ROAR: The Story of the Southern Columbia Football Tigers

- [Cheerleaders] S C S!

S C S!

(soft violin music) - [Interviewee 1] I'm at a clinic in Bloomsburg, Pennsylvania this summer, and here comes, you know, Southern Columbia's players.

And so we were in a drill, offensive line drill, and one of Southern Columbia's players jumped offside and he immediately took himself out of the drill and did 25 pushups without being told.

And another kid from Southern Columbia came into the drill, until he was done and then they replaced each other.

Coach didn't say a word, he didn't look at him, he didn't yell at him, he did nothing.

But what has he done to create that type of atmosphere?

How did that culture get slurred?

If Jim Roth coached 40 more years and lost every single game when 0 - 10 for 40 years, he would still have a winning record.

(dramatic inspirational music) - [Radio Announcer] Gets there right away, and Artie Kissinger's got it gone!

Oh, the (indistinct) Southern Columbia touchdown!

(music intensifies) - Why Southern Columbia is so successful, year after year after year, is a complex question.

- When you win a lot of football games, there are people who love you and there are people who hate you.

- Not only are they winning, but they are mercy ruling.

- There's a jealousy- - They cheat, they recruit.

- Kids that go to votech.

- [Interviewer] Are you aware of the conversation around you guys?

- Oh yeah.

- [Interviewee 1] I kind of take some satisfaction in the fact that they're a public school and they whooped some of these private schools.

- [Interviewee 2] You trashed the A-field.

- [Radio Announcer] Wislowski gets to call it the right side break street.

- [Interviewee 3] We went out believing that we could not be beat.

- [Interviewee 2] You're trashing the AA-field.

- [Radio Announcer] And Southern Columbia has made high school football history.

- [Interviewee 1] It's a rural area, football might be everything to them.

- [Announcer] Throwing a touchdown.

- [Interviewee 4] And we have kids who are competitive, tough kids, and they do not want to lose.

- [Announcer] Jim Roth, he is the winningest coach in Pennsylvania, high school football.

- [Interviewee 1] They've won five in a row, twice now.

- [Announcer] Tigers at Southern Columbia!

- [Interviewee 1] And you don't want be the team to lose that.

(people shuffling and conversing) (lockers slamming) - I'm so sorry!

- I'm sorry man.

(players sobbing) - [Interviewee 1] This is a team, and they're expected to win a state title year in and year out.

- [Interviewee 2] I can't imagine the pressure that adds.

These are kids.

At the same time, they do know the history of the program, and they don't want to be the team that loses a game.

They don't wanna be the first team that doesn't win a state title.

And when they sign up, I think they know that.

And they're willing to take it on.

(slow ambient music) (slow guitar music) - [Interviewee] The community embraces southern football.

- Do it again!

- It's just a way of life in a small community.

- The overall size of the district and population has gone down a little bit and as a result, our enrollment's gone down.

For the first time, we will not have a freshman team and all of our freshmen will be coming up to varsity because our numbers are down to the point where we need the freshmen to come up.

(birds chirping) If you don't make any effort to learn more about what you're doing, you'll have issues, I'm sure.

Again, you can't get enough reps both mentally or physically to get this stuff down.

- [Coach] Go!

Hold him up, hold him up.

Come on pickles, dig him out!

Hold your ground Cokie!

- We're probably doing less than a lot of the other programs.

We like to think that we're very efficient with time.

(whistle blowing) Because I've learned over the years that younger coaches or younger guys sometimes are about practicing too long and trying to do too much, and... We're gonna start the afternoon at 1:30 and we will be done by 3:00.

Our plan is always to play 16 weeks.

That's a long season.

That's another half-season compared to somebody that plays 10 games.

You know, if you're on the field three hours every night for 14 - 15 weeks and you get down to the end, mentally they could be exhausted.

- Let's go, Isaac.

Boom.

- Oh that's a boomer.

(whistle blowing) - Hey, if you, if you wanna kick it in the end zone every time this year and we don't have to cover it, that's fine.

- He's always been a soccer player.

- It was really difficult, because I had a passion for both sports so I made the decision just to kick and play soccer, 'cause soccer's been my love since I was young.

Like any good program, there's a standard that you have to meet and if you don't meet that, it's disappointing.

I think that's very good for us to have, a standard.

To look up to what other years have done.

- State Champs on 3!

- [Team] 1, 2, 3, State Champs!

- Everybody knows all the wins and the victories and the fanfare for the, you know, the current teams.

- [Interviewee 1] 12 State championships?

- I don't think a lot of people knew about the past and some of the struggles that they had had.

- There was actually a time when they were thinking maybe we don't need to have a football team.

The losing streak reached 26 or 27 games.

- I had to convince people that as a 22 year old, one full year out of college with the experience of an 0 - 11 season as an assistant coach, I could do it.

- He told me when he took over the program, there were nine kids signed up for football and he literally was calling kids on the phone, you know, saying, "Hey, would you like to go out for football?"

"Hey by the way, how big are you?"

We had lost before I was head coach, we lost while I was head coach.

It was kind of expected.

- And they played a Thursday night game at home against Hughesville and won the game, broke the streak and the superintendent decided no school the next day.

They celebrated a win.

- When Andy took over the program his first season they were winless.

But by the time Andy left, they had won the Eastern conference.

- They had a young staff, he was a young coach and one of the guys that was on his staff was a young Jim Roth.

- Andy had a child, wanted to spend more time with his family.

So he bowed out and Jim took over and the rest is history.

- [Announcer] In 1980 he had to be talked in to accepting an assistant coaching job at Southern Columbia, 'cause the program was so bad, they were thinking about dropping the program.

1984, he took over as the head coach.

The Southern Columbia Tigers had become a Pennsylvania state power.

- I can certainly tell you when I went to the winless, Southern Columbia Tigers in 1980, I never expected to be standing here today.

- Turning it over to Jimmy Roth, well wow, what a story that is.

- Jim, you know, took it to the next stratosphere.

- What you see on the sidelines is kind of who he is.

This guy doesn't get frazzled.

- Probably a lot more emotional than what most people see.

I'm not a rah-rah guy.

When you have a losing program, sometimes you develop a culture where you're looking for excuses instead of looking for solutions.

When we started and turned this thing around, we were looking for solutions.

- The other thing that Jim, I think, latched onto, quicker than other people, was the idea of speed training.

Yeah, you can get bigger and you can get stronger, but speed, God gave you it where he didn't.

That's a myth now.

You can get faster.

- Coach Roth established an offense that... - [Radio Announcer] Sianoski gets the call, Southern Columbia touchdown!

- [Henry] Almost near impossible to defend.

- When you work the Wing T, it's a system.

- When I took over in 1984, we had Jerry as our tailback for four years and he accumulated over 7,000 yards.

We fed him the ball, he broke the state record for rushing yards, at the time, when he graduated, we didn't have anybody like Jerry Marks coming into the program.

And I was familiar with a guy by the name of Rocky Reese, and he was a wing-T guru.

That was the system that I wanted to try to go to when Jerry graduated, because it incorporated three running backs.

When we played teams, they don't see people that line up and run the ball at 'em like we do and kind of being relentless with it.

So by staying with it, and not deciding to go to a spread offense or more of a passing game, we're running a system that people don't see a lot.

So they have a lot more trouble defending it.

- They even have their young linemen when they're like playing peewee football, running their system.

- So by the time we got to high school, it was like second nature to us.

- Obviously, we want to run like spread offenses, like other schools, but we're just gonna listen to our coach, we're gonna listen to what he tells us to do because he knows how to win.

He's been doing this for years.

We haven't.

- I'd love to throw the ball over the field but at the end of the day, coach Roth knows the way to win.

We've been winning.

I'm not a self-centered player.

I'd do whatever it takes to get the win.

- Eyes on his hips.

You're looking up at his head, you're gonna get faked out.

I don't put out a lot of praise.

With social media and the popularity of high school football.

They get so much praise, especially a guy like Braeden.

(inspirational rock music) (music intensifies) - [Announcer] Look at this play here by Wislowski, touchdown, Tigers!

- He's the type of talent that can change a game in an instant, in a play.

- Braeden's fast.

Speed tilts and kids couldn't catch 'em.

You're talking about a former state champion in a hundred-meter dash.

(whistle blowing) (crowd chattering) - We're just working hard at practice every day.

Pushing them, pushing the other kids.

I think we've a pretty solid team this year.

- We try to approach every year like we have something to prove.

With what they've done, they really shouldn't have a chip on their shoulder, but we're trying to create one because you need that edge.

- I know last year we had to work a lot harder for what we accomplished.

I would hope that this year will be easy, but I don't think it will be.

I think our schedule's one of the toughest that we've had in a while.

- Run, run!

(coaches shouting) - [Coach 1] Move!

- [Coach 2] Gotta stay awake.

- Come on, perky!

(coaches shouting) (whistles blowing) - Go back to the huddle, come back to the huddle.

- Huddle up.

- Huddle!

(player groaning) - People mess with me first, dude, I don't take it.

- I think Wes is a feisty kid.

I mean, he's a wrestler.

- I hate kids.

- He's mean in good reason.

Like in good- Like he's mean, mean.

I, listen, I'm 30 years old and I don't wanna stand in front of him.

(group chuckling) (crowds cheering and shouting) - I mean, he's probably one of the toughest.

- I just threw up.

Yeah, I'm good.

- Pound for pound.

- Blow.

(nose blowing) - Toughest football players I've known.

- You good?

- Yeah, this is numbing too.

- [Player] Huddle up, huddle up!

- It's away, it's away, it's away, it's away!

Get up, get up, get up!

(crowd cheering) (whistle blowing) That would be unsportsmanlike of you.

That touchdown would come all the way back, right?

Take him out.

You're throwing punches, bro.

You guys don't do anything about it either.

Ridiculous.

- You know, sometimes he'll get to the point where we gotta calm him down.

His emotions get the best of him.

- I think he likes taking on that character.

It's kind of like, maybe, a WWE wrestler, a little bit.

I know the coaches probably don't like it.

- He has a lot of fire, and it's good, sometimes it might not be good.

- [Coach] (faintly) Stay hydrated!

- Come on Wes, we need you, bud.

Let's go.

- Hey, listen.

Like I said, listen.

That fire is good but don't let it screw you up.

- But you know, there's a fine line there because you want 'em to be really intense and really aggressive.

- When I put a helmet on, or wrestling shoes, it's, yeah, I get in a different mindset.

Whenever, when I was little, my dad would always tell me like, "You're not friends when you're playing."

You just go hard and play, play every...

Snap every match like it's your last.

Yeah, I'm really interested in chemistry and science.

So, I'm going to Clarion and studying chemistry, and I just really enjoyed it and I looked up jobs, like with the chemistry made, and one of them was a pharmacist and I looked into it, and the schooling you had to go through and I just kind of, yeah, kind of fell in love with it and kind of wanted to pursue it, so... - Me and Wes, we're great friends.

It's like a brotherhood, so I love that kid to death.

- What's a big key for you this year?

Is it staying healthy and being productive?

- Yeah, definitely staying healthy and getting as many places I can get in, so... - You guys, I mean, it's tradition here to end up in the postseason and you have that big game experience under your belt.

Just how nice is that?

I mean, those are high pressure games but you're already accustomed to it.

- Oh, it's definitely great 'cause now I feel like I can go into the regular season games, be calm, cool, collected, especially with that pressure of being on that state championship stage.

- Definitely.

- Obviously five-time defending state champions trying to make your name as the only group to win six in a row.

Just how motivating is that, because you know you have a target on your back?

(motivational string music) - Well, growing up I always thought I was a little bit better on defense.

- And I think he got a lot of that from his two older brothers, 'Cause he was probably always chasing them down in his own backyard.

- [Interviewee] Everybody in the state is aware of his two older brothers.

- It was almost like a standard that we have to like, keep.

Almost like a little competition with all the brothers to see who was gonna be the best.

Winning a state championship's hard, but winning six in row is even harder so we have to push ourselves to get six this year.

I mean it.

- And then of course opening with Burwick, you know they had a nice season as the season went on last year and finished as a playoff team.

So I think it's gonna be a challenge for us in week one and it's just gonna be a great atmosphere.

- You don't get to Southern Columbia unless you talk about Burwick.

- It's been my privilege over the years to interview senators, secretaries of education, really highly-ranking people in our country, in our state and we've never had as much press in this studio as we have tonight behind the scenes.

It's never happened before.

What do you make of that?

- There's God, and then there's George Curry.

- It is amazing that we live in an area where the two all-time winningest coaches in this football ridge state did their thing.

- I mean, forever Coach Curry and Coach Roth are always gonna be in the same sentence.

Number one and number two all-time in the state of Pennsylvania in wins and PA high school football history.

- Now my style is very intense, though.

It's tough.

It's not for everyone.

- We've all had that mentality.

Like yeah, hey we're Burwick, okay?

We're gonna come out, yeah, we're gonna play, you know we're gonna play hard but we're Burwick.

We expect to.

Not, we want to, okay?

That's where Southern is right now.

Southern's a great team, all right?

They're gonna come down here and they're gonna expect to, 'cause they have earned that right.

- They don't make many mistakes.

That's one thing of them.

Sometimes of a lot of teams we've seen on film that play with them for a half, and then they gear off and they make a mistake, and...

It would be a great win for us.

They're the program, they're the program around here, Southern's the program and we wanna knock off the top dogs.

It's as simple as that.

(intense music) - So you go into every season with kind of preconceived notions and Garrett Garcia was gonna be our defensive player of the year.

- [Radio Announcer] Garrett Garcia, 205 tackles last year.

He is an all-stater.

- Starting on defense.

We just need to make sure that we are playing with our heads in the game.

First game, opening game.

We don't want to be sloppy and give them any kind of early opportunity.

(team chanting) (drums pounding) (fireworks shooting) (music intensifying) - [Announcer 1] Isaac Carter, an all-state kicker, a junior, will kick it off for Southern Columbia and the 2022 high school football season is underway.

- So it was the first kickoff the year and you want to get that tackle, start off the game right.

And I'm sprinting down trying to get it and... - [Coach] What'd you do?

What'd you do?

(player moaning) (solemn music) - [Announcer] We saw Garrett Garcia go off, favoring a leg.

- I did the lock test and it, my whole knee was almost like jello, I still wanted to go back in.

I asked to tape up and play but... (crowd cheering) Just the realization that the whole year is over.

- [Announcer] Has to snap back to throw, pump fake, fires well has a better touchdown!

They're on the board here in the second they lead at six - nothing.

- The Gary Garcia injury, I think, just kind of shocked the entire team.

- [Announcer] Quarterback keeper, Wonzinski pushed from behind.

Did he get in?

Yes, yes!

Wonzinski in with 5.3 seconds remaining in the first half.

Throwing 14, Southern Columbia, nothing.

(people conversing) - Win or lose, play every snap.

Get your laugh, do you hear me?

Do you hear me?

- [Player] (faintly) yes.

- Like he has a standard for everyone on our team.

He expects you to do your job and I think that's what a great leader does.

- Starting safety.

Ladden Murphy was rushed to the ER with a hydration issue.

He was having issues and they had to take him by ER.

(people conversing) - No, it's all tingly.

- Both teams come out to start the third quarter, just as the ref gets ready to blow his whistle, lightning strike, and then another one, another one, and another one.

- They're saying right now we're scheduled to restart at 9:10.

Which is like 20 minutes.

This could be a benefit for us, because we've been sitting around so long, I mean, there's certainly no momentum effect anymore.

It's like a new game.

The only problem is we gotta outscore 'em by a couple touchdowns.

- Took about two hours in total 'till both teams came back.

- Everybody just needs to focus on doing your job, playing your position, to the best of your ability for the next two quarters.

We can come back and pull this thing out.

They should have a doubt in the back of their mind if they can hold on to this, don't give 'em an opportunity.

- So after about an hour and forty-five minute delay we're underway.

(cheerleaders chanting) (crowd cheering) (whistles blowing) - [Announcer] By number 3, Wes Barnes.

(intense string music) - [Announcer] There's the inside reverse, then has it, at the 20, the 15 to 10, the 5 and the touchdown for Carter Madden from 30 yards out!

A staple of the Wing-T offense.

The inside reverse of the right side has running room under the 35, the 40, and he breaks up the mid-field, Gary Wislowski, who goes to distance, 73 yards!

- [Interviewee] Southern looked like a completely different beast in that second half, scoring six touchdowns.

(drums beating) - [Announcer] The give of the plane, a huge hole off the left side, no problems for Wes Barnes as he goes 44 yards with the score.

Call goes to Wes, (speaking frantically), 45, 30, far side on 20, 15, 10, 5, and a touchdown!

Wes Barnes!

- [Announcer 2] Southern Columbia.

The second half shows state championship potential again.

- [Announcer] Well finally again tonight, Southern Columbia 42, Burwick 27.

- You are involved in one of the most amazing gains in the history of the program.

Without a doubt.

And then to score 40 in one half to put a team away?

(team cheering and shouting) - [Captain] State champs on three!

- [Team] One, two, three, state champs!

- Great game, man.

- Absolutely!

- Very nasty.

- You're lucky I love you, 'cause you're good.

(band playing) (crowd cheering) (team conversing) - Do you wanna work on another linebacker like Krebs, or do we put a D back in?

- For outside linebacker, you mean?

- Yeah.

And have him get out on coverage.

You know if they give us spread and keep Dom and maybe Carter Madden inside.

He studies film, he knows formations, he's like the quarterback.

He gets everybody lined up, the kids look up to 'em.

So we just need somebody to step up in a leadership role.

- I think we're all pretty upset about it.

I think we have players that could step it up and get in his position, but it's definitely gonna hurt a lot, knowing that he's out for the season.

- It sucks, but life throws you curve balls, you just gotta go deal with them.

Nothing I can do about it now, really.

- Do you feel like this will impact recruiting at all for you?

- Yeah, 'cause your junior year is usually the year you get the most looks, 'cause then by the time you're a senior they already recruited basically all their guys.

So it'll be a lot harder.

Hopefully, I can come out my senior year and impress 'em enough to get an offer.

- Our average class now in the school, in the high school is maybe around a hundred students.

- [Interviewee] Southern Columbia for most has always been a single-A school.

You know, they did move up to AA the last eight years.

- They're AA by only a handful of students.

In fact, they may come back to single A in enrollment.

- And the PIAA wants to make 'em AAA.

Their argument is, "We don't want to see this."

Which I think is a very good argument.

- The PIAA is the governing body over high school athletics in the state of Pennsylvania where an organization is to promote fairness and that's what our rules are put in place to do.

- The PIAA has rules that would like to see teams that are successful move up.

- If a team garners enough success points and has the number of transfers for football, it's three, then if they have those two pieces combined in a two-year cycle, then they will be moved up a classification.

(anticipatory music) - The success part of it bothers me, because I don't think you should be punished, which someone considered to be, for being successful.

It shouldn't be used against you.

- I'd say our rebuttal to that is, "You're successful, you're overly successful."

Playing in a higher class, you're getting to more even competition and what these kids are gonna go on to the collegiate level.

You know, we would love to see them voluntarily upgrade.

All schools have that option.

I think it would be good for the program, I really do, but you know, again it all comes down to, you know, right now their choice of remaining in AA.

- To move up to AAA, back in the day when we were playing single A and winning, people said we should bump up to AA.

And my thing was we don't have any unfair advantages.

We aren't doing anything that is illegal.

We don't have any advantages above other teams.

If we're a non-boundary school, if we're a Southern Columbia charter and we can recruit kids from all over and you say you should be playing at a higher level, I understand your argument.

- A non-boundary school, these private schools that you don't have to live in the district, The vast majority of those kids are coming from other local or sometimes out of state into those private schools.

- Private schools in Philadelphia can pick from the population of 2 or 3 million.

- [Interviewee] There's a lot of Southern Columbia football haters out there.

- Yeah, I'm pretty, I was always kind of used to it.

I was always like, not like hated, but a disliked player in a lot of sports, just 'cause of how aggressive I was and stuff like that.

So I was kind of used to it and kind of liked it.

That part of it.

I liked being, 'cause the best is hated.

So obviously you wanna kind of be hated a little bit, so... - People hated Burrow, 'cause we always won, you know, they always hate someone that always wins.

- A lot of people feel you can't win and do it honestly.

- You know, people looked at Southern and they've looked at Burrow, and I hear it all the time.

Oh yeah, "But they cheat, they recruit."

- You know, a lot of people hide behind that.

A lot of people, it's just, it's an easy thing to say, "Oh, they recruit."

- They don't recruit.

But people do come to them.

It's one or two a year and that's from someone who knows the programs.

- Everybody's had some players move in.

I mean Southern Columbia played a school in the playoffs a couple years ago.

They had 23 transfers that year.

It was like a whole new roster.

- We're under a microscope.

So anybody that transfers into our district and they're playing football in our program is under a microscope.

- When you have a very winning program, they just become like a natural draw and sometimes people start moving their kids into that district.

I mean if they may know that, you know, when the kids are in third grade, fourth grade, fifth grade.

- Yeah, I was in fourth grade.

I lived up in Tioga County and went to Williamson and they didn't have a football program and we ended up picking Southern just more, just mainly for wrestling, too.

So I could have two good programs behind me.

Yeah, started coming here from fifth grade on.

I see the tradition and the fan base and everything that goes around in Southern Columbia and all sports and I mean why wouldn't you wanna be a part of it, so, yeah.

- Got it, got it, got it.

- After a while, you know, you can say "Well they're doing this, they're doing that," and you make up all reasons why they're successful other than they're very, very good at what they do and they work hard at what they do.

- It's just their success in winning and you know, hey, other programs get better, get better.

(ominous ticking) (intense ambient music) - [Coach] Go out and stick it to these guys right away and what we've done in the past and what they have done in the past will help us.

It will help us take over this football game.

'Cause mentally in the back of their minds, you know, they're not looking at this like last week when they went on the field against Louisburg.

Do you understand what I'm saying?

We have that to our advantage every single week.

Now you're gonna get a, most teams are gonna get their best shot but you can get 'em to quit or to back off or to lose their confidence, if we go out and put a tool.

It's simply the tradition of the program having an effect.

We are ready, let's go.

(team shouting) (cheerleaders chanting) - [Teammate 1] AC!

- [Teammate 1] Hey, AC, we love you!

- [Coach] Get back here, AC.

- Hey hit the button.

Hey!

- Good job.

Finally get a home game next week.

We are, for those of you that don't know, we're playing Loyalsock.

- Most people have that game circled on their calendar.

That's their Super Bowl, that's their state championship, when they play Southern.

And so we face that week in and week out.

I don't know if all of the kids quite understand that.

- Anybody that plays them, I mean, that would make their season, that would make their decade if they could beat Southern Columbia.

- The legacy that people have built, it's something you can't ruin.

(intense guitar music) - Let's go!

Let's go.

- [Player] Sheriffs are here!

- We're a good team right here but, we're ready.

We're ready!

(crowd cheering) - [Announcer] Fumble.

And it's gonna be recovered by the lancers.

- [Announcer 2] Oh no!

- [Announcer] And Hill takes it from 37 yards out for the Loyalsock Touchdown.

- There's right at the Middle.

- Yeah, oh, I know.

So we're gonna go two backs and we're gonna take the chance on pass.

We'll play his own on pass.

- As G's back to pass, he looks, he fires and it's gonna be complete for the touchdown.

(team groaning) - Wake up!

You're not even blocked!

- No pride.

- If you don't play with more desire, you lose this football game.

'Cause right now that team is out playing us 110%.

This is, you're embarrassing yourselves.

- And you're embarrassing the program.

- So I was there shooting the first half and I remember I have to leave the game at halftime so I'm leaving the game and yeah, I have Southern Columbia fans going, "Where are you going?

It's not over yet!"

- We've been here before.

We've been here before.

This ain't nothin'.

- Justin Van Fleet, the head coach for Loyalsock hears that, he leaves his team, walks back to me as I'm walking to my car, and he goes, "It's over, we've got this."

- [Announcer] Inside the five is Jalen Andrews.

He's across the 25, - [Announcer 2] Oh, no.

- [Announcer] He's across the 30.

He's across the 35, a foot race.

Forty, thirty, twenty, ten, five.

- [Announcer 2] Wow!

- [Announcer] 96 yards for a touchdown.

- Listen, just stay on people and be aggressive, all right?

And we'll be fine.

Let's go, play with confidence.

Come on.

You're killing me.

- We can't score two touch downs in 1:40.

- You put too much time in over this stuff.

With all this stuff, to fold right now, all right?

Play it for the program right now.

- I just kept getting the same cramp in my leg and it was fine.

I was playing through it and then in the third quarter, both of my legs were just done.

I couldn't run, I couldn't do anything.

I can't go in, bro.

Like, both of my legs just keep craving, bro.

I can't do anything.

I wanna play right!

(sobs) - [Announcer] Handoff going to the Barnes.

- [Announcer 2] Fumble!

Another turnover.

- The Lancers of Loyalsock witness one big going away as they defeat the Tigers of Southern Columbia.

- It was everything that could go wrong, went wrong, for the most part.

Right now, the only thing that matters is what we do moving forward.

'Cause we can't change the outcome of this game.

Can't change it.

It means nothing more than a blemish on our schedule.

Which obviously we don't get a whole lot.

We're not used to it.

Don't like it.

We're a lot better team than what we showed here tonight.

All right, bring it in.

Come here.

- [Teammate 1] Yo word.

- [Coach] Get in tight.

- [Teammate 1] Everyone be quiet.

This is my senior year, my last time playing football.

I want everyone, every time go to practice, 100%.

You hear me?

Everyone dedicated from here on out?

Do you hear me?

- [Teammate 2] Yes sir!

- [Teammate 1] State champs on three!

- [Team] One, two, three, state champs!

- I'm so sorry!

- I'm sorry, bro.

(teammates sobbing) - I mean, when you lose in a program like Southern Columbia, you just have to think about like, the people before you, because I thought it was my fault, obviously, and... - There was nothing you can do to change that.

It's over.

All we can do is keep moving forward.

- That's right, let's go.

- It's a team, it's not a part, it's a team.

- [Coach] 30... 10:30?

That'll be right down.

- I just think that that was a team we could have handled, but we just needed to play well and execute and we couldn't get off the field on defense and we turned the ball over five times.

We couldn't give a kickoff return, huh?

- We couldn't tackle.

Our tackling was terrible.

And they, their game plan was, I mean, they were moved west by formation.

- And what they did inside is where not having Garcia hurt.

- It's a shame.

But whenever Southern Columbia loses a football game, it's newsworthy.

We dropped them from our number one spot and that was the first time that Southern Columbia wasn't our top ranked team.

Since the final rankings in the 2014 season.

- Yeah, I think so.

I think there's pressure after the loss.

Definitely.

- They lost last year to (indistinct).

and everybody said "Wow."

And I just was like, "Come up."

That's a good thing.

They're gonna focus, they'll be fine.

(announcer speaking faintly) (band playing) (players shouting) (whistles blowing) (solemn music) (player moaning) - [Announcer] So Tiger, first down, marked at the 45-yard line at the ironment.

(player groaning) - When Wes went down, I didn't realize how significant an injury it was.

I didn't even know he was hurt at the time.

- It broke, I heard a pop.

- Relax.

- I got a text from somebody on the sideline saying this isn't good.

(solemn ambient music) - [Interviewer] What's a big key for you this year?

Is it staying healthy and being productive?

- [Wes] Yeah, definitely staying healthy and getting as many plays as I can get in, so... - You don't care!

That's why we're losing by 21 points!

You know, last time, a team in this program lost even two games?

We're not tough enough!

Wake up!

- That's like, the only game I think we actually, like, gave up.

Just everyone gave up.

- The fact that they got mercy ruled?

That never happens.

- Every person has to reach inside.

You gotta decide what you want to do with the rest of your season.

- [Teammate] State champs on three.

- [Team] One, two, three, state champs.

- We found out on Good Friday, during the ultrasound, it was kind of like, well there's one, there's two, there's three.

And by then I'm in panic mode.

So Jim doesn't say a word.

I think he's in total shock.

They were originally supposed to come in September, but they came seven weeks early, which was probably because they knew it was gonna be football season.

They needed to get here before football started.

Jim went back to school in coaching.

People told me he used to sleep in the faculty room during the day whenever he had free time.

I was home alone with them.

We didn't have any help.

I took care of them myself and our son's actual first day out was eastern conference, football game.

After he got home from the hospital because he was the first one home out of the three of them.

And so I took him to a football game and kind of got it in his blood from the very beginning, so... - The way we lost in that game and just the way we played overall, that was the most frustrating point.

I don't get angry too often but yet I care a lot more about things than what I may show at times.

See, she's already starting to go faster on the way back.

She's smart enough to know!

- Anybody that's ever coached.

You don't coach to make a lot of money, especially at the high school level.

You coach because you're passionate about that sport and you wanna help kids, you know, be successful and become well-rounded, successful young adults in the long run.

(students chattering) - Miss B, are you coming to the game tonight?

I'll watch it on TV.

(students chuckling) - So you guys are watching game film?

- Yeah.

- In class?

- Yes.

That's what I usually do.

Even though I'm the kicker, I just like watching it and seeing what we can do better.

- Yeah, this is my notebook, my football in the row.

I write all, every time I watch film, I write the plays down and I just started writing down the plays and writing down some notes about it and it's kind of helped me understand more about the game and how to attack each and every team, 'cause it's, you know, a really complex game, so... - He is a genius.

Like he has a hundred in every class.

We have a good friendly competition between both of us, because I'm number two and he's number one in our class.

- 2016, we're a blue ribbon school.

We are proud of our academic accomplishments as well as our athletic accomplishments.

(students screeching) (drums pounding) - There's bitterness, when Mount Carmel played Southern Columbia.

Mount Carmel had five state titles in 10 years.

Southerners trumped that.

- I think our one assistant coach, Rick Steele, found it on the field, said Mount Carmel, Red Tornadoes 2022 state champions.

- This is a great opportunity now, with this Mount Carmel game.

And it's really a game we need at this point after the two losses that we suffered in the way we played in those games.

We need to be in a game like this and find out where we are.

Most important regular season game in, (scoffs) forever.

- It's a huge rivalry, where there's a lot of respect for that program.

We're rooting for them every game of the year, except one.

(intense emotional music) - (shouts) It's all mental from this point!

Give it your all, we'll win this!

This is the biggest game, you have a plan.

Let's go!

(team loudly cheering) (crowd cheering) (music intensifying) - When we're going on set, you guys gotta get to the line and get set.

(whistle blowing) - Take over this game right here, right now.

All right?

Let's go.

(crowd cheering) - [Announcer] Touchdown, Red Tornadoes.

67 yards up the right side.

And that will do it.

I'm expecting in about a month from now, these two teams to meet in the District Four championship.

- See 'em in November.

We'll see 'em in November.

Remember this?

That's not gonna happen next time.

Y'all got me?

Y'all got me?

- [Team] Yes sir!

- State champs on three!

- [Team] One, two, three, state champs!

(objects violently slamming) - How are they gonna respond to this adversity?

Because what they're facing this year hasn't been seen at Southern in, I don't know how long.

- It almost seems like it's routine where it's become the expectation to get to the state championship every year.

And you know, this is it.

They're done.

- That changed the whole aspect of the season.

- I've heard different people say they thought that the season turned at different points.

For me, when the final seconds ticked off, Wes Barnes, if you noticed, some people might have seen it or seen video footage of it.

He was the first person in line to go out and shake hands with Mount Carmel.

It was almost like a sign of, okay, I wasn't on the field for this game.

We didn't play our best, but we're gonna see you again.

- [Interviewer] I have a shot of you from the sidelines.

You had a headset on and you were talking to somebody up in the booth.

- Thank you.

- [Interviewer] Do you remember this?

- Yes, I do.

I think it might have been my tackle.

- [Announcer] Carter kicks it to Diaz.

He gets it at the eight, he has running room, he's across the 35, and he's gonna be hit hard.

That was the kicker, Casey.

That was Isaac Carter that laid the boom there.

- Maybe in the postseason.

(Issac chuckles) - [Coach] Hey, good job.

- One interesting story from this past year was Isaac Carter.

So he's a soccer player for Southern Columbia.

So their program, unfortunately, lost early in districts.

- After we lost in the district semi-finals for soccer, it was heartbreaking.

I remember the next day at practice.

I was like, I gotta rip someone's head off.

Coach Mills went up to me, he said, "Do you wanna play a position?"

I said, "Yeah, whatever I can do to help the team out."

- And he was practicing.

I'm like, what's he doing?

Well, he said he wants to play now.

I'm like, okay.

- I put a lot of work in the off-season and when you're five and three, not knowing that you're, like all that work may have not paid off.

Whenever I have a sense of doubt in my mind, I know I can rely on God to help me get through a challenge.

God puts obstacles in your way and if you get through them, you strengthen yourself.

I think that's great, what he does.

He doesn't just give it to you.

You have to actually go out and prove yourself and get over those obstacles.

- Listen, just wanna tell you one thing before this first playoff game, there is nothing we can do about any failures or losses that we had during the regular season.

Nothing you can do about it now.

I don't look at this stuff but I'm told we're not even listed as an honorable mention on some of these rankings in the state.

If every one of you decides to kind of start playing this game with a chip on your shoulder, that you have something to prove, you know, in a little more of an angry manner, demeanor, it would go a long way.

First playoff game is gotta happen right now.

(team cheering and clapping) - All right, so senior's last homie, let's make this moment real, all right?

We're gonna go here and punish these kids.

I don't think I was ever that hyped for a game.

I don't think any of us were that hyped for a game.

- (claps) Yeah.

- I mean I've always loved to play football, especially with my friends.

So I went out and I just, as soon as I got that first hit, I was like oh my gosh, I missed this.

So yeah, I'm here today and I'm trying to help the team win.

- [Announcer] Southern Columbia, three losses in the regular season, something very rare.

- There has to come a point where someone says, "This isn't gonna happen again."

- [Announcer] We're gonna see for the first time in six weeks, Wes Barnes.

- We were really concerned, like how is he gonna be able to play with a major ligament gone in your elbow?

And then he had to wear that big brace on there.

- When we lost him on Carmel, he told me, he said, "I'm coming back," just wait time to come back, and look what happened when he came back.

(cheerleaders chanting) - [Announcer] Here comes up the middle the Wes Barnes, he's across the 50, across the 40, the 30, the 20, the 10, and a touchdown, what a start!

Wes Barnes, 58 yards.

Welcome back, Wes Barnes.

- At the time, when he first started to play, we didn't know how good he was gonna be.

He hadn't played a regular position in years.

After two and a half, three days of practice, he went out and played like he was just playing the game all along.

- It's nostalgic, 'cause I played in junior high and I just, I just love this game, especially playing with these guys, 'cause I've been friends with 'em for a long time.

- [Announcer] Halfway through the second quarter, 69 - nothing.

The demise of the Southern Columbia Tigers may have been over exaggerated.

- Nothing phased him.

So then once he played through that game, we knew, you know, he's good to go.

(whistles blowing) - So the handoff is gonna be a fake and it's gonna be a fumble and it's recovered by the Tigers!

Isaac Carter recovers the fumble!

- Honey, good!

- Kids watching this, drink your honey.

- [Announcer] Back to pass.

He's gonna look, he's gonna fire.

- [Announcer 2] Oh, boy!

- [Announcer] Wes Barnes, a one-handed interception and West Barnes is gonna take it 26 yards for the touchdown, Wes Barnes with a highlight reel play.

Having the game of his season.

(fans cheering) - When Wes told me he's coming back, we knew that we were gonna be unstoppable.

(whistle blowing) - That's why I came back, to play both sides and play with my guys and for the last ride.

So, yeah.

- Mount Carmel area next, district championship.

So just how motivated are you guys to come back and play them and obviously you missed that first game.

- Yeah, definitely motivated.

They didn't see me on the field that game, so I think it's gonna be a lot different.

We'll see how it goes and we're confident, so... That's all I need, thanks.

- Yep.

- [Announcer] Tonight is that the Silver Bowl and Mother Nature brought us some snow.

It's a football atmosphere, this battle between these two powerhouses and as district Four, possibly championship games go, they don't get much bigger than this.

- Now the game was crazy.

That's the craziest game I've ever played in.

- A snow squall coming in right at the right time at the Silver Bowl in Mount Carmel.

Two rivals.

I mean, that was exactly how you would draw it up and write the script for a movie, isn't it?

- I know we're gonna play better than we did the first time we played them.

Win or lose.

You're gonna remember this game for a long time.

How do you want to remember how you played?

Are you ready?

- [Team] Yes!

- [Coach] Are you ready?!

- [Team] Yes!

- Team on three, one, two, three!

- [Team] Team!

(motivational music) - Coach Ross just did a great job managing us and just keeping us motivated and hungry.

- Listen, you should be thinking right now during this game about Mount Carmel, Loyalsock and Danville, take it out on these guys right now!

(team cheering) - He got fired up.

That's the first time I had seen him get fired up before a game.

(fireworks whistling and crackling) - [Announcer] (speaking faintly) Blessing in motions.

Pierce will throw it again, the (indistinct) is it, steps inside, he goes, and he gets a... And he'll get his first touchdown!

Mount Carmel area jumps on top here in this district four class AA championship game.

Carter, standing on what I think is his own 35 High-Snap.

Good athletic ability to pull down, he's gonna take off with it and he's gonna get the first down.

What a play by Isaac Carter!

- [Crowd] Issac!

Isaac!

- That was not a scripted play but it ends up being the defining play of the season by a lot of accounts.

- And and they went down and they scored.

- Barnes, around the left side.

He's got some open running up the hill and he'll take it into the end zone for a touchdown!

- It's demoralizing to Mount Carmel.

Up to that point had played a great football game and then from there it just seems like they couldn't recover.

(crowd loudly cheering) - [Crowd] Defense!

Defense!

(whistles blowing) - That is him!

That is him!

- [Announcer] Mount Carmel with eight men in the box, and they well give it a ride, and Wislowski tries to run the jet on the right side and he does get down the sideline, still tiptoeing now cut it back, to the 20, to the 10 and he's got the speed he's gonna take it in for another Southern Columbia touchdown, wow.

(cheerleaders chanting) - That was a huge, huge moment.

Something I'll remember for a long time.

(teammates clapping) - Yeah, baby!

Yeah baby!

That's a freaking good one!

- Gotta act like you've been there before 'cause we have, but this is a special win because of the way things went this year, obviously losing to 'em the first time, and when you're on the field, you gotta take that approach too, right Kyle?

- [Kyle] Yeah.

- When you get in the end zone, act like you've been there before!

(team laughing) - This was their best coaching year ever.

The main thing getting in the players' minds that the coaches still believe in us.

They're not giving up on us.

(crowd loudly conversing) - It's a great feeling.

Everyone thinks that we're the underdogs.

They're 12 - 0, we're come into their field, snowy day.

We just came out and dominated and showed what Southern football's about.

- Woohoo!

Yes!

Yes!

All we do is win!

Win!

- We just got up the intensity up, especially with Wesley coming back, the intensity row is alive.

(fans cheering) - [Interviewer] What was going through your mind in the regular season meeting when they beat you, but you're standing on the sideline in street clothes?

- I didn't think that we were amped up for the game.

We were tentative and didn't really come with aggression and I knew with me on the field our team would become ready to go, so... - [Teammate] Yo, bring it in, bring it in!

- We got it.

- It's not over yet.

It's not over.

Business ain't done yet.

- We knew that, yeah, the outcome was great, but you know what's even better?

Proving everyone wrong.

And win the state championship.

(epic instrumental music) - Bishop Gilfoyle was the reigning class, single-leg champ.

They had moved up in classifications.

So that was a game between two reigning state champions.

(whistle blowing) (whistle blowing) - [Interviewee] The way Braeden did it, it was like it was supposed to happen.

- That was the play of the year.

- [Announcer] Roster in motion, he's weathered back and he actually hands the ball to Lion, a nice play there.

First down, run inside the 30... Oh!

He (indistinct) to Wislowski!

He's gonna go!

75 yards!

He's gonna change it!

He stripped the ball!

And Braeden Wislowski's on the house!

Oh, there goes that hand!

And the Tigers lead 27 - 7, with 6:24 left of playing!

- [Announcer 2] I cannot believe what I just saw, Dave.

- Playmakers make plays, right?

Let's go!

- You have what could have been a 21 to 14 game now being a 28 to 7 game.

And from that point it was over.

- Gabriel.

- We're here because of what the defense has done the last three weeks.

Just take it notch higher!

(players smashing) (crowd cheering) - [Announcer] Shoved out a bounds by Isaac Carter and he just leveled him!

- Isaac Carter's just been, I think, the MVP so far.

- He was a game record.

- [Announcer] You don't see that often from the kicker, but that just shows his strength.

- Hey, it's my senior year, I got nothing to lose so I'm not coming back again, so...

He's got let all out there.

(dramatic music) (crowd cheering) - [Referee] Touchdown.

- They're never gonna tackle me, tackle like that.

When I turn, they start hitting me in the legs or I ain't going down.

- [Announcer] And that's gonna do it.

- Let's go, man.

- Not finished yet.

- Let's go, let's go.

- Southern Columbia, the eighth consecutive state championship appearance.

Looking to win 6 in a row and a 13th next week.

- Going for number 13, guys, great job.

(team cheering) - [Team] State champs on three!

One, two, three, state champs!

- It's awesome.

I don't think anybody expected us to be in the state championship this year.

- I think there's a lot of doubters and hey, I was one.

And you know, this is why they're the program they are.

And this is why Jim Roth, winning his coach in PA, is one of the best at it.

(people chattering) - Comin' off a elbow injury like that, most kids just won't wanna play the rest of the season.

The things he did for the team, not for him, for the team.

He just wants to play that bad and win that bad.

It's amazing.

- Nice job, kid.

One more.

(door squeaking) - I was concerned about Southern being too one-dimensional against a very athletic, you know, big team in the Westinghouse.

- Their coach did a good job of building that program over a four-year period.

- And I think they expected to win because they had rolled over everybody they had played all season long.

- What really impresses me is they just are relentless and they're fast.

So I mean if we're in zone, you're playing zone to our left.

If we're a man, you're covering him.

He's usually number one.

- Where?

- We're waitin' on pizza.

Fix your hair.

And talk smart.

- The whole difference I think is I run defense.

It's changed so much since that home game.

We learned so much.

- If the right tackle, 57 gets down in the three point, it's a run.

It was like that almost 90% of the time.

If there's two guys in the back field, they're running the football.

They did not throw a single pass out of a two back set.

- Things changed around.

We had Isaac Carter come and his enthusiasm and love of the game and just his excitement playing was contagious.

I said, now we had Barnesy come back, and I said, Barnesy's barely controlled rage, the way he plays was contagious.

- One more game.

One more game.

- I've missed one state championship game.

And it was against Rochester and I happened to be in New York City.

My father was at Memorial Sloan Kettering having surgery for his cancer.

And that was the only game I missed.

And, you know, we were following it.

He was even asking me for updates on the game.

You know, he was the reason why I became the fan that I was.

I honestly didn't believe we were going to be at this point.

I didn't think that we would get to this point.

And here we are.

You know, coach Roth and his staff has done unbelievable job as they always do.

And this is what we live for.

(emotional music) - This season's been late.

The Knoebels Phoenix, with all the ups and downs, but through all the twists and turns you've ridden to the best around.

Going for Title XIII, no other schools are even close.

We keep adding on those titles.

Tigers will always have the most.

Braeden has his speed and Wes plows people down.

Beware when these two get started.

They're definitely the best around.

When Wes got hurt and broken, it made lots of people sad, but now he's back leading the way.

Don't know about you, but I'm sure glad.

There's a new sheriff in town.

Isaac Carter is his name.

His passion and his leadership has brought a new spirit to our games.

It was hard losing Garrett.

He's a force we wish we had, but he'll be back next season, which makes Tiger Nation glad.

The table is set for victory.

The menu has been well-planned.

We're having bulldogs for lunch tomorrow, their season, the tigers will can.

No matter what the outcome you make as proud as you can be.

But come Friday afternoon in the valley, it's only gold that you will see.

So go get that 13th title, bring it home to SCA, play hard, God bless, and a fun and let's go all the way.

(students applauding) - It is why everybody plays the game.

Very few guys in the state anywhere, period.

But in the state of Pennsylvania, you get to play in a state championship game.

When you realize there's 500+ schools.

All right, there's a ton of programs and very few people get this opportunity.

You got this opportunity because of what you did, because of what people before you did.

There's a lot of tradition.

There's a lot of pride.

One simple phrase guys, a lack of respect.

Make 'em pay for it.

Let's go.

(team cheering) - Let's go!

(teammates quietly chattering) (crowd cheering) (whistle blowing) - Weston House did a good job of stopping their running game.

- Oh, come on!

- [Announcer] Hand off inside, to Taylor, and he's got room and he'll score.

Impressive second possession for Westinghouse.

- In the first half, I was a little too hyped up for a little bit and you can tell because of that dumb penalty.

- [Announcer] Isaac Carter trying to chase him down and they'll get him down in the 35-yard line.

- And a penalty flag.

So we will get one more play.

(players shouting) - All right, get it out, okay?

- Okay, so all the ref is saying is he called out 43, he didn't flag you.

He said your hit was the one.

So just remember that.

Can't go without you.

- Smart!

- I remember Holt and Bloom get in my face and says, "Bro, stop with that hype stuff.

You gotta do your job."

- That's all you have to do.

You don't have to be this angry.

Just do your job and everything takes care of itself.

Control your gap, get a pass rush, then get up and celebrate.

That's all you gotta do.

That's all, that's the only three things you gotta do, all right?

All right?

- And that really stuck into me and I was like, that's what a good teammate says to you when you're down.

- I need help with that kid when I'm dying like that.

I can't keep up.

I'm dying.

- They have good speed.

They pursue.

We have had too many opportunities for more yards, but we're not getting north and south fast enough.

I mean, we can get into the secondary and break one.

- What changed in that game was they realized you can't run east west on them.

When they started going north south, that changed the whole complex of the game.

- [Announcer] Handoff, he breaks through, he's out at the 50, he's still going, you wanna run, by Braeden Wislowski.

- So that was definitely a Wislowski game.

That was a Braeden Wislowski take-over the game.

- [Announcer] Here's a handoff to Wislowski.

Again, and there he goes!

He will score untouched from the 38-yard line.

(crowd cheering) We're still, here comes the pressure screen.

This is to Taylor.

He'll get the first down and more and he's still going.

Look at this, look at this!

Down the near sideline, Taylor will score!

How about that?

Third down and 22, from the Southern Columbia, 39.

- Southern doesn't throw the ball.

That one's not in the scouting report.

- [Announcer] I haven't seen Southern Columbia throw a pass yet in the second half.

- But when they needed it, they got him.

- [Announcer] Why is it back to pass?

He fires.

(suspenseful music) (emotional music) - And he caught the first down, by Braeden Wislowski!

He made the spin off, and he's gonna go!

He's into the yard zone!

A 61-yard touchdown!

- Did I tell you?

Did I tell you?

Huh?

Huh?!

- Especially with all the media and all the hate that I got throughout the year, it just felt nice to know that all of it didn't matter.

'Cause at the end of the day, we made the play.

- What did I tell you man, today?

- You told me!

- Yep!

Keep it up.

- [Cheerleaders] Defense!

Defense!

- [Announcer] Looking for sincere Smith, pressures come in, more solos, gotta run it.

He fumbles a football and Southern Columbia's got it.

(teammates cheering) - They kept coming.

Every time Southern kind of took a two-score lead.

Westinghouse came back.

- [Announcer] Back to pass is more so, oh, he looks, he fires and it's gonna be cut for a touchdown.

Wow, what a play, there.

This Westinghouse team, they're not gonna go down without a fight.

- [Announcer 2] We got ourselves the game, 3:08 to go.

Barnes, Wislowski.

Here's Barnes, they'll feed him, to the 40, bounces outside, gets a block.

To the twenty five, twenty, ten, five, and knocked out of bounds.

- Put this ball- - Put the game away!

Send these guys back!

- Be physical!

- Handoffs gonna go to Carter Madden, he's gonna get inside the five.

- And he's gonna get into the endzone!

- 9-yard touchdown run, Carter Madden!

- [Interviewee] Everything led up to that point and nothing mattered before that.

- [Announcer] When fantasy becomes reality, Southern Columbia, the most improbable state championship in their story's history.

- [Interviewee 2] It's probably their toughest state championship win, but probably one of the most rewarding.

- Hey, it's only fitting.

This game was just like the season.

The way it started, the regular season, all the adversity, not being, you know, in a position where things were going easy.

You guys persevered today.

Let tell you right now, this is, of all of our titles, this is right up there with any of the teams that we beat.

That's a heck of a football team you put away today.

Couple losses, everybody had you written off.

They're at home watching you on TV right now.

Heck of a job.

- Yeah!

(team joyfully shouting) (team chanting) - [Teammate] State champs on three!

- [Team] One, two, three, state champs!

(group chattering) (soft motivational music) - Just accomplished, that's really it at this point.

My head's pounding, my arm's done.

I don't know what else to do right now, but I'm gonna start and go celebrate.

- Cherish this one forever.

Forever!

- I love you, man.

He's too emotional because he work so hard for this and everyone doubted us, coming in with three losses in the regular season.

I just thank, I can't thank God any more, for me in this opportunity with my team.

Just let's start teaming at this point.

(Issac sobbing) Sorry.

- [Interviewer] No, it's okay, man.

- Just really emotional.

- [Interviewer] It's great.

- Because I love my team so much!

- This year, Southern Columbia faced so much adversity.

They had so many injuries, the three losses, you know, they faced so much throughout the year, winning the state championship.

You thought, okay, you know, it was done.

- Shortly after the game, of course we were notified of this.

You know, TikTok, post.

- Two underclassmen from Southern Columbia posted something that was a trend on TikTok.

There's music tied to it.

- You know, in that rap song, there's a racial slur.

- The PIAA stepped in, Southern Columbia stepped in.

- We addressed it accordingly.

Following the school handbook, and athletic handbook.

You know, we don't tolerate any type of harassment or racism.

- I talked to them in school.

I was like, yeah, you guys made a mistake.

But I love you guys.

You guys are my teammates.

Everyone makes mistakes.

I know that with my faith that you can't hold grudges, you can't judge people.

(motivational guitar music) - Everyone makes mistakes and we, again, we try to learn from these mistakes and try to move past them.

- And I think that one event shouldn't be labeled as everyone.

- All of us have been playing together since we were 11, 10 years old.

Sometimes even younger than that.

- It's a brotherhood.

It's more than a team.

- The mindset is, it's not about you, it's about each other.

- Growing up, I looked up to the older kids like, you want to be a state champion.

It's a standard.

- Hey, good throw!

(ambulance wailing) - My first love was football, so yeah, I'll definitely miss it.

The tradition, chemistry, everything that I moved here for.

- What's special about this place, this field.

- The atmosphere, people coming out and watching us.

I've been playing my whole life.

Loved it my whole life.

Playing with my boys.

I'm gonna miss it.

- So they wrapped you up with toilet paper, how was it?

- This is the dinner of state champions.

- I wasn't gonna play this year and what brought me back to playing was these guys.

What we did today, I wouldn't trade for the world.

And I love that you guys continue to support us, Five and three.

Wow, you know?

Here we are today, so... (students cheering) - These will be my brothers for life, definitely.

Because we suffer through a lot and once in a lifetime experience, definitely.

To show what a group of people can do if they put their minds to something.

- We had, you know, a 26-game losing streak.

But this, my cousin said, don't you get sick of all that winning?

Like, no?

(laughs) You never know when it'll disappear.

- I'd like to thank the whole Tiger community and everybody that backs us for just making this that much more special and making it feel like we actually did something good for the community.

- Thank you for Wes Barnes and Braeden Wislowski.

- I love 'em.

I love 'em.

- We're alive to witness something that's probably never gonna happen again in high school sports in Pennsylvania.

(emotional music) (team loudly cheering) - [Teammate] State champs on three!

- [Team] One, two, three, state champs!

(motivational music) (whistle blowing) (music intensifies)