Simply perfect
Hawks complete 16-0 season for state title
ARLINGTON, Texas—Pleasant Grove head football coach Josh Gibson’s dream became reality Friday.
The Hawks, in the fourth season under Gibson, completed a 16-0 season and the Black Hawk defense limited two-time defending state champion West Orange-Stark to 283 yards of total offense during Pleasant Grove’s 41-21 thrashing of the Mustangs in the Class 4A, Division II championship game at AT&T Stadium.
The Hawks intercepted West Orange-Stark three times, two in the final 30 seconds that were both returned for touchdowns.
The heralded Mustang Chain-Gang defense was roughed up by the Hawks for 359 yards of total offense, with Gibson’s brother Justin Gibson making the calls as offensive coordinator.
“This whole thing is about relationships, and my brother gave up a lot to leave Frisco (where the brothers coached under their father, Vance),” Josh Gibson said. “To have my dad, my mentor, my hero, my dad—someone I wanted to grow up and be like on the sidelines—here when we win this was special.
“A lot of our athletic programs have been successful, going to state and winning state. Football needed to catch up with the other programs because they’ve been really good; we’ve done that now.”
Xavier Benson and Aaron Harmon returned pick-sixes, Benson’s covering 22 yards with 15 seconds left and Harmon’s 44-yard return was the final play of the title bout, ending the Mustangs’ 40-game win streak, which dated back to 2015.
“Coming out of the gate, we knew we had to make a big play to set the tone,” said fullback T.J. Cole, who scored three touchdowns and was named Offensive MVP. “We laid out this entire game plan, and we executed in all four aspects of the game.”
Caleb Porchia was named the Defensive MVP after collecting nine tackles to add to his school record. Porchia also had 1 1/2 sacks.
Cameron Wells, who won the coin flip with his heads call, which set up Cole’s 75-yard touchdown reception just 10 seconds into the game, picked off West Orange-Stark in the second quarter, when Pleasant Grove’s defense didn’t allow a first down until the final Mustang drive of the half.
“We wanted to contain their quarterback and force them to throw,” Wells said. “I just got myself in a good position for the interception. The ball was in the air, and I just grabbed it.”
West Orange-Stark scored twice in the fourth quarter to cut its deficit to seven points, but the interception returns by Benson and Harmon put an exclamation mark on the Hawks’ state title.
The Pleasant Grove win makes Texarkana the only city in Texas with three schools to win state championships in football and baseball, the Hawks joining Texas High and Liberty-Eylau with that notoriety. Arkansas High also has state football and baseball
championships in its trophy case.
“I’m a big dreamer, and we talked about (winning state championships) on Day 1 with those guys,” Gibson said. “Everyone one of them will tell you that we talked about having the best program in the state of Texas. In order to do that, we needed to work harder than anyone, we needed to be tighter than anybody, and that’s what I’m most thankful for.
“They drank the Kool-Aid, they jumped in and put their heart and soul into this program; it’s been special. We just need to keep growing, as people, as young men. We’re in the business of growing young men and women, and the reason we put such an emphasis on high school athletics is because it’s not just the 16-0 teams that do that.”