KILLEEN - Every year at this time you see helmets tossed out onto the field, coaches drenched in Gatorade and emotional senior football players crying on the sidelines after winning a football state title.
But for the first time in 13 years, those helmets were black with the red "SPH" logo on them as the Shiner St. Paul Cardinals edged out Colleyville Covenant Christian 48-41 to win the TAPPS Div. IV State Championship at Leo Buckley Stadium on Saturday.
"I just couldn't believe it. Yeah, you work hard, but you don't know if it's really going to happen. Right up until the very end you don't know if it's going to happen," said Shiner St. Paul head coach Jake Wachsmuth as he was fighting back tears.
The win gives the Cardinals a perfect 14-0 record and their fourth state title. It served as a dramatic end to a football career for the seven St. Paul seniors on the roster and quarterback Devin Pesek said it was a fitting final game in red and black.
Shiner St. Paul's Chase Cappleman, left, and Brandon Metcalfe tackle Colleyville Covenant's Chase Stewart during the state championship game on Saturday. Photos contributed by Lauren Buonaugurio
"If it was a blowout it wouldn't have been any fun," Pesek said. "They didn't give us anything. We had to earn every bit of it."
Although the game went down to the wire, signs pointed to a Cardinals blow out early.
The Cardinals put pressure on Covenant quarterback Chase Stewart and St. Paul took advantage of two Cougars turnovers to take a 14-0 lead in the first five minutes of the game.
Wachsmuth knew 14 points wasn't a big enough cushion for the Cardinals to have, particularly when they had a talented quarterback in Stewart.
"You're not shutting a team like that down," Wachsmuth said. "You're just going to have to do what you need to do on offense and then try to minimize what they do."
Stewart shook off his initial interception to run for a score and throw for two as he not only led his team back, but gave them a 21-20 lead at the half.
"We hadn't seen a quarterback like him," Pesek said. "He can run, he can pass, he's just a great all-around player."
Stewart was named the Cougars Most Valuable Player after leading the Covenant balanced offensive attack.
Stewart completed 10-of-17 passes for 210 yards and four touchdowns through the air while running for 128 yards and two scores.
Sophomore Adam Hollenbach is tended to by medics after breaking his arm in a second quarter offensive tackle.
Covenant's senior quarterback accounted for all but 14 of the Cougars total offensive yards.
"He's one hell of a ball player and we were keying on him and we wanted him to pitch, but sometimes we didn't get that," said sophomore linebacker and running back Martin Kennedy.
Things got a little tougher for the Cardinals when they lost Adam Hollenbach, their main offensive rushing weapon, early in the third quarter.
Hollenbach took the ball off the left tackle on the second play of the third quarter and ran for eight yards.
The sophomore was helped off the Buckley Stadium turf favoring his arm and did not return to the game. The carry did, however, put him over 2,000 yards on the season.
Martin moved from his usual fullback spot to the tail back position and senior Brandon Metcalfe was called upon to help out in the backfield.
But the St. Paul rushing attack didn't miss a beat as Kennedy filled in as the feature back and ran for 98 of his 140 yards and two second half touchdowns.
"I knew we were going to have some trouble, but I knew the line was going to pick it up and the backs were going to fill in where we needed to," Kennedy said.
Shiner St. Paul's Travis Raabe, left, Blake Radicke and Stephen Curtiss help hoist the state championship trophy. Shiner St. Paul beat Colleyville Covenant 48-41, remaining undefeated for their season.
Added Wachsmuth: "It's what this team is all about."
The effort was also a testament to the Cardinals offensive line as they held a Cougar defensive line that was averaging three sacks a game without a sack and paved the way for three players to rush for at least 71 yards.
"The line is the heart and soul of this team and they are not thanked enough," Kennedy said.
Covenant led 27-26 coming into the fourth quarter, setting the stage for a dramatic final frame.
The teams exchanged scores in the first three minutes of the fourth quarter as the game was tied at 34 with 9:26 left.
That's when St. Paul went on a 12-play, 80-yard scoring drive capped by Kennedy's 10-yard score that put the Cardinals up 41-34 with 3:19 left.
Three minutes was more than enough time for the Cougars offense to answer, the problem was getting that squad the ball.
Jordan Cross and Adam Maxie bobbled the ensuing kickoff exchange and it was time for St. Paul Most Valuable Player Brandon Sciba to make another play.
"I knew they were going to switch and I saw a ball come loose and I just jumped on it. I wasn't going to let anybody take it," said the senior running back and defensive back.
Sciba jumped on the ball at the Cougar 15 and four plays later Pesek ran the ball in from seven yards out to put the Cardinals up by 14 points with 53 seconds left.
When it seemed like the Cardinals had the game in hand, Wachsmuth had to settle the team down.
"Our kids got a little excited and I told them 'Guys this is not over yet, they're too good,'" Wachsmuth said.
And he was right, as Stewart hit Cross for their third touchdown connection of the game to cut the St. Paul lead to seven points with 16 seconds left.
But when the Cardinals recovered the ensuing onside kick and the Cougars were out of time outs, the team let out a sigh of relief.
Sciba ran for 13 yards and caught for 62 along with two touchdowns receiving.
"I was shocked," Sciba said. "I don't like to think I'm a standout player."
Pesek ran for two touchdowns and threw two in his final game at St. Paul, and although his high school career is over, he knows the celebration won't die down yet.
"We're going to go out to some good clean parties," Pesek said. "It's just going to be a good night."
© Copyright
BaerCom - Shiner, Texas 2010