farragutpress

Storylines to watch in 2026

January 14, 2026 by Jake Nichols

As the calendar flips to 2026, there are plenty of questions to answer and championships to seek.

One of those questions lies at Webb, where George Quarles has taken over the Spartans’ football program.

“I’m really excited to be back in East Tennessee and the Knoxville area,” Quarles told the farragutpress. “Also glad to be back in high school football. It’s a fresh start, not just for Webb but for me.”

The Farragut Middle School dance team will be seeking its fifth straight national title in Junior High Pom this year while the middle and high school dance teams will seek back-to-back state titles in jazz. The same goes for the FMS cheer squad, which won a state championship in the large division.

The Hardin Valley boys soccer team will be looking for its second straight state title, while the same goes for the HVA boys golf team and the CAK girls golf program.

Both Webb programs will be looking for similar finishes after ending on strong notes last year, and the Bearden Lady Bulldogs will be seeking vengeance in Class 4A basketball with a push for a fifth state title in six years in soccer.

“We return a really strong core group,” BHS coach Ryan Radcliffe said. “I think only three of our starters were seniors. So seven returners out of our starting group. I also think we have a really strong freshmen class coming in that I’m extremely excited about.

“It will be tough to replace the scoring output of Tyler Roth and Jayla Blue, but I think we’ll still have a really strong core group returning.”

FHS baseball will be looking for a fifth straight state title this spring. The Ads will be operating without longtime ace Cole Draper, but they return plenty of experience in 2026.

“Even though we’ve had success the last four years, our goal doesn’t really change,” second-year coach Garrett Copeland said. “We return a lot of the same guys that are coming back to play this year. I think we’ll have to fill a void on the pitching staff with (Draper) gone, but we have talented players who will fill that just fine.”

The Farragut Middle School softball program, Farragut Middle School cheer program and West Valley Middle girls basketball program will all be looking to go back-to-back as well.

In swimming, Hardin Valley senior Hayden Hall and Bearden junior Sarah Griffith will look for more gold after winning it all in the 200-yard freestyle and 1-meter dive, respectively.

FHS will look for another state title in track under new coach Charles Bell, while the cross country program features a new coach in Garrett Jones.

Also, Webb will look for a 4-peat at the Division II-AA state championships in cross country.

In other football news, Concord Christian will be looking to build off its first-ever playoff appearance and How the West was Won title, while Bearden looks to build off an 0-9 campaign. At FHS, the Admirals will be looking to build off a 3-8 season in Geoff Courtney’s second season.

The Webb girls soccer program will be looking to avenge two straight District II-AA championship losses, both to Baylor, while the Hardin Valley football program will seek to build off its first .500 or better season since 2018.

CAK will be pushing for even more history after capturing its first Division II-A playoff win in school history last year, while Hardin Valley’s flag football program is looking to pull another state title in a sport that is relatively new to the area.

Finally, the Heidi’s Gymnastics team placed third out of 40 teams at Nationals, while the Village Green swim team won its first title since 2011.