North Central played their hearts out on Friday night and simply came up short 42-32 against the best team in the state, the Warren Central Warriors. It’s going to hurt today and probably for the next couple of weeks. However, once these kids settle into the reality of what they were able to accomplish this season. They’ll be as proud of themselves as their parents, coaches and administrators are of them right now.
They had DubZilla, the three headed monster, on the ropes all night long and it wasn’t decided until the 1:37 mark of the fourth quarter when Romeir Elliott took a 4th and 1 to the house 43 yards. They were just that close to knocking off one of the best teams to ever play in this state.
Why should the North Central kids find solace in coming up that short? Because just three years ago this program was 0-10 then 1-9 and last year they were 3-7. Coach Kevin O’Shea or like I love to call him, Chinchilla O’Shea because he’s got so much swag that is incredibly contagious, has been the reason for the turn around. They won their first sectional title since 1993 last week and they darn near knocked off a team that has beaten them 29 consecutive times. They haven’t beaten Warren since the 1999 sectional.
To have them on the ropes bleeding from the mouth for three and a half quarters was incredible to watch. NOBODY all season long has played them that tight and with the exception of a mistake or two they could have won that game.
Oh yes, there’s plenty to be proud of this morning if you’re a North Central Panther. The program is looking up and in my opinion, they’re going to be everybody’s problem in the years to come. This isn’t about just football. This is about life. They learned how to overcome obstacles and fight adversity over the past few years. The seniors on this team have learned the most valuable lesson in life playing this game and that’s to never give up no matter how tough it gets.
They learned how to win and those lessons will follow them throughout their lives. They actually won on Friday night but it’ll take them years to understand it. That’s why they call it wisdom because you don’t get it until you actually go through something. Big shout to the entire program for all of your diligence and hard work. Keep up the outstanding efforts and stop me when I start lyin’!