The Division II-AA BlueCross Bowl State Championship is set. It will feature two teams that are extremely familiar with one another and won’t be planning on sending each other Christmas cards. This will be a rematch of last year’s title game that Lipscomb won and the semifinal the year before that CPA won. These teams have seen each other already this year with Lipscomb winning at CPA in the regular season 43-21. Lipscomb and CPA battle it out for the championship title on Thursday, December 1 at 11am in Chattanooga.
Lipscomb Mustangs
MaxPreps Tennessee Rank: 1 (15th Nationally)
Head Coach: Trent Dilfer (41-10 in 4th year at Lipscomb)
2022 Record: 12-0
District Record: 5-0
2021 Record: 12-1, Beat CPA for state title
All Time Playoff Record: 64-27
After beating CPA earlier in the regular season, Coach Dilfer told this team that they are the best team Tennessee has ever seen. So far, they have the numbers and the players (five in 247’s top 50 recruits in Tennessee for this season, and the number one and two players for next year) to back it up, but if they don’t win the state title it would be hard to make that case. That’s a lot of pressure to put on high school kids, but this team was built for it. They are a nationally ranked juggernaut filled with SEC recruits and they are chomping at the bit to go out there and get the job done after winning their last two playoff games by a combined 101 points.
CPA Lions
MaxPreps Tennessee Rank: 12
Head Coach: Ingle Martin (136-32 in 12th year at CPA)
2022 Record: 8-5
District Record: 3-2
2021 Record: 11-3, lost to Lipscomb in state title game
All Time Playoff Record: 61-20
Coach Martin and his Lions earned their fifth straight trip to the DII-AA title game. This is an experienced program that will not back down from this fight. This team overcame adversity this season after going 2-3 in the month of September by bouncing back and beating The Oakland Patriots who will be playing in the 6A title game on Saturday. They know they have what it takes, because they played Lipscomb closer than the final score indicated in the regular season. They just made too many mistakes in the end.
Final Thoughts
While I would never completely count out CPA and Coach Martin, especially in a rivalry AND title matchup, Lipscomb is a different animal this season. They are a predator locked in on a mission and standing in their way is a bad idea. I think if CPA plays mistake free this one is closer than Mustang fans are comfortable with in the fourth quarter but eventually the talent of Lipscomb is undeniable.
Lipscomb 42 CPA 31
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