Houston’s dominance at Brentwood earns program first State Championship appearance
By Thomas Sellers Jr.
Moments after the Houston Mustangs secured a spot in the Class 6A State Semifinals, Head Coach James Thomas addressed his team on the chopped up field of Germantown High School.
“This is a team of destiny,” he said to his players, coaches, support staff and faithful.
Houston’s second ever trip to the State Semifinals meant a visit to the Brentwood Bruins. The Mustangs brought a defense performing at a high level and a healthy Damon Sisa. That recipe left a nasty taste in the mouths of the Bruins the day after Thanksgiving with Houston prevailing 28-0.
Back in 2019 the Mustangs came up short in the State Semifinals. Fast forward to 2023, Houston jumped ahead 6-0 when quarterback Chandler Day connected with target Derrick Miller Jr. for a 29-yard TD pass in the first quarter.
The second quarter was scoreless and the undefeated Bruins went into the locker room trailing.
Houston (12-2) entered the contest winners of 10 straight games and took another step toward 11 in row, feeding running back Sisa. A combination of big runs and timely short passes from Day, Sisa carved up the Brentwood defense.
Meanwhile the Houston defense shut down Brentwood (13-1) including a Miller interception.
Sisa scored three touchdowns in the second half including two short TD runs in the third quarter. Houston added a two-point conversion on Sisa’s second score to make the tally 21-0.
Sisa added an insurance touchdown in the fourth quarter from 5 yards out to secure Houston’s first trip to the State Championship game.
Waiting for the Mustangs Saturday for the 7 p.m. kickoff at Finley Stadium in Chattanooga are the Oakland Patriots. Also 12-2, Oakland took a similar path to the title game as Houston.
The Patriots were 8-2 at the end of the regular season after a seven game winning straight. Riverdale stopped Oakland’s winning ways on its home field in the regular season finale 25-24.
The Patriots avenged that loss in the Quarterfinals at Riverdale with a 56-0 victory. The Mustangs had deja vu in the Quarterfinals as well, beating Germantown 30-10 after dropping a 14-13 regular season decision on their home field.
Oakland earned a spot in the championship beating Bradley Central 38-17. Football State championships start Thursday with Division II’s three games. Friday night will feature the odd number classifications and Saturday is dedicated to the even number classifications. Nine champions will leave from the city of Chattanooga.
