Colorado football commit Andre Adams was less that 50 yards away from TSSAA football history on Oct. 23. Then the Antioch senior quarterback knee buckled.
Sitting at 12,353 all-purpose yards coming into the Bears game against Clarksville on Oct. 23, Adams needed 360 total yards to surpass Jackson Trinity Christian's Kyle Akin's 12,713 total yards (2011-2014) to become the TSSAA football career total yardage record holder.
On a QB keep in the fourth quarter, he was tackled and stayed down. Adams took a second to pop up and after a few jumps on the sideline was ready to get back in. His first play back, Adams threw a 37-yard touchdown pass to Jermoine Busby, breaking the record and then some.
Adams finished with 379 total yards on the night, to move him to 12,732 yards in his career. He not only made history, but gave Antioch a 26-7 win over Clarksville (6-3, 4-1 Region 5-6A) to win the region title.
"Andre is a generational talent," Antioch coach Arcentae Broome said. "He's a program changer."
Adams called his own play on the record breaking score. Antioch offensive coordinator Kenny Adams – Andre's dad – said that the coaching staff was calling for a run play. The QB waved them off and went for it all.
"I've been telling him this since he was a kid in youth ball that you better not change the play I give you. If you do, you better score," Kenny said. "He's in not trouble at all. That was good play call by him."
When asked if Andre was going for the record on the touchdown pass he said that he was just trying to score.
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What happened after was an eruption of celebration. Broome called a timeout as his quarterback was stormed by his teammates, coaches, friends and family. At one point, his little sister had found him and was holding his hand as he walked to the bench.
Andre said that he doesn't remember much of it. The record or celebrations were never on his mind. Buzzer to buzzer, it had been about winning the game. Both Broome and Kenny agreed that Andre was the last person in the stadium to knew that he had broken the record.
"It was a more important game because we had to get back from last year, but I'm always focused on the game," Andre said. "The record wasn't on my mind."
Last season, the Bears (9-0, 5-0 Region 5-6A) were in the same situation, minus the state record, and lost. Clarksville came away with a 25-14 win to clinch the region title and snap Antioch's perfect record. Adams was laser focused in making sure that wasn't going to happen again, throwing for three of Antioch's four touchdowns.
And Antioch's 9-0 record is the first in school history.
There it is. 12,723 career yards unofficially on that 37-yard touchdown pass from @Andre_Adams10 to Jermoine Busby.
— Jack Williams (@jackgwilliams) October 24, 2026
4Q | 5:59 | 26-7 Antioch pic.twitter.com/NKavqKSGIq
"Last year, we ended up beating ourselves," Andre said. "It was a good Clarksville team, but we shot ourself in the football multiple times. This year we corrected a lot of mistakes."
Defense was the focus this week for Antioch as Broome said the team got "beat up" by Clarksville last season. Through the majority of the game, the Bears kept the shutout bid alive before Clarksville running back Ahvare Galbreath ripped off a 41-yard rushing score in the fourth quarter.
Reach The Tennessean's high school writer, Jack Williams at jackwilliams@theleafchronicle.com and on the X platform @jackgwilliams.
This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: How Colorado commit Andre Adams made TSSAA, Antioch football history against Clarksville