Albany takes down Mart to earn second straight state title
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ARLINGTON, Texas — State titles are twice as nice in Albany.
The Lions went back-to-back for the second time in program history, matching the 1960 and 1961 state champs with titles in 2022 and 2023 with a 28-10 victory over Mart.
“When we left the field last year, these guys (seniors Adam Hill and Zane Waggoner) gave me this (holds up two fingers). It all started a year ago today, actually,” said head coach Denney Faith. “These guys had a great summer, a great spring, and when we started in July, that was our goal.”
Defenses ruled the first quarter, but the Lion offense joined the defense in dominating the second. Albany scored on a 52-yard Adam Hill run, then Laithe Leech recovered a fumble near midfield that set Albany up again. Chip Chambers scrambled and found Branson Beal for a 37-yard sixer that gave the Lions a 14-3 lead.
They added to it just before the half on a Chambers-to-Hill two-yard slant in the end zone to make it a 21-3 game at the break.
Mart got as close as 21-10 in the fourth quarter but could get no closer. Hill slammed the door with a five-yard touchdown run with 49 seconds left. He earned Offensive MVP honors, rushing for 132 yards and two touchdowns.
The offense did plenty, but the Lions defense proved to be their biggest strength. Albany limited high-scoring Mart to just 200 yards of total offense, hitting them hard time and time again.
“Our motto is no daylight, no air,” said Hill, who recorded a pair of tackles and a sack in the ballgame. “Get a bunch of bodies on the ball and just keep swarming every single play.”
Waggoner was named the Defensive MVP of the game. He was in on 9.5 tackles, 1.5 sacks and got to Mart quarterback De'Montrel Medlock time after time.
It is the second straight state title game loss for Mart, but head coach Kevin Hoffman guaranteed his team would be back in 2024. “We’re going to start the whole cycle over again, and I’ll be sitting here with you next year with a gold medal.”
