Football Game Preview: Knoxville Central Bobcats vs. Karns Beavers

The Knoxville Central Bobcats will take on the Karns Beavers on Friday. The last three games Knoxville Central has played have been within three points, so don't be surprised if it's a close one.

On Friday, in a tight matchup that could have gone either way, Knoxville Central made off with a 40-39 victory over William Blount.

Kaden Long

Passing Yards (Career)

10/24/25 vs William Blount	423
09/26/25 @ Powell	411
09/05/25 vs West	376
10/03/25 @ McMinn County	301
08/29/25 @ Fulton	273

Knoxville Central's win was the result of several impressive offensive performances. One of the most notable came from Kaden Long, who threw for 423 yards and four TDs while completing 72% of his passes. Those 423 passing yards gave Long a new career-high. Jaedyn Harris helped Long out on the ground, rushing for 78 yards and a pair of scores on only nine carries, while also picking up 30 receiving yards.

Knoxville Central didn't go easy on the quarterback and picked off two passes before the game was over. The picks came courtesy of Kaylin Chesney and Jahlyn Woods.

Meanwhile, after soaring to 51 points the game before, Karns was a bit more limited in their contest on Friday. They were beaten by West 45-7. The defeat continues a trend for the Beavers in their meetings with the Rebels: they've now lost five in a row.

Despite the loss, Karns saw an underclassman step up: sophomore Cameron George rushed for 127 yards.

Knoxville Central's win was their third straight at home, which pushed their record up to 7-2. Those home victories came thanks in part to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 40.0 points over those games. As for Karns, their defeat dropped their record down to 3-6.

The upcoming game will be a clash of competing strengths. Knoxville Central has relied on air attacks this season and has averaged 296.8 passing yards per game. Karns, on the other hand, has relied on a stout run game: they average 191.9 rushing yards per game. So which strategy will prevail on Friday? There's only one way to find out.