Four years removed from not fielding a team due to a lack of participation, the Faith Academy Knights fell just short of a state championship against the Northside Lions last Saturday afternoon at Allen Academy’s Baker Field in Bryan with a 63-54 final score in the Texas Association of Independent Athletic Organization’s (TAIAO) 6-man Division 2 final.

It was a rematch of a Sept. 10 regular-season meeting that Northside also won in back-and-forth fashion and Knight senior Preston Browning said that initial tilt provided the beginnings of that week’s gameplan.

“There were certain things we already knew about the other team, so we planned for it and they knew we planned for it and they adjusted. We had to adjust to that,” he said after the game.

After Faith Academy opened the scoring, Northside raced out to a 22-point lead nearing the midpoint of the second quarter but a kickoff return for a touchdown and a fumble recovery in the end zone from freshman Travis Woodley shifted the momentum heading into the halftime intermission.

“I kind of told the boys at halftime ‘Look, this is a dogfight, you’re going to have to be more physical,’” Knight Head Football Coach Trey Carter said Monday. “Me and the coaches kind of got after them at halftime and it seemed to really fire the guys up. They came out and started putting people on the ground and making key blocks that we needed.”

In a five-minute stretch in the third quarter, Faith Academy put up three unanswered scores to steal a 46-44 lead with 2:37 left in the penultimate frame after Browning scored on a 22-yard rush and a 40-yard interception returned for a touchdown before sophomore quarterback Noah Figueroa connected with Woodley on a 75-yard pitch and catch.

Once Northside took the lead and momentum back later in the game, however, Browning stepped up to rally the troops for one last effort.

“I saw how we were playing throughout the game and saw us slacking a bit so I had to set my men straight,” Browning said. “I was just asking them if they really wanted to be there, if they really want ed to be state champs or if they thought they didn’t really deserve it.”

“He’s the one that keeps them encouraged. He does a great job with that and that’s huge for me and takes a load off because that’s on the field,” Carter said of Browning. “I can always do it in the locker room or I can do it on the sidelines, but on the field is when the boys need it the most. He’s the one that gets them in the groove and gets after them and gets them fired up. And that kind of led to the comeback the other day. He rallied them up and said, ‘Coach, I got it.’ I walked off and let him do the talking and it seemed to work.”

Although the Knights provided a valiant effort at the end, it was just too little too late as Northside built an insurmountable lead with the clock winding down. Still, Browning closed his career knowing he left it all on the field.

“I’m proud of every single one of them, I told them before the game I’m proud of them, our town’s proud of them and God’s proud of them. I’m happy with the group of guys that we had that brought us all the way here, we got here through hard work and dedication and it was a great game,” Browning said. “I feel (good about leading Faith Academy to a state final after not fielding a team in 2017), I’m very happy I could come here and do that for this town and for these guys and for the coaches. It’s the same mentality, I’m just going to go as hard as I can and have a good time.”

Carter said Browning’s senior classmates helped set the table for the run to state as well as set the bar for those returning.

“For the seniors that are done playing like Maury Cano, he was one of the leaders on the team, he was a captain and he’s not going to play after high school so that was kind of his last hurrah. I was glad we made it that far with these guys. That’s a testament to them and how hard they’ve been working for me the last three years and they trusted me and do what I asked them to do and it got them somewhere,” Carter said. “I think it was bittersweet. I think making it that far, not just having a 2-8 season or having something that doesn’t really speak out to you – no, we made it all the way to state and that’s something to be proud of, I think.”

Scoring Summary

Faith Academy 8-14-24-8

Northside 16-20-14-13

Q1

7:35: Faith Academy Noah Figueroa to Preston Browning 6 pass, Luke Wicklein kick, 8-0

5:04: Northside Aidan Moorman to Riley Worbington 24 pass, Moorman kick, 8-8

0:49: N Griff Williams to Moorman 23 pass, Moorman kick, 16-8

Q2

8:42: N Isiah Cooper 11 rush, kick fail, 22-8

7:04: N Williams to Moorman 32 pass, Moorman kick, 30-8

6:55: FA Travis Woodley 55 kickoff return, Wicklein kick, 30-16

3:21: FA Woodley fumble recovery in end zone, kick fail, 30-22

2:29: N Williams to Sam Bonin 31 pass, kick fail, 36-22

Q3

8:34: N Williams to Worbington 1 pass, Moorman kick, 44-22

8:13: FA Browning 22 rush, Wicklein kick, 44-30

3:43: FA Browning 40 pick-six, Wicklein kick, 44-38

2:37: FA Figueroa to Woodley 75 pass, Wicklein kick, 46-44

0:31: N Williams 2 rush, kick fail, 50-46

Q4

5:43: N Williams to Worbington 2 pass, kick fail, 56-46

2:39: N Williams long rush, one-point pass, 63-46

1:27: FA Figueroa to Browning 2 pass, Wicklein kick, 63-54

Stats courtesy Faith Academy

Preston Browning: 23 carries, 114 rushing yards, 1 touchdown; 4 receptions, 15 receiving yards, 2 touchdowns; 9 tackles, 1 interception returned for touchdown

Travis Woodley: 8 receptions, 166 receiving yards, 1 touchdown; 5 carries, 14 rushing yards; 12 tackles, 1 fumble recovery for touchdown; 55-yard kickoff returned for touchdown

Noah Figueroa: 15-24 passing, 208 throwing yards, 3 touchdowns, 3 interceptions