Meet our Pearl-Cohn football all-time team, including John Henderson and Barion Brown

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The Pearl-Cohn football program has won three state championships since 1996 and finished state runner-up four times, including in 2025.

It takes talented players to establish that type of winning tradition and the Firebirds have had plenty over the years. Many have gone on to also enjoy successful college football careers and some played in the NFL.

The Tennessean went back and looked at every Firebirds team since the school's football program began in 1983 and named the all-time Pearl-Cohn football team (the player's senior season is in parentheses):

OFFENSE

Deaunte Mason

Quarterback (2007)

Mr. Football ... 2,375 passing yards and 1,052 rushing yards as a senior with 35 total touchdowns ... member of The Tennessean's inaugural Dandy Dozen ... signed with Kentucky, where he played one season before transferring to Alabama A&M, where he started three straight seasons.

Santonio Beard

Running back (1998)

Two-time Mr. Football ... helped lead the Firebirds to back-to-back state championships ... rushed for more than 5,600 career yards and 104 TDs as a three-year starter ... played at Alabama where he rushed for a total of 1,514 yards and 16 TDs over two seasons.

Ke'Shawn Vaughn

Running back (2015)

Mr. Football ... back-to-back 2,000-yard rushing seasons and a total of 75 TDs ... averaged 11.5-yards per carry as a senior ... Tennessean All-Midstate first team as a senior, second team as a junior ... led Firebirds to the Class 4A semifinals in 2014 and finals in 2015 ... Tennessee Gatorade Player of the Year ... No. 12 on Tennessean Dany Dozen ... signed with Illinois and transferred to Vanderbilt where he became the Commodores' fifth all-time leading rusher with 2,272 yards in two seasons ... third-round NFL Draft pick by Tampa Bay ... played in the 2021 Super Bowl.

Barion Brown

Wide receiver (2021)

Mr. Football ... Tennessean All-Midstate first team as a senior, second team as a junior ... 25 catches for 372 yards with four TDs and rushed for 756 yards on 62 carries and seven TDs as a senior ... 4-star prospect ... also played quarterback, running back, defensive back and kick returner ... also won five individual track state titles ... played at Kentucky (2022-24) and LSU (2025) and finished his career second in NCAA history with six kickoffs returned for TDs (SEC record) ... sixth-round NFL draft pick by the New Orleans Saints in 2026.

Rontavius Groves

Wide Receiver (2015)

Two-time Tennessean All-Midstate ... Region 5-4A offensive MVP ... 105 catches, 2,290 yards and 33 TDs over his junior and senior seasons ... led Firebirds to the Class 4A finals ... played five seasons at North Carolina (41 catches, 474 yards, 1 TD) then finished his college career at Texas State in 2021.

Joel Johnson

Fullback (1990)

Played fullback but was also one of the top rushers in Metro in his junior and senior seasons ... rushed for more than 1,000 yards in 1989 and 1990 ... had 236 yards on 35 carries and scored four TDs in a 30-26 win over Chattanooga Howard.

William Griffin-Parker

Offensive line (2020)

Two-time Tennessean All-Midstate ... three-star prospect ... anchored offensive line that averaged 341.8 total yards and 40.1 points per game ... 6-foot-6, 315 pounds ... signed with Tennessee then transferred to UAB after his freshman season.

Jarrett Harris

Offensive line (1993)

Praised by longtime Pearl-Cohn coach Maurice Fitzgerald for his excellent technique, which included, "coming off the ball real low and explosive." ... also started on the defensive line ... all-region ... 6-2, 250 pounds ... signed with Tennessee State.

JaDarious Lee

Offensive line (2021)

Tennessean All-Midstate ... a dominating force at left tackle ... anchored the line that helped Pearl-Cohn go undefeated in the regular season and advance to the quarterfinals of the 4-A playoffs ... signed with Florida International, where he has started every game since the start of his junior season in 2025.

Joey Martin

Offensive line (1998)

All-State ... Tennessean All-Midstate ... also played defensive guard .... started as a junior on the 1997 state championship team ... instrumental in helping running back Santonio Beard rush for 2,432 yards and 38 TDs in 1998 ... committed to Carson-Newman.

Albert Washington

Offensive line (1997)

All-State ... at 6-1, 320 pounds, Washington was one of the biggest, strongest players in Metro ... played in the Down Under Bowl in Australia and the Tennessee East-West Shrine All-Star Game ... played at Carson-Newman.

Jimmyrious Parker

Athlete (2017)

Mr. Football finalist ... two-time Tennessean All-Midstate ... 2,340 all-purpose yards and led the Firebirds to the Class 3A semifinals as a senior ... set the school record (tied for second in TSSAA history) for longest run from scrimmage at 91 yards vs. Knoxville Catholic ... signed with Austin Peay where he moved to wide receiver and kick returner. Also played at Western Illinois and Tennessee Tech.

DEFENSE

John Henderson

Defensive line (1997)

Mr. Football ... Tennessean Defensive Player of the Year ... 6-8, 280 pounds ... 150 career tackles and 32 sacks ... led Firebirds to back-to-back state championships ... Firebirds recorded six shutouts his senior year ... played at Tennessee where he was the Outland Trophy Award winner and a two-time All-American ... ninth overall pick in the 2002 NFL Draft by Jacksonville Jaguars ... played 10 years in the NFL ... inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2025.

Kevin Holmes

Defensive line (1990)

Tennessean All-Midstate first team ... earned the Steve Andrus Memorial Award, which goes to the top lineman in Metro.

Elijah Simmons

Defensive line (2018)

Region 5-3A defensive MVP ... 6-0, 353 pounds ... 54 tackles, 10 for loss ... two sacks, a forced fumble, an interception and a defensive TD ... signed with Tennessee where he made 59 career tackles ... currently in his second season with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

Chris Sims

Defensive line (1983)

After starting three years at Pearl High, Sims became Pearl-Cohn's best defensive player in the school's first year after the merger ... 6-4, 205 pounds ... also started at right offensive guard ... The Tennessean All-Metro Class AAA second team ... Davidson County Scholar-Athlete award winner presented by the National Football Foundation Middle Tennessee Chapter ... also played basketball.

Kenneth Gates

Linebacker (1997)

Tennessean All-Midstate ... one of the top tackles in Metro with more than 126 stops ... helped lead Firebirds to the 1997 state championship ... led Pearl-Cohn to eight shutouts ... ranked in The Tennessean's Top 40 college prospects in the Midstate ... played in the Tennessee East-West Shrine All-Star game ... played at Carson-Newman.

Tremont Lawless

Linebacker (1994)

Two-year starter ... teamed with John Henderson, a freshman at the time, to form one of the top tackling tandems in Metro ... also played tight end and wide receiver... also played basketball.

Wesley Holmes

Linebacker (1999)

Tennessean Defensive Player of the Year as a senior ... two-time All-Midstate ... 187 tackles, three interceptions, eight sacks ... voted No. 3 top hitter in the Midstate by area coaches ... started as a freshman on 1996 state championship team ... signed with Tennessee, but ended up playing at Tennessee State.

Demario Donnell

Defensive back (2011)

Two-time Tennessean All-Midstate ... led Firebirds with 63 tackles as a senior and 15 interceptions over his junior and senior seasons ... led the Firebirds to the Class 3A quarterfinals ... played at Tennessee Tech, where he was a three-year starting cornerback ... returned to Pearl-Cohn as an assistant coach.

Maurice "Buck" Fitzgerald

Defensive back (1997)

Helped lead Firebirds to back-to-back state championships as a starting quarterback and defensive back ... helped Pearl-Cohn post a 23-5 record over his junior and senior seasons .... Hume Award winner, which is Metro's top football honor ... also played basketball ... played at Tennessee.

Roger Jones

Defensive back (1986)

Three-year starter and one of the fastest players on the team ... also ran track ... National Scholar Athlete Award from the National Football Foundation Middle Tennessee Chapter ... signed with Tennessee State where he was a three-year starter ... played seven years in the NFL (Titans, Tampa Bay, Cincinnati) ... inducted into the Metro Nashville Public Schools Sports Hall of Fame in 2007.

Dewain Trotter

Defensive back (2020)

Tennessean All-Midstate ... extremely athletic ... had 64 tackles with six interceptions and blocked a punt as a junior ... also played basketball ... played at Tennessee State for two seasons before transferring to Marshall.

McKinley Young

Athlete (1997)

Played several positions on both sides of the ball including linebacker, fullback, quarterback and long snapper ... 3-year starter ... vital member of the Firebirds 1996 and 1997 state championship teams ... also played basketball.

SPECIAL TEAMS

James Stowe

Kicker/Punter (1996)

Handled all three phases − kickoffs, field goals, punting − in the kicking game and helped the Firebirds win the 1996 state championship.

Wesley Schelling

Long snapper (2019)

Hume Award winner ... No. 8 long snapper in the nation by 247Sports Composite ... 6-5, 240 pounds ... played at Vanderbilt and was All-SEC in 2023.

COACH

Maurice Fitzgerald

(1990-2005)

Fitzgerald turned the Firebirds into one of the top teams in the state in the 1990s ... Pearl-Cohn won the Class 4A state championships in 1996 and 1997 ... The Firebirds reached the playoffs for the first time in 1994 and returned nine more times under Fitzgerald... inducted into the Metro Nashville Public Schools Sports Hall of Fame in 2022.

This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Meet our Pearl-Cohn football all-time team, including John Henderson and Barion Brown