Parker Dildy, Sports Reporter
The TCA football season started in early August, but we had been working ever since school got out for summer. Our previous roster had only 27 players. This year, we have accumulated 31 players from new freshmen coming into high school and transfers from other schools like Aledo and Covenant Classical, as well as other schools in our local area. The biggest roster in recent school history has allowed us to have JV games for freshmen who do not get as much playing time on varsity. These games give them valuable experience in live game situations and help prepare them to become varsity starters in the future. Freshman Levi Grey says, “It feels good to have a JV team because maybe some of the freshmen don’t get much on varsity and they get more playing time on JV.”
This also lets us get some great looks during practice because of the amount of players we have. Junior Noah Keyes says, “It’s always good, the more guys you can get involved because it shows that they all believe in the program and what we’re trying to do.” This also lets team culture and chemistry totally change. It has led to some great mentoring to underclassmen by helping them adjust to the new culture of high school, learn a new playbook, and understand the standards of being on the varsity team. Noah Keyes, a junior quarterback who transferred from Covenant Classical, has also made a major impact on the team by being one of the main people in our secondary defense and being an example to the younger guys in his position.
Some big pieces of the team this year include Senior Quarterback Colt Brinkman, a transfer from Aledo High School. He transferred over during the spring semester of last year for baseball season. Colt Brinkman has had a huge impact on the football team this year by stepping up and being one of the main leaders on the football team. The new culture of TCA has really affected Colt, how he holds himself, and how he views the game of football. He says, “The Christian culture at TCA is a total game changer and that is what makes TCA so special.” The Christian culture at this school just totally changes your perspective on how you view the game of football and how you hold yourself while playing.
With all these new additions, we as a team hope to make the playoffs for the first time in years and eventually go to state to have our best season since 2018. The goals of this team have been the highest of any TCA team because of all the key additions, how hard they worked during the summer, and how much time they put into their sport. The team takes pride in wearing the TCA logo on the field and hopes to make this season one to remember.