The Sevier County High School football team conjured up all sorts of magical moments during a 21-game win streak, one that started in August of 2024 during its run to a 15-0 championship season and then continued into this fall.

So when the Smoky Bears — down two points to visiting Grace late in the fourth quarter on Friday night — stopped its opponent on downs with 2 minutes, 28 seconds remaining, they looked poised to pull off yet another comeback.

But despite motoring down the field in a hurry near the red zone, Sevier County’s magic ran out.

Junior quarterback Cooper Newman tossed a desperation 50-yard heave into the end zone after escaping a would-be sack, and the fourth-down pass fell incomplete.

Grace ran out the final 46 seconds to clinch the 33-31 win, snapping the run of wins by the defending 5A state champion and top-ranked team this week in Class 5A.

“What a big night for Grace Christian Academy,” head coach Justin Price told 5Star Preps media partner 99.1 FM. “Our team is resilient. We faced some adversity earlier in the year, losing (running back) Terrion Thomas, who is kind of our do-it-all, Mr. Everything. These last two weeks, we’ve lost close games to two really good opponents — one being (coach) Gary Rankin (and Boyd-Buchanan) last week.

“I feel like our kids tonight in that fourth quarter made some plays that really gave us the best chance to win this game against an unreal team.”

Cooper Brayman went 16-for-22 passing for Grace for 183 yards and a touchdown.

Jace Ballard ran 12 times for 56 yards and two TDs and caught 10 passes for 131 yards. He also tossed a 42-yard pass on a trick play.

Both Ballard and Javey Stinson proved hard to tackle for Sevier County (6-1), relentlessly pressing for more yards after contact and slipping out of defenders’ grasps. Stinson ran 20 times for 92 yards and two touchdowns for the Rams (5-2).

Grace led 33-24 with 7:47 to play after an 8-yard scoring run by Ballard.

“You’ve got to get creative when you’re playing against Sevier County,” Coach Price said. “Our offensive line has played well all year. We had all five starters back from last year. Javey Stinson and Jace Ballard, once they get the football, they’re so electric.

“They ran so hard tonight.”

Newman connected with Bryson Headrick, though, on a 40-yard bomb just 34 seconds later to trim the deficit to two. Newman passed for 284 yards and three scores.

And on Sevier County’s final drive, he and Parker Newman connected twice for gains of 12 and 9 yards to get the momentum going. Then tailback Nathan Patterson ripped off a 14-yard run to the Grace 35 with 1:37 remaining.

The Rams’ defense came up with a big sack on Newman two plays later that pushed the line of scrimmage back to the Grace 44.

After an incomplete pass, Sevier County faced fourth-and-19 from the 44. Newman almost got sacked again, but escaped the chase of Grace’s Braxton Kennedy for long enough to sail one downfield.

But the pass intended for Headrick was well-guarded by three Grace players.

“When things go bad, I feel like elite teams respond the right way,” Price said. “I feel like, tonight, that’s what we got to see about Grace was: we were coming in on a two-game losing streak and we were playing against the No. 1 team in 5A. When things didn’t go our way, our kids kept bouncing back and continued to play hard and make plays.”

NEXT UP:

Grace Christian plays at CAK (5-2) on Oct. 17 for the No. 2 spot in the Division II-AA East standings.

Sevier County will welcome Tennessee High (5-3) for a Region 1-5A contest.

Article written by Jesse Smithey/5Star Preps. To read more on area high school sports or to see photo galleries, videos, stat leaders, etc, visit 5StarPreps.com — and use promo code New2025 for 30% off your first year or month subscription.

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