The Brooks brothers are thankful to have the opportunity to play for a second consecutive Class 2A, Division I state championship.
But the brothers know when Shiner (15-0) takes on Hawley (15-0) at 7 p.m. Wednesday, it will be the last time they play in a high school game together.
"It has crossed my mind," Doug Brooks said. "It's crazy to think about. We've been together for so long and this is the last one. We plan to go out with a win to finish it right."
Doug, a senior, and Dalton, a junior, have been playing football together since the Pee Wee level, and have forged a connection built on their love and respect for each other.
"The chemistry we have is there no matter what we're doing," Dalton said. "We know what each other is going to do every time we step on the field."
The brothers are also passionate about football whether it's at practice, during a game or just hanging out.
"We mostly talk about football when we're at home," Dalton said. "We watch football together most of the time and we make sure we have things down."
"That's what we talk about all day," Doug added. "Anybody I hang with, if we're not talking about football there is really nothing to talk about besides football."
Doug wears jersey No. 1 and Dalton wears jersey No. 2 and it's not by coincidence.
"They're really close," said Shiner coach Daniel Boedeker. "They hang out with each other all the time, the lockers are next to each other and they play well together."
Class 2A, Division 1 State Championship Final
Shiner Comanches vs. Hawley Bearcats
When: Wednesday, December 15, 2021 @ 7:00pm
Where: AT&T Stadium, Arlington
Radio: KYKM, 94.3 FM & KTXM, 99.9 FM
Internet Audio: txthunderradio.com
Twitter: mikeforman21, @PLScamardo2, @FowlerSports14
Internet Video: BallySports
Their performance speaks for itself. Doug, a 6-foot, 280-pound fullback and defensive tackle, has offers from Houston, UTSA, Colorado State and Army.
Doug has rushed for 1,646 yards and 26 touchdowns, and ran for 122 yards and three touchdowns in Shiner's 35-28 semifinal win over Timpson. He also has 93 tackles, including 14 solo tackles, and two sacks.
Dalton, a 6-foot-2,180-pound tailback and defensive back, has more than 20 offers from schools including Alabama, Ohio State, Notre Dame, Texas and Texas A&M.
Dalton has rushed for 2,416 yards and 36 touchdowns, and ran for 234 yards and a touchdown in the semifinal win. He also has 144 tackles, including 20 solo tackles, and three interceptions, including a game-sealing interception in the semifinal.
"Having them has been awesome," Boedeker said. "They're really good football players and I've said many, many times that they're not only great athletes, they're great kids. They're definitely a pleasure to coach. They give us everything they've got every day and that's all you can ask for."
Doug was named the defensive player of the game in last year's state final and is remembered for stripping the ball from the Post quarterback and returning it to the 1-yard line before handing it to teammate Max Machacek, who scored the touchdown.
"My main goal is just to win," Doug said. "There's individual goals in the back of my head, but my goal is just to win."
Dalton was named the offensive player of the game in last year's state final. He had his breakout moment in this season's regional final game against Refugio, where he rushed for 384 yards and six touchdowns.
"We anticipated this for a long time when we were younger," Dalton said. "It feels great and we achieved great things playing together."
Doug has an overall record of 52-3 during his four years on the varsity at Shiner, while Dalton has a career record of 31-1.
But their priority at the moment is adding one more win to each other's column.
"I've stopped to think about this being our last game many times," Dalton said. "It's only going to make it better for us to get a win."
"We had a great four seasons," Doug said "It would mean a lot to go back-to-back. In the history of Shiner, it hasn't been done. To win twice is even bigger."
NOTES:
For championship game schedules and ticket information go to www.uiltexas.org/football/state ... Shiner will be the Home team.
Shiner is making its sixth appearance in the state final and won state football titles in 1986, 2004, and 2020.
The Class 2A, Division 1 State Championship game is scheduled for 7 p.m. Wednesday, Dec. 15 at AT&T Stadium in Arlington.
Listen to the game LIVE on Texas Thunder Radio | Watch the game LIVE on BallySports.com | D2A-D1 State Program (.PDF) |
Mike Forman is the sports editor of the Victoria Advocate. Contact him at 361-580-6588 or mforman@vicad.com | |
Duy Vu is a staff photojournalist at the Victoria Advocate.
Contact him at 361-574-1204 or dvu@vicad.com. |
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Howard Esse is a guest photographer for the Victoria Advocate.
Contact him at 361-772-6020 or Howard Esse @ LinkedIn. |