Varsity Football Ends Season in Thrilling Regional Playoff Game

Nov 17, 2023

On the game

St Joseph had to earn the win. We dug a bit of a hole in the first half and came storming back in the second half. I was proud of the heart, fight, guts and grit that our team showed. These guys have done that all year. We all hurt after a tough loss like this.

Heritage took the lead 58-54 with about 1 minute left on the clock. St. Joseph scored on a 20 yard pass with 2 seconds to play.

This was a winnable game. We had some critical breakdowns in the first half. This team is resilient and it showed tonight. We gave ourselves a shot to win in the 4th quarter but just fell short. This group of guys know that their self worth is not in a scoreboard but it still hurts. 

On the season

The season didn’t go exactly as we planned but rarely does it.  We know that we were on the journey that God wanted us to be on and we find some satisfaction in that.  We are as competitive-minded as they come and so we are disappointed we didn’t reach some of our goals this year, namely a district and State Title.  However, these guys grew, learned more about the game, themselves their team mates and developed tools that they will use for the rest of their life. 

On the two seniors Tres and Tristan

Both of these young men have been a part of this program for the past 7 years and beyond if you throw in the years that they were managers. These two young men bleed green and it has been a joy to coach them. They are loyal, steadfast and have grown into the kind of Christian servant-leaders that we need in this crazy world. The beautiful part of coaching is that the relationships you build and the memories you make will last for as long as we are on this earth. Both Tres and Tristan have had very successful careers as Heritage football players. They have been there through the thick and the thin. We are going to miss them on the football field but we are excited to see what God does in their lives as they complete their senior year, graduate and move to the next season of their life after High School.

- Coach Tim Shipman