A bittersweet sadness ended the season as the seniors took off their jerseys for the last time.
Patricia Smith
Gadsden County News Service
Last Friday night was a challenge like no other for this year’s Sneads varsity football team. They made it to the first round of FHSAA Playoffs but were matched with a larger team by numbers that was more experienced and advanced with senior athletes than their own.It was a stressful game and the young pirate athletes stood on the sidelines in between switch outs quietly watching as the digits on the scoreboard kept adding up for the Chiefland Indians. They knew by the 3rd quarter that no matter how hard they tried the outcome was inevitable and they were facing their last game of the season.
Sneads Head Coach Bill Thomas expressed his feelings about the outcome, “Friday was tough, but I thought the team fought hard. Chiefland has a good team that is senior heavy. They have a lot more students than we do. We felt coming in that we needed to play a perfect game.”
Chiefland packed in a good game and proved they were a dominant high school Florida team and by the end of the night they had won big with a final score of 44-6.
“I want my players to hate to lose but when they do I want them to be the kind of man who gets up off the floor and works harder. That is how you become successful in life,” Coach Thomas exclaimed with a passionate determination.
The game was packed with action! Sneads did hold their own the best they could. They were able to recover the ball with several turnovers, but the Indians were strong and when four of them went after the Sneads quarterback at a time there just was nowhere for him to run or have the space capability to maneuver in order to accomplish the complete passes needed for advancement towards touchdowns.
The Sneads Pirates had a good full season of learning and growing with an overall standing of 7-4. They have impressively come a long way from where they ended last year’s season with a 4-7 overall and the community is proud of what they were able to achieve together this season.
“We had 11 seniors on our team this year. They are all intelligent young men who have the ability to do a lot in this life. I’m proud of each of them. I’m looking forward to seeing what they accomplish,” Coach Thomas said.
Coach Thomas knew Friday night’s game against the Indians would be a challenge for his team and wanted to encourage them to understand and learn from the sport as an experience to carry forward in life. He spoke seriously when it came to discussing the future lives of his student athletes, “I had a former player come in and speak to the team Thursday night about how football lessons lead to the ability to handle the challenges of life. This former player is now a lawyer.”
As for the Chiefland Indians they will continue their journey into the 2025 FHSAA Playoffs for a second round against the Baker County Gators. They lost earlier this year to the Gators and are ready for a comeback win on November 21.
