ARLINGTON, Texas — Jerry World has become a second home for the Mart Panthers, who have made the trip to Arlington six out of the past seven years.
This year, the Panthers were facing a familiar face in the Albany Lions, who took home the state title crown last season, defeating Mart in dominant fashion. The Panthers hoped to take care of their unfinished business, but instead left AT&T Stadium with silver instead of gold.
The Panthers were not only battling the number one team in 2A Division II, they were fighting injuries on all sides of the ball.
Quarterback De'Montrel Medlock and running back JD Bell were nowhere close to 100% on Dec. 14.
"All year long everything goes between #2 and #4," Kevin Hoffman, Mart head coach, said. "They weren't 100%. Everybody saw that. They've been banged up for the past two or three weeks, but that's not any excuse."
What started as a strong defensive game for the Panthers, holding Albany to just 7 points in the first quarter, slowly got out of hand. Mart struggled to find the end zone, scoring its only touchdown of the game in the final quarter of play.
This was a Panther squad that had fallen just short of a state title three of the past four years. It's a feeling that never gets easier.
"The message was the same last year," said Hoffman. "Take these silver medals and second-place trophy. We'll put that trophy case in with the others. I told these kids to take that medal and hang them in their bedroom where they see them every day, and use it as motivation. We have a target on our back. Every year. So, I'm just going to make the target bigger. We're going to get back here next year."
The state title snake bite hurts for everyone, but especially the seniors. The last time Mart brought home the gold was back when the current seniors were in eighth grade. They now graduate without that ring, but with unforgettable experience.
"We've been a part of six of these in the last seven years," Hoffman said. "We've won three of them and lost three of them. The seniors have been a great group of kids. They're all hurting right now that we didn't finish it off. We're going to get back here. There's not a doubt in my mind."
The Panthers make the trip back to Mart without that state title hardware, but now even hungrier for more.
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