More than 100 people turned out Friday night to celebrate the Gardner Edgerton High School football team’s back-to-back state titles with a gathering on the district’s home football field.
The team won 36-33 against Manhattan Friday, Nov. 29, with a last-second touchdown taking home the Kansas Class 6A trophy for the second year in a row. (The team had lost to Manhattan two years prior on the final play in double overtime, before beating Derby last year.)
Assistant coach Jason Radal said it was a big accomplishment to win the program’s second championship just a year after breaking through.
“Our senior class has been to the state championship three times and to go back-to-back, only six teams have done it in the history of the state,” he said.
At Friday’s event, members of the coaching staff thanked parents, the school band, cheerleaders and drill team for their support throughout the season.
“Everyone is a big part of this,” Radel said. “All of our community. We are very appreciative.”
Head Coach Jesse Owen said looking up in the stands and seeing a full crowd made him proud.
“Last Friday was awesome — our crowd was awesome,” he said. “That experience of state championship games that is for our entire student body.”
Owen said football has a way of “galvanizing” people and bringing people together.
“The moments are so much more memorable when we are all here together celebrating,” he said.
Owen said the team takes “great pride” in playing hard to represent the community.
“I hope their actions on the field reflect that,” he said. “It was an honor to coach them. They have been raised by terrific parents. We thank you guys, because these are great kids of character, and they do things the right way, so it was a privilege.”
Senior quarterback Bravin Powell said from the day he started on the football team “Blazer Nation” had given the team “their all.”
“You guys show up to everything no matter the weather, and it really means a lot to us,” he said. “At the end of the day it helps us a tremendous amount — more than anybody knows. You guys really help us embody what it means to be a Blazer.”
Powell also thanked his teammates and coaches.
“There was a not day that went by that they took a day off,” he said. “To go 13 games in a year is very rare in itself and doing that three years in a row is just extraordinary. That’s just a testament to the group of guys we have.”
Powell said where the team started at it his freshman year 5-3, “no one would have thought we would be where we are today.”
Coach Owen said the players came in as teammates but leave as family.
“And that’s the way it should be here, and that’s the way it is going to be from here on out too,” he said.
