Baylor Advances With 49-35 Win Over Catholic - Baylor School (2024)

Football | 11/18/2023 7:30:00 AM

Shekhai Mills-Knight Scores Three TDs To Lead Red Raider Victory

The rematch that all football fans have been hoping for is now official.

The battle between arch-rivals Baylor and McCallie is now set for 7 p.m. on Thursday, November 30 at Finley Stadium for the Division II-AAA state football championship, but the rematch wins for both of these teams wasn't nearly as easy as the first time around.

Baylor had beaten Knox Catholic by 42-0 just three weeks ago, but had to battle for all they were worth at Heywood Stadium/E.B. "Red" Etter Field before advancing with a 49-35 victory that more resembled a track meet than a state semifinal football contest.

McCallie had blanked Montgomery Bell Academy 35-0 earlier but had to come from behind to advance with a 33-15 win over the Big Red at Spears Stadium.

It was an offensive explosion on both sides as Baylor finished with 529 total yards to 442 for the Fighting Irish.

Baylor never trailed, but every time the Red Raiders scored, Catholic came right back to even the score.

It was 21-21 at halftime and 28-28 when the third quarter ended, but Baylor made more plays in the final 12 minutes to win and improve to 11-2 on the season with its sixth straight win.

Baylor coach Erik Kimrey knew that the rematch with the Fighting Irish would be a battle for 48 minutes and he was right.

"We're excited and honored to face McCallie again at Finley in 13 days for the state championship," Kimrey said amongst a group of Baylor well-wishers following the game.

"I'm really proud of my guys as I told you before the game that it would be a real battle and it was. And even when the score was tied at 28 when the third quarter ended, I thought we dominated from then on and never panicked," the Baylor leader added.

Knox Catholic coach Steve Matthews, who was a quarterback for Tennessee back in his college days, couldn't have been any happier with the way his kids battled.

"This isn't the outcome we wanted, but I couldn't be any more proud of the way you played and how we've come since the beginning of the season," he told his players following the game.

"Things didn't go the way we wanted tonight, but we proved that we can play with anyone," he added.

Baylor's offense has been explosive all season and it was once again in this latest game. Quarterback Whit Muschamp has been spectacular as have his number-one receiver Amari Jefferson.

It took all of 31 seconds for Baylor to grab the lead as Muschamp completed his first pass of eight yards to Max LeBlanc before hooking up with a wide-open Jefferson for a 50-yard TD.

Muschamp completed 18 of 21 passes for 334 yards and five touchdowns while Jefferson was his usual outstanding self with seven catches for 144 and three touchdowns, but it was junior running back Shekai Mills-Knight who stole the show this week.

He led the Baylor ground game with 161 yards on 18 carries while scoring on runs of 13 and 30 yards, but he also caught two passes for 68 yards, including a 61-yarder from Muschamp that put Baylor up 42-28 with 5:32 to play.

His 30-yard run just two minutes later was just a little icing on the cake that extended the lead to 49-28.

The Fighting Irish came back and scored one final touchdown, but it was way too little and too late to make a difference.

"My offensive line opened some big holes for me tonight while Zane Restelli had a huge block on that touchdown pass," the slender junior said following the game.

"But this was a great team win for us and we're ready to move on to the next one," he added.

Baylor's defense, which has also been really good this fall, did a lot of bending, but never broke. An interception by Tyler Rice early in the third quarter may have been the turning point in the game.

The Fighting Irish received the second-half kickoff and had moved from the Baylor 47 down to the 18 before quarterback Jayden Neal was sacked for a 10-yard loss.

Then on second and 20 from the 28, Neal made a bad choice as he threw into good Baylor coverage in the end zone that Rice intercepted.

That may have been a 14-point swing, but it didn't take Baylor long to take advantage as an 80-yard drive needed less than two minutes before Mills-Knight scored on a run from the 13 to put Baylor up for good.

Joshua Hampton added a second interception for the Red Raiders in the final minute when the outcome had long been determined.

Neal has a spectacular performance for the Irish as he completed 29 passes for 323 yards and five touchdowns.

Braylen Harmon, who led Irish rushers with 54 yards on 14 carries, also had eight catches for 97 yards. King had six grabs for 86 yards while Grayson Goodale added 78 yards on seven catches before getting hurt in the second half.

KNOX CATHOLIC 7 14 7 7 -- 35

BAYLOR 14 7 7 21 -- 49

BAY – Amari Jefferson 50 pass from Whit Muschamp (Cooper Keown kick), 11:29 left in first;

KC – Tyreek King 26 pass from Jayden Neal (Gavin Menard kick), 9:00 left in first;

BAY – Jefferson 20 pass from Muschamp (Keown kick), 6:18 left in first;

KC – Quincy Pannell 6 pass from Neal (Menard kick), 10:22 left in second;

BAY – Max LeBlanc 34 pass from Muschamp (Keown kick), 8:31 left in second;

KC – Connor Ruth 5 pass from Neal (Menard kick), 3:51 left in second;

BAY – Shekai Mills-Knight 13 run (Keown kick), 7:04 left in third;

KC – Braylen Harmon 36 pass from Neal (Menard kick), 2:57 left in third;

BAY – Jefferson 39 pass from Muschamp (Keown kick), 7:50 left in fourth;

BAY – Mills-Knight 61 pass from Muschamp (Keown kick), 5:32 left in fourth;

BAY – Mills-Knight 30 run (Keown kick), 3:27 left in fourth;

KC – Pannell 9 pass from Neal (Menard kick), 1:14 left in fourth.

TEAM STATS: CATHOLIC BAYLOR

FIRST DOWNS28 21

RUSHES-YARDS34-119 25-195

PASSING YARDS323 334

TOTAL YARDS442 529

PASSES (Com-Att-Int)29-50-2 18-21-0

PENALTIES-YARDS3-30 8-77

FUMBLES-LOST0-0 0-0

PUNTS-AVERAGE2-42.0 0-0

INDIVIDUAL STATS:

CATHOLIC RUSHING:Braylen Harmon 14 for 54 yards; Jayden Neal 7 for 46; Grayson Goodale 10 for 17.

CATHOLIC RECEIVING:Braylen Harmon 8 for 97 yards and one TD; Grayson Goodale 7 for 78; Tyreek King 6 for 86 yards and one TD; Quincy Pannell 4 for 32 and two TDs.

CATHOLIC PASSING:Jayden Neal 29 of 50 for 323 yards, five TDs and two interceptions.

BAYLOR RUSHING:Shekai Mills-Knight 18 for 161 yards and two TDs; Amari Jefferson 1 for 18.

BAYLOR RECEIVING:Amari Jefferson 7 for 144 yards and three TDs; Max LeBlanc 8 for 119 and one TD; Shekai Mills-Knight 2 for 68 and one TD.

BAYLOR PASSING:Whit Muschamp 18 of 21 for 334 yards, five TDs and no interceptions.

RECORDS:Baylor 11-2; Catholic 7-6.