ECMS Officially Named National Champions For Second Consecutive Year

2019 ECMS Back-To-Back Jr. Academic Team National Champtions

ECMS Academic Team Wins Back-to-Back National Championships

Nick Skaggs, ECMS Asst. Coach, story: submitted photos:
The Edmonson County Middle School Academic Team has been named the 2019 National Champions after final scoring has been completed for the tournament system.

"The championship is similar to a college football bowl system with different criteria. The stats and performances from each of the four regional champions are then compared in order to name the final national winner.

ECMS defeated Ramsey Junior High School from Fort Smith, Arkansas in the New Orleans championship game on Monday, May 27, 2019. The team was never challenged during the competition, finishing with a perfect record of 9 wins and zero losses at the national tournament.  Edmonson outscored opponents by an average of 484 to 144.

While ECMS dominated their field, they had to wait for the completion of the other tournaments in Chicago, Washington D.C., and Orlando. The national runners-up was the winner of the Chicago tournament, Chaffin Junior High School out of Arkansas.  Edmonson and Chaffin were the only teams to go undefeated at their national tournaments, but Edmonson County averaged nearly 100 points more per game, which was the deciding factor in the Wildcats the national champions for the second consecutive season.

ECMS National Hall of Fame members Brody Johnson, Coach Greg Grey, Jonas Miller.

Chip Beall, the executive director of the National Academic Championship, went on to declare the 2019 Edmonson County Middle School the “all-time greatest team in the 12 year history of the Junior National Academic Championship.” 

He also said that Brody Johnson, the New Orleans M.V.P., and Jonas Miller (last year’s M.V.P) were “best one-two punch in the history of the Junior National Academic Championship.”  

Over the past 37 years, the National Academic Championships have been declaring high school national champions. They added the Junior National Academic Championships 12 years ago. During that time, they have named a select few to their Hall of Fame.  These historical players include Jeopardy! legend Brad Rutter. At the conclusion of the New Orleans tournament, Mr. Beall named both Brody Johnson ad Jonas Miller into the National Academic Championship Hall of Fame.   

The team finished with a record of 91 wins and only one loss on the 2019 season.  ECMS won the 2019 KAAC Governor’s Cup Quick Recall State Championship, the 2019 NAQT State Championship, and the 2019 Junior National Academic Championship.  The team is coached by Greg Grey and his assistants; Robin Grey, Alan Florence, and Nick Skaggs. The national championship players are Brody Johnson, Jonas Miller, Alex Woosley, Glenna Crisp, Evy Bolton, Emma Sackett, Brycen Daniels, Lyla Wood, Ashton Johnson, Ace Daughtery, Ian Dooley, and Taylor Dooley. 

This was the final academic tournament for K.A.A.C Hall of Fame head coach, Greg Grey.  This was the perfect ending to an extraordinary career that has touched the lives of so many.   ​​