The final day of the tournament in College Station we would witness the Highlanders battle their way through five different teams, the simmering Texas July heat and endless amounts of cramping fatigue to prevail over the Dickinson Gators 32-26.
In a game that almost saw a come from behind victory in favor of the Gators, the Woodlands victory would be sealed after a long heave from Dickinson to the left side of the end zone would fall harmlessly to the ground as a cluster of opposing jerseys reached for it and time expired.
The Woodlands had a 12-0 lead on Dickinson before the Gators would get their first score of the game. Dickson would make a few stops and eventually take the lead 13-12. The Woodlands would however score once more with under five minutes remaining to lead 18-13 at the halfway point.
The second half would see the Woodlands score again to take a commanding 25-13 lead. Dickinson would then summon their rally efforts and take the lead 26-25 with around two minutes remaining. After Dickinson took the lead, the Woodlands would score on the first play of their very next drive when senior quarterback Eric Schimd launched a deep ball down the right side of the field and connected with his receiver, leaving Dickinson down 32-26 and only a minute remaining.
“It was our goal this year to come out and win this thing. It just gives us that much more momentum going into the season,” said offensive MVP of the game Eric Schmid.
“Today we came out real slow and had a couple of drops and bad throws and we put ourselves in a bad position but we fought through and came back and won. It was huge and showed how we can persevere and get through anything.”
Eric Schmid is the son of head coach Mark Schmid who was in attendance on Saturday to see his team hoist the 7on7 trophy and had this to say in regards to his team winning.
“It’s awesome. We play 7on7 all summer and the main goal is for us to get better at throwing, catching and defending. We use that opportunity to compete and to get here and start the tournament one of sixty-four teams and be the number one at the end says a lot about our kids and their resiliency and their ability to keep playing.”Coach Schmid said
“Our big message is the most important play is the next one and I saw that today. I saw us give up big plays and not convert on offense. The next play our kids stepped out on to the field and kept playing and that’s what this game is all about. I was extremely pleased to watch the kids compete the way they did today.”
Now that the 7on7 tournament has concluded many teams will go back to work as their seasons get closer and closer. Veterans Park and Athletic Complex in College Station was filled with hoarse voices, cheers, boos, cowbells, whistles and horns this weekend. Come the start of the 2016 football season, the rest of Texas will be echoing the same sounds under Friday night lights.
