travis Martin
scored a passing touchdown from
Pippenger. Rockvale answered
with a touchdown of their own in
the next drive.
Coffee continued on scoring 8
plays later when Pippenger ran one
in pushing the score 35-14 which
stood till the end of the game
resulting in a Coffee County win.
Coach Greene said in a post-
game interview, “This was rough.
Lately we have had several
mistakes and I think you know, we
had a little mental letdown after
we achieved our goals last week.
They did a good job scheming us
and they really messed with my
quarterback’s reads in first half
and really gave us some problems
up front that we were able to just
that’s the thing, you know, our
guys experienced we were able to
just get one at halftime typically
offensively and we got some things
going.”
He continues, “Defensively,
kind of the same thing. We made
big plays when we had to, you
know. They answered the call
most of the night and of course,
we had that huge block punt right
at the beginning of the game with
Nate Luttrell. Now that just was
remarkable. We needed that to
give us a chance to get on our feet.”
“So I’m just tickled. You know
we’ve done a great job all year. But
again, it wasn’t our best. It wasn’t
our best game but at the same time
we found a way to win. Seven wins.
Sounds pretty good. And we’re
gonna try to keep this train rolling.”
Coffee County next hosted
Rhea County Oct. 28.

Game 10: Red Raiders blow out Rhea

County 35-0 heading into the playoffs
O n Friday Oct. 28, Coffee
County hosted Rhea County
for CCCHS Senior Night. The
Raiders won the lopsided contest
35-0.
Captains for the game were
Ashton Ferrell, Travis Martin,
Kendall James, and Robbie
Gilley. After a 7 p.m. kickoff, the
game began.
Rhea ended the first drive of
the game in a punt, but Coffee
responded with a touchdown
in their first drive. With 6
minutes left in the quarter, Cole
Pippenger scored a 27-yard
rushing touchdown. With a good
PAT by Manny Gonzalez, the
Raiders were up 7-0.
After another Rhea County
punt, Coffee took the ball back.
Play consisting of Konor Heaton
running and Pippenger to Jahlin
Osborne connections, led the
Raiders to Rhea County’s 18 to
end the quarter, setting Coffee
County up for an early second
quarter touchdown.
At the beginning of the second
quarter, a Pippenger to Osborne
passing touchdown pushed the
Raiders lead 14-0.
As Rhea County finally
got the ball back, Tristin Galy
intercepted Rhea County’s
ball at the opponent’s 47. The
second play into the new drive,
a Pippenger to Travis Martin
connection pushed the team
towards the endzone with a 26-
yard pass.
Just plays later, Pippenger
scored pushing Coffee’s lead 21-
0. Rhea County then got the ball
back when the Raider defense
forced another turnover with
See Game 10, Page 21

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Game 10
Continued from Page 20
a fumble recovery by Sahez
Fernandez. After a few Coffee
plays, the drive was capped
in a Konor Heaton rushing
touchdown. Rhea County had
the ball for the rest of the half to
no avail.
At halftime, all Friday Night
Light CCCHS senior were
recognized for Senior Night from
football players, to student trainers
and the CCCHS Band.
Coffee began the third quarter
28-0. It wasn’t until after both
teams had failed drives that Coffee
found the endzone again. Coffee
Game 11: Coffee County makes history
again winning first ever playoff game
F or the first time in Coffee
County Central High School
history, the Red Raiders won
a playoff game. After an all-
time record of 0-11, the Raiders
changed that on Friday, Nov. 4.
The game was hosted by Coffee
County which was another victory
in itself. The captains for the
game were Nate Luttrell, Kolby
McCormick, Travis Martin, and
Robbie Gilley.
The game began with the
opponent, Stewarts Creek,
receiving. After returning the
ball to their own 42-yard line,
Stewarts Creek scored in their first
play of the game with a passing
touchdown. The team scored only
20 seconds into the game, and the
home crowd’s hopes were down.
But that didn’t stop the Red
Raiders. Coffee responded with
ended their 50-yard drive with
Heaton scoring again pushing their
lead 35-0 which Coffee maintained
for the rest of the game.
In a post-game interview,
a touchdown of their own. After
several plays, Konor Heaton ran
the ball for a touchdown tying the
game 7-7.
Raider Manny Gonzales then
kicked the ball back off to Stewarts
Creek– but Stewarts Creek’s
offense didn’t last long. In the first
play, there was a fumble on the
play that was recovered by Raider
Ashton Ferrell.
Unfortunately, Coffee
County failed to capitalize on the
opportunity, Stewarts Creek took
the ball back.
After a series of plays
stretching into the second quarter,
Stewarts Creek scored an early
second quarter touchdown taking
a 14-7 lead. Coffee had no answer
for Stewarts Creek, but Stewarts
pushed forward scoring again
pushing their lead 21-7 at halftime.
100 Years of Red Raiders—21
Head Coach Doug Greene said,
“I’m excited for a lot of reasons.
I’m really glad that we can have
these great senior guys you know.
They’ve been working hard for
Coach Greene said in a post-
game interview, “We did not play
as well as we wanted to do in the
first half, but you know we went
into halftime and adjusted. And
got ourselves back together and I
knew the boys were going to make
plays and found a way to win our
first playoff game.”
The third quarter began
with the Raiders receiving. The
8-play drive was capped with a
touchdown by Konor Heaton
within the first minute of the half.
In Stewarts Creek’s next drive,
they reached Coffee’s 3-yard line
before the ball was turned over to
Tyler Martin and returned to the
20-yard line.
On the next drive, Cole
Pippenger seemed to have a 53-
yard touchdown, but it was called
back for a holding penalty. The
years and we wanted to make it a
special night.”
“And most of all we didn’t
get hurt. Nobody got injured
severely but you know we were
really focused tonight. We worked
all week on coming out physical,
focused, and executing we knew
how to throw the ball a lot better
on an intermediate route. So we
did all those things you know
about our goals and we got a lot
of momentum now going to the
playoffs.”
Coffee County made the
playoffs and would play Friday
Nov. 4 taking on Stewarts Creek
(5-5) at Carden-Jarrell.
rest of the drive was filled with
incomplete passes to a punt back
to Stewarts Creek.
The following drives just
passed possession back and forth,
until the Red Raiders tied the game
back up late in the fourth quarter
when Konor Heaton scored again.
On the next drive, Stewarts
Creek got to Coffee’s 29-yard
line when Red Raider Gage
Hoover sacked Stewarts Creek’s
quarterback and sent the game
into overtime.
In overtime, Travis Martin
was overtime captain. Coffee got
possession of the ball first when
Heaton ran the ball for a 10-yard
touchdown untouched. Raider
defense held Stewarts Creek back
after that resulting in a Coffee
See Game 11, Page 22
22—100 Years of Red Raiders

Game 11
Continued from Page 21
County playoff win of 28-21.
“I am so excited. I mean I
don’t know. There’s all ranges of
emotion,” said Head Coach Doug
Greene.
Talking through the game,
Greene said, “Well we came out.
You know they had a trick play
as the first play, and they got up
on us. The offense came back
and answered and did a good job
answering. We had a holding call
and stalled one drive.”
He continued, “At some point,
we got a little bit rattled. So,
when we came out in the second
half we decided to get into tight
so we wanted to go up tempo.
We wanted to really go fast.
They were jumping around and
confusing our blocking schemes,
so we started going fast. It really
paid off for us.”
“You know Konor Heaton ran
the ball well. We were able to slow
things down for the quarterback.
Cole Pippenger played well
tonight too but the line just took
it over. The defense, we finally
calmed them down and I knew
we had an overtime. I was like to
score we can we win in overtime.”
The Raiders hosted another
playoff game at Carden-Jarell
Field on Friday Nov. 11. Coffee
hosted Blackman (9-2) who
defeated Cookeville 49-20 in their
first round matchup.

Keeping time: Band plays crucial part during football season

A
“ game would be very boring
without the band,” says Coffee
County Band Booster Treasurer
Dana Archer.
Band performances are divided
into two seasons, marching and
concert seasons.
The marching side of things,
what the band brings to every
football game, begins for students
in July with band camp. But the
directors are, now that this school
year’s football season is over,
looking at next year’s music and
drill to learn at band camp.
Assistant band director Chase
King said that during band camp
students spend at least eight each
day learning the marching show for
the halftime show’s eight-minute
segment on the field.
Luke Simpson, Band Director,
added that the band rehearses
daily after school for several hours
to hone parts of the show.
During the season, Fridays are
long.
“It’s an 18-hour day for us,
basically,” King said.
School days start at 7 a.m.
Band members’ last period is
always band. When the bell rings
on Fridays, students begin the
45-minute long task of loading
See Band, Page 23

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The spirit behind Red Raider football
JAXEN WAGGONER
Staff Writer
B ehind every great team is
great support. The Coffee
County Red Raiders made
historic strides this year and left
a legacy to be remembered. But
what’s a victory without someone
to celebrate with you? What’s a
loss without someone to mourn
with you? What’s a newfound
legacy without someone to share
it with?
CCCHS has a host of students
that come out to every game
to cheer on the team from the
sideline, but some give even
more than school pride, dress-up
themes, and time. Coffee County
Cheer, Dance, and Student
Trainers give their all to support
the Red Raiders every single
Friday night– no matter how far,
Band
Continued from Page 22
instruments, equipment, props
(including a pirate ship with
cannons this year) and stands on
to the tractor trailer.
Then the kids are back at 5:30
p.m. to warm up for the Friday
night game. The cheerleaders,
dance team and band then perform
the Raider Walk around 6:30 p.m.
There’s the National Anthem, fight
song and forming the tunnel to
welcome the football team onto
the field.
During the first, second and
fourth quarters, the band will play
stands tunes to keep the crowd
going.
For the show, it’s a matter of
devastating, or celebratory.
Raiderette Dance Captain
Audrey Barton shares, “For
football season, the dance team
attends all games, both home
and away, to cheer on the players
and get fans excited for the
game. To prepare, we spend
much of our summer practices
on learning sideline routines, so
they become muscle memory by
the time the season starts.”
Likewise, Leah Kate Sullivan
reveals some of her favorite
sideline routines, “The dance
team prepares for football by
learning all of our band dances,
such as our Fight Song, Hey
Baby, and many more.”
Cheerleader Mallory Rogers
shares the same sentiment
saying, “We are in charge of
getting the crowd pumped up
before and during the games.
memorizing where to be on the
field, chorography of the show, all
the while playing a song.
“It’s a lot of time commitment,
a lot of work,” King said. “They put
in a lot of work.”
“Depending on where (the away
game is), we might get back by 11
p.m. and then have to unload after
that,” King said. “The next day,
there are competitions. This year
we did three…always on Saturday,
and that’s at least a 12-hour day.”
Behind the scenes are band
boosters, parents who volunteer
to feed, make sets, help fundraise
and even make last-minute saves
if a wardrobe goes awry. These
parents are working concessions
during each game.
100 Years of Red Raiders—23
We cheer for every game home
and away and we are responsible
for getting all of our things ready
for kickoff. We practice Monday-
Thursday to get ready for Friday
night. At these practices we
learn new cheers and skills to
showcase at the games.”
Another cheerleader
Addison Vanwinkle tells their
responsibilities at the game, “Not
only do we cheer our football
team to victory, cheering also
leads the crowd to be involved in
the game making the experience
better for everyone.”
Both of the spirit teams spend
time throughout their week and
summer preparing for the season
to begin, but the story is different
for student trainers. The student
trainers are not only required at
every game, but every practice.
Student trainer Holden Shew
“We open early before the
games,” Archer said. “There are
a lot of people there very early
before the game starts and they
want food. We keep serving until
the end of the game. Then we close
up, clean up and a lot of time the
parents who are working in the
concession stands are some of the
last ones out.”
The boosters are the wheels
of the band, often quite literally,
booking a driver to haul the school’s
semi to games.
“We try to keep everything
organized and running smoothly,”
Archer said.
“We want the Friday night
crowd to see it and love it, Simpson
said. “We also want to give the
reveals information regarding
practice responsibilities sharing,
“There’s a lot to do for football.
We have to pre-wrap them before
practice, which takes roughly 15,
20 minutes. Just depends on
who comes in there. Normally
we have to tape ankles and then
wrists and thumbs most of the
time.
He continued saying, “And
while they’re practicing, we
have some people come in, do
exercises if they’re injured for
10, 15 minutes, 20 minutes max.
Then after, you know, seeing
them again, getting ice, cutting
the wrap off, and just how they’re
doing overall.”
No matter what difficulty
cheer, dance, or student trainers
faced, they all have one thing
in common: their love for Red
Raider Football.
students something to chew on –
something to work on, build on and
really increase their ability, their
musical technique and marching
technique.”
King said that music comes
first, marching second.
“It makes a difference to the
kids…when they feel like people
are there at the games to see
them…it makes a huge difference
to the morale of those students.
We’ve had a really enthusiastic
home crowd this year. The kids
have really noticed that and I think
it makes a huge difference. They
are a lot more motivated when they
know that the people at home want
to see us and enjoy what we’re
doing,” Simpson said.
24—100 Years of Red Raiders
Game 12: Red Raiders historic
season comes to an end
U nder the Friday night lights
on Nov. 11, the Coffee County
Red Raiders fell to Blackman in
the second round of the playoff
tournament. Although they lost
their final game, the 2022 Raiders
made history winning the Coffee
Pot, becoming Undefeated Region
Champions, winning their first
ever playoff game, and achieving
an overall 9 wins– the most wins
since 1969.
The Nov. 11 game saw Darryn
Strickland, Ashton Ferrell, Konor
Heaton, and Travis Martin
as captains for the game. With
a 7 o’clock kickoff, the game
commenced.
Things looked up for the
Raiders at the start. After
beginning the game with a
Blackman drive ending with
a punt, Coffee answered with a
Tristin Galy touchdown just
minutes into the game.
Blackman began to respond,
but was interrupted by Coffee
when Tyler Martin intercepted
a Blackman pass taking the ball
back for Coffee County. The
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following Raider drive stretched
into the second quarter.
The beginning of the second
quarter started at Blackman’s
3-yard line with Coffee County
possession. However, after a flag
took a Heaton touchdown back,
the Red Raiders opted for a field
goal pushing their lead 10-0.
Blackman finally got moving
late in the second quarter, and
scored two touchdowns taking a 14-
10 lead. One touchdown included
Blackman scoring on an 83-yard
completion from Jack Risner to
Justin Brown.
Coffee answered with a Konor
Heaton touchdown taking a 17-14
lead at halftime.
After halftime, Coffee ended
their first drive with a punt while
Blackman capitalized on the
opportunity to get ahead, scoring
to take the lead. The Raiders just
couldn’t find their way as Blackman
continued to dominate, scoring a
92-yard rushing touchdown in the
beginning of the fourth quarter.
Coffee finally answered with
a touchdown of their own, but a
petit
ive
Com ing
P r ic
failed two point conversation.
Right after, Caiden Martin stripped
the ball from Blackman and took
the ball to score a touchdown for
the Raiders.
The late lead just wasn’t enough
as Blackman was able to score
what would be the game winning
touchdown, securing the win 35-
31.
In a post-game interview, Head
Coach Doug Greene said, “Yeah we
came out played very physical and
we played hard, played fast. The
defense came out, played great, got
a stop and we were able to put it
in the endzone. Got the ball back
again, and we got a holding penalty
that held us back but we got up at
two scores 10-0.”
He continued, “You know they
scored quickly. Blackman had a
couple big plays. We felt like we
were in a good spot at half time.
We wanted to be. And you know
we had a chance there at the end.
We can get it in the endzone, we go
to the third round which is all I can
ask for. It gives a chance to win and
then we just were one place short.”
“I mean Caiden Martin got that
strip there at the end and we scored.
Got the two point conversion. We
did a lot of great things tonight. So
proud of this team.”
“You know these seniors, they
were freshmen and we kind of grew
up with them. They’ve changed and
they’ve changed the way people
look at football here in this town.
They’ve given us some excitement.
They’ve grown as young men, and
I am so proud of them.”
“I’m proud for our
community. Thank you for
the showing and support all
year. I promise you we all
did our very best we could do
tonight, and we aren’t going
to leave any regrets on the
field.”
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100 years of Red Raider Football:
A legacy on the field
NATHAN HAVENNER
Staff writer
F or many, Coffee County Red
Raider football brings to
mind words like “community,”
“tradition” and of course the
legendary “Coffee Pot” game.
These words have never been
more evident than during the 2022
football season, as the Manchester
community celebrates 100 years of
Red Raider Football.
Coffee County Central High
School Principal Paul Parsley,
himself a Red Raider alum,
said it is great to see how the
community has come together to
commemorate this milestone.
“Celebrating 100 years of
football in Coffee County at our
high school gives me a sense
of pride in the community, it is
rewarding to see so many former
players at games this year,” Parsley
said.
Parsley said that while the
community consistently shows
support for its Red Raider athletes,
there is something special about a
100th anniversary.
“Any football season you can
have former athletes, people that
just have a vested interest come,
but when it is 100 years you feel it
more and people just take a little
more interest,” he said.
The district commemorated
the milestone anniversary with
a Homecoming game worthy of
the occasion, with former football
players and cheerleaders returning
to Carden Jarrell Field in droves.
A custom video was also
played before home football
games throughout the season,
featuring Mike Keith, the voice of
the Tennessee Titans. The video
showcases highlights from the past
100 years of Red Raider athletics.
“In the video there are fathers
and sons and grandfathers, even,”
Parsley said. “It is just really cool.”
Ed Henley, a 1954 graduate
of Coffee County Central High
School, was one of several former
high school football players to
return for the 2022 Homecoming
game. Henley was joined by fellow
class of 1954 graduate and former
teammate Alden Evans for the
game.
“I brought my 1953 CTC
Championship jacket down and
wore it,” Henley said.
Henley, who first played in
a junior football league before
joining the high school team in
1950, said Tullahoma has always
been the Red Raiders’ biggest
rivals.
Henley said Coffee County
Central High School brought
home the iconic Coffee Pot trophy
during his senior year. The annual
tradition pits Manchester and
Tullahoma, the two largest cities
in Coffee County, against each
other for a trophy in the form of a
golden coffee pot.
“I played in the Tullahoma
game and they put me to kicking
and we faked it and I ran quite
a few yards that day,” Henley
remembered.
Now nearly 70 years removed
from his playing days, Henley said
the best memories of his time as
100 Years of Red Raiders—25
a Coffee County football player
are the friendships with his fellow
players and the coaches.
Henley said his coaches were
the late L.D. Carden and Red
Jarrell.
“They played in college together
and they were the coaches for my
sophomore, junior and senior
years,” he said.
Henley said he still tries to go
to every Red Raider home game,
and has enjoyed seeing how the
game and players have evolved
through the years.
“The players have become
much bigger and they train much
better… and their quickness,”
Henley said. “If you have speed
you can do a lot of things in football
or track or anything else.”
Another thing that is
apparent to Henley is the way the
Manchester and Coffee County
community still come together to
support their football team.
“They are great supporters
and the more they win the more
support they get,” Henley said.
“Everybody loves a winner and
Coach Greene has done a great
job out there for the last couple of
years. The speed, the finesse of a
player now is most important.”
Chris Elam, who played for the
Red Raiders between 1994 and
1998, said it is great to see the
community celebrate the football
programs 100th anniversary of
Red Raider Football, and know
that he is a part of that tradition.
“The friendship and the bond
you have, older Red Raiders and
current Red Raiders, it is kind of
like you are all one big family, you
played ball there,” Elam said.
Elam said he played middle
school football, and knew going
into high school that he wanted
to play football for the high school
team.
“I played in middle school
and you went to the games when
you were in middle school and
elementary school, and just
growing up and seeing old players
and them being your heroes and
always wanting to be that person
growing up,” he said.
Elam said he still goes to every
game that he can, and was also on
hand for the 2022 Homecoming
game that brought together so
many former players.
“Everybody was back and it
was great to see all the old timers
that you heard about when you
were a kid growing up to the
ones that just graduated a couple
years ago,” Elam said. “I played
college ball and all that, but there
is nothing better than coming
back to your hometown where
you know people and everybody is
pretty much a family.”
Elam said he enjoyed
connecting with those that played
or coached football during different
time periods, and hearing how
the game has changed over the
decades.
“It is really something special,”
he said. “There is nothing like
Friday night lights, playing for your
home town, people that you know
and people that you love. There is
nothing better than a good Friday
night home football game.”
26—100 Years of Red Raiders

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