Renewing the long-lasting tradition of shutting down the Austin High Maroons, the varsity football team conquered their first victory of the season on Friday, Sept. 5. Coming back stronger than ever after last year’s shocking upset, the Warriors wielded a consistent defensive line along with a powerful offense to defeat the Maroons 39-9. 

“We played great [today]. It was so much about teamwork — we all had fun doing it,” Maps Mehis ‘28 said. “[Especially] because it was one of my first home games [at Kelly Reeves], it was a great experience, a great atmosphere, [and] I think we did really amazing.”

Starting off slow in the first quarter, Warrior offense loses possession of the ball right from the outset to a speedy Maroon interception. However, Warrior defense easily makes up for the mistake by building a sturdy defense line restricting any significant Maroon movement on the next possession. Warrior defense maintained aggressive consistency when blocking the Maroons throughout the game. This enabled the Warriors to push the Maroons to fourth down and prevent them from scoring. While the Warriors defense worked to hold Austin High, the Warriors offense was dealing with some strategic struggles in getting the ball down the field. This stalemate eventually breaks with a long 25 yard drive by Drew Norrell ‘26, a move that culminated with a touchdown by Mehis. The energy on the field now shifts as the offense begins gaining momentum, and the defense gets a safety to add an extra two points to the board.

“As a team, we did great running the ball and sticking with it,” Mehis said. “We played the whole game and finished all the way through, [and] we didn’t have any slow points — if we needed to bounce back from something, we bounced back from it. Honestly it was just a great night, in the air, on the ground, on defense.”

With the Warriors now finding their footing on the field, the second quarter commences strongly with the Warriors on offense, and Mehis securing a commendable 74 yard drive and touchdown. Following in the defense’s footsteps, Warrior offense began exhibiting their own consistency in power and strategy. Despite the Warriors energy build on both ends of the field, the second quarter also saw massive penalties build up against the Warriors. Instead of choosing to risk running, the Warriors decided to play it safe and go for a successful field goal, bringing the score up by three. 

“This is my fourth varsity season, [and I’ve progressed a lot] by just learning the new places,” Norrell said. “Because we got new head coaches, it’s been a little hard [to adapt], but we’re all getting it down real well.”

However, while the offense certainly started maneuvering down the field weaving through aggressive Maroon defense, the Warriors failed to connect on long passes, instead relying on short, rapid ones followed by long runs down the field. This gap prevented them from making any more touchdowns the rest of the quarter. As the Maroons did what the Warriors couldn’t and began inching closer to the end zone via long passes, Warrior defense was also pushed to shift strategy. Relying more on aggressive, moving tackles than maintaining a confining defensive barrier. By shifting defensive strategy, the Warriors were able to keep the Maroon’s score to an ultimate minimum, bringing the first half to 19-0. 

“[A challenge] was that they stacked a lot of guys in the box on us today, so we’re going to have to figure out how we’re going to get bodies on bodies [in the future],” Wade Allen ‘26 said. “Besides that, we didn’t have too much trouble…it was a pretty sweet ride.”

Moving into the second half, the Warriors come back with a renewed energy and determination to secure those long passes they’ve been falling short of.  First Possession back after halftime the Warrior offense begins to make steady progress, ending their offensive drive with a 50 yard pass to Norrell, who ran the ball into the end zone and captured the Warrior’s third touchdown of the evening. While offense begins to see the start to steady success as the game matures, defense once again demonstrates how they served to be the foundational backbone behind the night’s victory: putting an end to a dangerously long drive by the Maroons, Logan Miller ‘26  intercepts the ball to then run it down field, staving Austin High from reaching within close range of the end zone. Towards the end of the quarter, the Maroons finally put themselves on the board with a field goal, bringing the score to 25-3. 

“We started out really slow, [but] we threw the ball well, I caught the ball well, [and was able to run] a lot of yards after the catch, [so] I think we all spread the wall pretty well,” Norrell said. “Everyone’s happy, and it’s definitely going to improve next week.”

Starting off the final quarter strong, Warrior offense launches a powerful drive across the field, with Mehis running the ball into the end zone for a touchdown. However, the cheers from the team and stands are cut to a halt with a face mask penalty, resulting in a 15 yard penalty at first down. Offense is now struggling, not due to lack of power or strategy, but rather due to heightened aggressiveness causing a series of penalties. 

“[Being on varsity] is definitely a lot different [than previous years],” Mehis said. “It’s a big step — the competition is [definitely] better, but you can’t let [that] get to you, you still have to plan it out [well] on who you’re playing, it doesn’t matter who [it is].”

After a few timeouts on both sides, the Warriors return focused and with strong footing in this final stretch. Defense ends the Maroons offensive drive quickly to regain possession for the Warriors. On offense, Cooper Waits ‘27 scores a quick touchdown to advance the Warriors lead even more. An interception by Cam Green ‘26 gives the Warriors back the ball to attempt yet another touchdown to add to the night. With a quick throw and long run by Weston Franz ‘27, the Warriors earned their fifth and final touchdown of the game.  Up by 36, Warrior defense eases up a bit, allowing for more Maroon movement on the field, a feat that results in the sole touchdown for Austin High. After stalling to burn the remainder of the game clock, the Warriors were able to claim their first victory of the season 39-9. 

“The crowd was great [today so] we fed off the energy and we scored a lot of points,” Allen said. “We ran the ball very well [today], we threw it well, our defense played great and those are the keys to success.”

The varsity football team will return next Friday, Sept. 12 to play against the McNeil Mavericks in their own homecoming game.