CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — “There’s only 16 teams left in the state that’s playing for a 5A-Division 2 state championship and so that’s really, really exciting,” Flour Bluff Head Coach Chris Steinbruck
There’s been no shortage of success coming out of Flour Bluff's Hornet Stadium. The Hustlin' Hornets are 9-2 thus far. They went undefeated in district play and claimed their second consecutive District 15 crown.
“It’s a great reward to all the hard work that our coaches and our kids put into this program," Steinbruck said. "It’s something that really started last year after we lost to Liberty Hill. We went right to work in off-season."
Liberty Hill Panthers and Flour Bluff went toe-to-toe in the regional finals last year.
"It was tied going into half. We came out, executed an onside kick, we had a procedure penalty on that play. ended up giving the ball back to (them) and that kind of killed our momentum," Steinbruck said.
Liberty Hill moved on to the state semifinals while Flour Bluff went home after losing 63-43.
“I remember it being a shootout. Very intense game. We ended with a loss, but we’re coming back stronger this year,” Hornets senior wide receiver Jayden Johnson said.
“I remember that it was definitely rough. They run Slot T offense and it’s pretty difficult up front, but it’s just going to have to take everything we got,” Hornets senior defensive tackle Kevin Burnette said.
Flour Bluff's offense has had an explosive offense all season, averaging 44 points a game. They've put up 52 points in both playoff games.
This game will come down to the Hornets defense. The Panthers run the Slot T offense, which means they run the ball more often and the play calling is fast paced.
“They pose a lot of challenges because it’s an offense that we haven’t seen all season," Steinbruck said. "They do a really good job with running it. Really the challenge is trying to get our JV (Junior Varsity) to simulate what it’s actually going to be like and the speed that it’s going to be like.”
The Hornets are excited for a rematch. A rematch with a new mindset is why it will be different.
“I feel like we have a better game plan this year. I think we watched better film and we’re doing a lot better job coming together as teammates and coming together as a family,” Johnson said.
“I think its because we work so hard. Everyone doubted us coming into the season. And, we’ve proven time and time again that we are good enough to get there,” Burnette said.
Flour Bluff will give it all they’ve got on Friday at 7 p.m. against Liberty Hill at Heroes Stadium in San Antonio.
"Job's not finished. We're going to keep going, keep getting better and come out and keep working hard," Johnson said.
For more sports coverage click here, or follow our Friday Night Fever Facebook or KRIS 6 Sports Twitter.
