Redemption: Adrian senior class completes goal

Editor's Note: From December 2024

By Jimmy Gillispie

COLUMBIA — This year's senior class of Adrian football players had one goal in mind when it began this season: to complete an act of atoning for guilt, a fault or a mistake.

It was simple – the Blackhawks wanted redemption.

They wanted redemption for what happened two years ago in the state title game. They wanted redemption for the previous 21 senior classes that never brought home a state championship trophy. They wanted redemption for their school and community.

Their goal was achieved Saturday evening at Faurot Field. It was achieved by a dominant second half performance in a 34–13 victory over Penney in the Class 1 state title game.

“The senior group, who we are going to miss dearly, has done an enormous amount for our program and for our school,” Adrian coach Matt Davis said. “They've been leaders not only on the field, but also in the classroom. They've just done an amazing job.”

In 2022, Adrian was shut out in the title game, losing 42–0 to East Buchanan, which won its second-straight state championship with that victory. Adrian had only scored fewer than 26 points only once all season and it came in a 19–16 loss at Tipton.

East Buchanan held Adrian to just 136 yards of total offense. East Buchanan also intercepted Adrian sophomore quarterback Colton Miller three times in the game.

A year ago, Adrian got bumped up to Class 2. The Blackhawks began the season with 11-consecutive wins before they ran into eventual state champion Lamar in the district title game. The Blackhawks lead going into the final quarter of the game, but lost 35–18, ending their perfect season and chance to return to the title game.

Adrian's lone blemish on this year's 13–1 record was a 28–21 home loss to Warsaw. Following the loss, Adrian rattled off 12-straight wins en route to Saturday's championship victory.

The Blackhawks shut out five opponents and held three more to just one touchdown during that stretch. They didn't allow more than 16 points during any postseason contest this fall, capping the season holding Penney, which averages 28 points per game, to just 13 points in the title game.

“I don't think the emotions hit them until about 10 minutes after the game” Davis said. “There was so much excitement and energy. watching them during the trophy celebration was great, watching them, celebrate with the team and then run over to our crowd and celebrate with the crowd. 

“I don't think the emotion really hit for all of us until after we had wrapped up and we were walking back up the hill, and then we realized that they had accomplished their goal and there was a finality to it. When all of that emotion hit, you can see the pride and the realization of what just happened hit them.”

This year's Blackhawk squad was led by seven seniors, six of whom started and played significant minutes the past three seasons. Ashton Wackerman and Hank Tenholder started all four years of their careers in the trenches for the Blackhawks.

Colton Miller, Brock, Ford, Mason Rusow and Andrew Kendrick all started on the 2022 team that fell to East Buchanan. Gavin Sanders joined the team this year as a first year player and became a starter for Adrian as as a lineman.

“By the time they were sophomores, they were a major part of that state run two years ago,” Davis said. “There were a lot of plays and a lot of wins out of that group of six. Then, Gavin is a senior who came out for the first time this year and found a starting role, and was a major part of us getting to and winning a state championship. This was his first year, and he fit in and did an amazing job for us.

“We've had some really strong leadership groups the past three years, and this group learned a lot from those two previous classes,” he added. “This senior group has always been a little bit of our spark. They may not have been the meat and potatoes of what we've done for the past four years, but they've always added that little bit of spark to us. They were able to see what the groups ahead of them did and then they were able to build off of that, and push the team to continue to be better and better.”