Appreciation Thread for the 2022 PN-G Indians
- Thread starter IndianFan
- Start date
Everyone did awesome as a whole! These kids brought back a lot of honor, pride, and tradition to our community. It’s great to see our community come together, and these kids did just that. From the football team to the band, Indianettes, cheerleaders, G-crew, and even the NDN Press - all outstanding. It’s great to see a group of kids represent our community with such class like they did all season long. No doubt every time we faced an opponent, they saw just how special our community is through the actions of these kids. Super proud to witness it and have a kiddo take part in it.
HJJ97NDN
100+ Posts
Shout out to the 2022 Indians/Indianettes/Band for putting in the hard work to give us a all around great product on the field every Friday night. The praise we get from surrounding areas let you know that we are doing things right. This team I believed has paved a way for future teams to be successful as long as you buy in to the winning culture and work hard at it. This sure was a fun ride lets do it again next year!!
Thank you, PNG Indians, for providing a season of fun and crossing off a little bucket list of mine. I was unable to see or attend any 1999 games due to living far, far away and it tore me up. I've always wanted to attend some state championship games, especially involving PNG. That finally happened. I hope it happens again real soon. Thank you to the coaches and players!!!!
IndianFan
Web Guy
Amazing season. New coaches, new systems, improved defense. The team improved over the season and did something that many thought impossible. Along the way you represented well in every game. In the playoffs you beat teams that were considered almost invincible. In the state finals you played a defending state champion and dominated at moments even against their strengths, and went toe to toe the entire game.
Seniors, you are a special group. The offensive line will go down in history as one of the very, very best ever to play here. Ware, Loftin, Peña, Miller are names to be remembered. Prosperie, Guarnere, Lopez were amazing receivers. Db/Te Hebert, Thomas were vital pieces to the offense. Cole Crippen leaves his name in the record books as one of the top 5 or so QBs in PNG history in terms of passing yardage.
Seniors on defense were outstanding. Droddy, Baker, Broom, Landry, Gardiner, Hinton, Agudelo, Lawless, and others. Your effort, tough tackling and team play were the difference makers this season.
Sandoval, one of the best kickers in years. Mr. Clutch.
To all the juniors and sophomores coming back, you were amazing and we look forward to next season. We know you will work hard all off-season and continue the quest for excellence. You can do it again.
Coaches Joseph, McDaniel and McCrary, thanks for leading and coordinating an amazing revival of PN-G football excellence. And credit must be given to all the coaching staff for the hard work and efforts to prepare the team every week. The defensive turnaround was almost beyond expectations. The offense was fun to watch.
Another amazing year is in the history books. It’s tough to let it all go. Tough for the team to lose that last game. But PN-G represented what Texas high school football should be all about. One of the best bands out there, and fan support as good as it gets. And 2023 will be another opportunity for all to do it all again.
Seniors, you are a special group. The offensive line will go down in history as one of the very, very best ever to play here. Ware, Loftin, Peña, Miller are names to be remembered. Prosperie, Guarnere, Lopez were amazing receivers. Db/Te Hebert, Thomas were vital pieces to the offense. Cole Crippen leaves his name in the record books as one of the top 5 or so QBs in PNG history in terms of passing yardage.
Seniors on defense were outstanding. Droddy, Baker, Broom, Landry, Gardiner, Hinton, Agudelo, Lawless, and others. Your effort, tough tackling and team play were the difference makers this season.
Sandoval, one of the best kickers in years. Mr. Clutch.
To all the juniors and sophomores coming back, you were amazing and we look forward to next season. We know you will work hard all off-season and continue the quest for excellence. You can do it again.
Coaches Joseph, McDaniel and McCrary, thanks for leading and coordinating an amazing revival of PN-G football excellence. And credit must be given to all the coaching staff for the hard work and efforts to prepare the team every week. The defensive turnaround was almost beyond expectations. The offense was fun to watch.
Another amazing year is in the history books. It’s tough to let it all go. Tough for the team to lose that last game. But PN-G represented what Texas high school football should be all about. One of the best bands out there, and fan support as good as it gets. And 2023 will be another opportunity for all to do it all again.
I posted this on Facebook, but I think it’s worth sharing here as well.
We lost Friday night. That’s alright. Let’s talk about history, one more time. This time, we’re going to start our lesson in a very different place.
The seniors of the Port Neches-Groves High School Class of 2023 were born between September 1, 2004, and August 31, 2005. For many in Port Neches and Groves, and for many across Southeast Texas, that was the last twelve month period of their lives when things still felt normal.
On September 24, 2005, when these kids were still newborns, Hurricane Rita made landfall near Holly Beach, Louisiana, approximately 25 miles southeast of the PN-G community. Rita’s eye passed along the north bank of the Neches River, directly across from Port Neches and Groves. The eyewall brought wind gusts of over 130 miles per hour. Thousands of homes in our area were damaged or destroyed. Thousands of families were displaced from their homes for months, some for years. Some never returned to their homes at all.
By the time this senior class had turned four, two more hurricanes had brought their wrath down on Southeast Texas: Humberto in 2007, and Ike in 2008. Both did tremendous damage across the region. The same weekend that Ike hit, the stock market and the housing market crashed, kicking off the Great Recession. Southeast Texans my age and older remember how that affected local industry, resulting in layoffs, cancelled expansion projects and reduced economic activity across the board. These kids spent their formative years growing up in a community fighting to recover both from multiple natural disasters, and from economic hardship the likes of which America hadn’t seen nearly eight decades, all at the same time.
When these kids were in elementary school, their hometown became a focal point of national debate for the first time. An atheist group based in Wisconsin demanded that the Port Neches city council remove a 50 year old white cross made of mortar from the city park. National discourse ensued, as the Supreme Court of the United States was then deciding a case regarding a similar situation in another part of the country. Tens of thousands of residents in Port Neches and Groves, and across Southeast Texas, placed wooden crosses painted white in their front yards in a show of solidarity. To the ire and disdain of the outside group, the city ultimately resolved the issue by carving out the small plot of land the cross stands on from the rest of the park, and selling it to a local church for $100. The cross still stands in Port Neches today.
When these kids were in middle school in 2017, Hurricane Harvey hit. We all remember that. Harvey’s abnormal landfall pattern and prolonged, record-shattering rainfalls brought previously unimaginable levels of flooding to Southeast Texas. Thousands across the area had to be pulled from their homes by boat. In some parts of the region, families quite literally drowned in their attics.
Then came their freshman year of high school in 2019. Kicking off their high school careers were a cyber attack that shut down the PN-G school system for days, and then Tropical Storm Imelda, which shattered the rainfall and flooding records Harvey had set just two years earlier. The amount of rainfall Imelda dropped just down the road in Nederland holds the national record to this day. As if that wasn’t enough, on November 27, 2019, the day before Thanksgiving, the TPC butadiene plant in Port Neches blew up shortly before 1 o’clock in the morning. The explosion sent a shockwave across town, causing hundreds of millions of dollars’ worth of damage and forcing the evacuation of some 40,000 residents in Mid- and South Jefferson County for the Thanksgiving holiday. That, in turn, kicked off a prolonged legal battle which is still not resolved, and left thousands of families fighting for compensation necessary to cover repairs. There are families in Port Neches and Groves still performing post-TPC repairs today, more than three years later.
Then came 2020, the year I don’t think anyone in America will ever find anything positive to say about. The obvious goes without saying; the COVID pandemic upended the lives of everyone on the planet. The PN-G community was no exception, but at PN-G, 2020 added insult to injury. After 40 years of proudly holding the honor, a new principal chief of the Cherokee Nation revoked a proclamation issued by one of his predecessors declaring the PN-G Indians “ambassadors of goodwill” on their behalf. He did so without warning, or even an attempt to engage PN-G leadership beforehand. He specifically sought national media attention first, with clear, unprovoked intent to pressure the PN-G community into changing traditions dating back nearly a century. His actions kicked off an internet campaign carried on today by online activists, nearly all of whom live nowhere near PN-G, to harass, intimidate, humiliate and degrade elementary, middle and high school students, replete with horrifying social media messages and posts ridiculing children, vague social media threats, and explicit attempts to deny innocent PN-G students rightful access to their educational and extracurricular opportunities, all because they don’t like the fight song, the iconography and the headdresses PN-G and dozens of other schools - including some schools run by actual American Indian tribes - have used without incident for decades.
Then the unthinkable happened. Tragedy struck in the middle of the season earlier this year. A senior member of the band and the school’s journalism team, beloved by the entire school, passed away in her sleep. Her death was sudden; there was no warning. Virtually the entire student body was deeply affected, especially her press- and bandmates. None were more moved than her brother, a sophomore football player. Vigils were held on school grounds in her memory, attended by hundreds of grieving students.
We lost Friday night. That’s alright. Let’s talk about history, one more time. This time, we’re going to start our lesson in a very different place.
The seniors of the Port Neches-Groves High School Class of 2023 were born between September 1, 2004, and August 31, 2005. For many in Port Neches and Groves, and for many across Southeast Texas, that was the last twelve month period of their lives when things still felt normal.
On September 24, 2005, when these kids were still newborns, Hurricane Rita made landfall near Holly Beach, Louisiana, approximately 25 miles southeast of the PN-G community. Rita’s eye passed along the north bank of the Neches River, directly across from Port Neches and Groves. The eyewall brought wind gusts of over 130 miles per hour. Thousands of homes in our area were damaged or destroyed. Thousands of families were displaced from their homes for months, some for years. Some never returned to their homes at all.
By the time this senior class had turned four, two more hurricanes had brought their wrath down on Southeast Texas: Humberto in 2007, and Ike in 2008. Both did tremendous damage across the region. The same weekend that Ike hit, the stock market and the housing market crashed, kicking off the Great Recession. Southeast Texans my age and older remember how that affected local industry, resulting in layoffs, cancelled expansion projects and reduced economic activity across the board. These kids spent their formative years growing up in a community fighting to recover both from multiple natural disasters, and from economic hardship the likes of which America hadn’t seen nearly eight decades, all at the same time.
When these kids were in elementary school, their hometown became a focal point of national debate for the first time. An atheist group based in Wisconsin demanded that the Port Neches city council remove a 50 year old white cross made of mortar from the city park. National discourse ensued, as the Supreme Court of the United States was then deciding a case regarding a similar situation in another part of the country. Tens of thousands of residents in Port Neches and Groves, and across Southeast Texas, placed wooden crosses painted white in their front yards in a show of solidarity. To the ire and disdain of the outside group, the city ultimately resolved the issue by carving out the small plot of land the cross stands on from the rest of the park, and selling it to a local church for $100. The cross still stands in Port Neches today.
When these kids were in middle school in 2017, Hurricane Harvey hit. We all remember that. Harvey’s abnormal landfall pattern and prolonged, record-shattering rainfalls brought previously unimaginable levels of flooding to Southeast Texas. Thousands across the area had to be pulled from their homes by boat. In some parts of the region, families quite literally drowned in their attics.
Then came their freshman year of high school in 2019. Kicking off their high school careers were a cyber attack that shut down the PN-G school system for days, and then Tropical Storm Imelda, which shattered the rainfall and flooding records Harvey had set just two years earlier. The amount of rainfall Imelda dropped just down the road in Nederland holds the national record to this day. As if that wasn’t enough, on November 27, 2019, the day before Thanksgiving, the TPC butadiene plant in Port Neches blew up shortly before 1 o’clock in the morning. The explosion sent a shockwave across town, causing hundreds of millions of dollars’ worth of damage and forcing the evacuation of some 40,000 residents in Mid- and South Jefferson County for the Thanksgiving holiday. That, in turn, kicked off a prolonged legal battle which is still not resolved, and left thousands of families fighting for compensation necessary to cover repairs. There are families in Port Neches and Groves still performing post-TPC repairs today, more than three years later.
Then came 2020, the year I don’t think anyone in America will ever find anything positive to say about. The obvious goes without saying; the COVID pandemic upended the lives of everyone on the planet. The PN-G community was no exception, but at PN-G, 2020 added insult to injury. After 40 years of proudly holding the honor, a new principal chief of the Cherokee Nation revoked a proclamation issued by one of his predecessors declaring the PN-G Indians “ambassadors of goodwill” on their behalf. He did so without warning, or even an attempt to engage PN-G leadership beforehand. He specifically sought national media attention first, with clear, unprovoked intent to pressure the PN-G community into changing traditions dating back nearly a century. His actions kicked off an internet campaign carried on today by online activists, nearly all of whom live nowhere near PN-G, to harass, intimidate, humiliate and degrade elementary, middle and high school students, replete with horrifying social media messages and posts ridiculing children, vague social media threats, and explicit attempts to deny innocent PN-G students rightful access to their educational and extracurricular opportunities, all because they don’t like the fight song, the iconography and the headdresses PN-G and dozens of other schools - including some schools run by actual American Indian tribes - have used without incident for decades.
Then the unthinkable happened. Tragedy struck in the middle of the season earlier this year. A senior member of the band and the school’s journalism team, beloved by the entire school, passed away in her sleep. Her death was sudden; there was no warning. Virtually the entire student body was deeply affected, especially her press- and bandmates. None were more moved than her brother, a sophomore football player. Vigils were held on school grounds in her memory, attended by hundreds of grieving students.
Through it all, these kids have walked tall. Despite all of the adversity, all of the tragedy, all of the natural and man-made disasters, all of the economic strife, all of the undue hysteria, all of the unjustifiable hatred, all of the disproportionate rhetoric and all of the performative vitriol, the senior members of the PN-G Indian football team, the Indian Band, the Indianettes, the Indian twirlers, the cheerleaders, Geronimo’s Crew, the NDN Press, and all of the underclassmen alongside them, represented the PN-G community with class, grace, humility, dedication, and most importantly, strength. They stood up for themselves, for each other, for their community, for their proud traditions, and for their history. They fought back the best way they ever could have: by being successful in spite of the odds, and in spite of the naysayers. They demonstrated the traits and values of true champions, whether they won the title or not. More than winning, they overcame.
In doing so, they made their community believe again. The opening line song of PN-G’s vaunted fight song, Cherokee, reads, “always be faithful.” Especially these last few years, that has come to define the philosophy of PN-G. These kids fought on, and in doing so, reinvigorated PN-G’s legendary community support. Sold-out stadiums and PN-G crowds numbering in the tens of thousands were thought by some to be a thing of the past, but these kids proved they’re not. Friday night made clear that even all these decades later, PN-G is still capable of bringing a world class crowd with them wherever the Indians go.
It is a 318.7 mile drive from Port Neches-Groves High School to AT&T Stadium. For South Oak Cliff, that drive is only 24.1 miles. Despite that stark difference in distances, the PN-G Indian Faithful clearly outnumbered SOC fans in their own backyard Friday night. All along that drive, the Indian Faithful stormed the Buc-ee's locations in Madisonville, Ennis and Baytown, and numerous other establishments across Houston, Dallas and East Texas. Dozens of traffic jams on IH-10, IH-45, US 287 and TX 105 were attributed to PN-G fans bound for the Metroplex. I've seen it generally estimated that somewhere north of 20,000 such PN-G fans were present for the game in Arlington. On both the second and third decks of AT&T Stadium, the purple and white extended around and beyond the goal posts behind both endzones.
We made an impression. Stadium staff were forced to hastily open sections of the third deck on the PN-G side of the stadium, while corresponding sections on the SOC side were left empty. One analyst for Dave Campbell’s Texas Football estimated PN-G may have brought as many as 7,000 more fans than the hometown team. So many of them turned out so many hours in advance of our game, that they were mistakenly counted toward the attendance at the preceding games instead. (On an aside, the UIL really needs to revisit how it does ticket sales for championships, because selling one ticket for all the games on a particular day doesn’t lend itself to accurate attendance-taking.) I heard comments from several stadium staff members that they'd never seen so many fans turn out for just one team, especially so early. To borrow a term from a Bally Sports announcer, the "crazy people" turned out in force. In sum, here came the Indians.
These kids rallied Southeast Texas to the cause, too. Friday night, I spotted letter jackets, t-shirts, jerseys and ball caps from Nederland, Port Arthur Memorial, Beaumont Kelly, Hamshire-Fannett, Hardin-Jefferson, Sabine Pass, Bridge City, Little Cypress-Mauriceville, Orangefield, West Orange-Stark, Vidor, Lumberton and Silsbee. The kids drew back PN-G alumni from across the state, and across the country. I know of alums who flew back to see PN-G play from as far away as Tennessee, Virginia and California. I saw friends and classmates Friday night and yesterday morning that I haven’t seen since graduation, who drove in from places like Austin, San Antonio, Houston and Oklahoma. And they rallied our leadership to the cause. In the moments when it counted, our Governor, our Speaker, our congressman and our state representative all came out in support of the PN-G Indians. Sendoffs and well wishes came from local leaders in Nederland, West Orange, Silsbee ISD and Hamshire-Fannett ISD. Alongside local PN-G officials, the mayor of Orange attended the game. Bridge City ISD urged its students to wear purple to school on Friday to root the Indians down trails of victory.
It's to these kids that I want to extend my appreciation for all of the memories and all of the accolades they brought us in 2022. This was the season this community needed, and they delivered. When push came to shove, they doubled down, they stuck to their guns, and they showed maturity, wisdom and leadership far beyond their years. In the face of circumstances that would have caused any other group of teenagers to break, they stood firm. When other teenagers would have tucked tail, turned and ran, this season, they chose instead to set an all-time school record for total student participation in PN-G's Friday night experience through the Indian football team, the Indian Band, the Indianettes, the Indian Twirlers, Geronimo's Crew, NDN Press and the other involved extracurricular groups - a truly remarkable feat, given that PN-G's total student enrollment is roughly half of what it was during the "glory years" of the 1970s. Of all the generations of PN-G Indians that came before them, I'm hard-pressed to find one that better exemplified the grit, the determination, the toughness, the fighting spirit, and the heart that PN-G has always been known for.
They set the example, and the community followed. The fruits of their labors are self-evident. PN-G has returned to statewide prominence for the first time in almost a quarter of a century. After thumbing through the history books yesterday, I've determined that the crowd PN-G brought to Arlington Friday night is at least the second largest of the four PN-G crowds to observe a championship game in the greater Dallas area over the decades - and it's closer to first place than people realize. It’s also the largest PN-G crowd to watch any game in more than two decades. By all observable qualitative measures, the community pride is at least as strong in this moment as it ever has been at PN-G, perhaps stronger. Friday night, I listened as the crowd sang along to Cherokee while the band performed the Marching I. I haven't heard the crowd join in during the fight song like that since I was in elementary school. Spirit ribbons, banners on Merriman Street, convoys of fans headed to the game, charter buses for fans, and streamers at the game all made a comeback during the playoffs this season. I haven't seen any of those since I was in elementary school, either. I observed a handful of fans wearing headdresses and facepaint Friday night. The last fan I can recall wearing a headdress to a game was Indian Ken when I was in high school.
Our faith has been rewarded, our honor has been defended, our pride has been restored, our traditions have been preserved for the next generation of PN-G Indians, and all of the credit belongs to these kids. It doesn't matter that they didn't win the title. They brought confidence back to a community that has been beaten down mercilessly, often needlessly, time and time again over the last twenty years. We've talked a lot about history the last few weeks. These kids wrote a new chapter in the PN-G history book that will be hard to top. To those of you who happen to read this, thank you. Your community is immensely proud of you. You have nothing to hang your head over. You’ve more than earned your feather. Proudly wear the badge of a PN-G Indian as you move on to the next stage of your lives, and savor every moment of the great memories you made this year. I promise you will reflect on them fondly as you get older.
Congratulations to the South Oak Cliff Golden Bears on a hard fought victory in the Class 5A Division II Texas State Championship last Friday. I was very impressed with your talent and athleticism, particularly on the defensive side of the ball. It's clear all of the D1 scholarship offers are well-earned. Winning back-to-back state championships in Texas is a rare feat in high school football which few can claim, and y'all have every right to be proud of it. Coach Todd is building a powerhouse program at SOC, and I suspect this is only the beginning. Good luck next season.
I'll end this with an eye toward the future. The horizon is bright for the PN-G Indians. With this state finalist finish, Coach Joseph has become the second coach in PN-G history, and the first since 1955, to coach the Indians to a championship game during his first season at the helm of the program. There's no debating that he's taken our football team to the next level. I look forward to seeing what he accomplishes during his time in the fieldhouse in Port Neches. I have a feeling the Indians will make more trips to AT&T Stadium under his capable leadership.
On to 2023, and future conquests. Until then, always be faithful. And scalp 'em, Indians!
In doing so, they made their community believe again. The opening line song of PN-G’s vaunted fight song, Cherokee, reads, “always be faithful.” Especially these last few years, that has come to define the philosophy of PN-G. These kids fought on, and in doing so, reinvigorated PN-G’s legendary community support. Sold-out stadiums and PN-G crowds numbering in the tens of thousands were thought by some to be a thing of the past, but these kids proved they’re not. Friday night made clear that even all these decades later, PN-G is still capable of bringing a world class crowd with them wherever the Indians go.
It is a 318.7 mile drive from Port Neches-Groves High School to AT&T Stadium. For South Oak Cliff, that drive is only 24.1 miles. Despite that stark difference in distances, the PN-G Indian Faithful clearly outnumbered SOC fans in their own backyard Friday night. All along that drive, the Indian Faithful stormed the Buc-ee's locations in Madisonville, Ennis and Baytown, and numerous other establishments across Houston, Dallas and East Texas. Dozens of traffic jams on IH-10, IH-45, US 287 and TX 105 were attributed to PN-G fans bound for the Metroplex. I've seen it generally estimated that somewhere north of 20,000 such PN-G fans were present for the game in Arlington. On both the second and third decks of AT&T Stadium, the purple and white extended around and beyond the goal posts behind both endzones.
We made an impression. Stadium staff were forced to hastily open sections of the third deck on the PN-G side of the stadium, while corresponding sections on the SOC side were left empty. One analyst for Dave Campbell’s Texas Football estimated PN-G may have brought as many as 7,000 more fans than the hometown team. So many of them turned out so many hours in advance of our game, that they were mistakenly counted toward the attendance at the preceding games instead. (On an aside, the UIL really needs to revisit how it does ticket sales for championships, because selling one ticket for all the games on a particular day doesn’t lend itself to accurate attendance-taking.) I heard comments from several stadium staff members that they'd never seen so many fans turn out for just one team, especially so early. To borrow a term from a Bally Sports announcer, the "crazy people" turned out in force. In sum, here came the Indians.
These kids rallied Southeast Texas to the cause, too. Friday night, I spotted letter jackets, t-shirts, jerseys and ball caps from Nederland, Port Arthur Memorial, Beaumont Kelly, Hamshire-Fannett, Hardin-Jefferson, Sabine Pass, Bridge City, Little Cypress-Mauriceville, Orangefield, West Orange-Stark, Vidor, Lumberton and Silsbee. The kids drew back PN-G alumni from across the state, and across the country. I know of alums who flew back to see PN-G play from as far away as Tennessee, Virginia and California. I saw friends and classmates Friday night and yesterday morning that I haven’t seen since graduation, who drove in from places like Austin, San Antonio, Houston and Oklahoma. And they rallied our leadership to the cause. In the moments when it counted, our Governor, our Speaker, our congressman and our state representative all came out in support of the PN-G Indians. Sendoffs and well wishes came from local leaders in Nederland, West Orange, Silsbee ISD and Hamshire-Fannett ISD. Alongside local PN-G officials, the mayor of Orange attended the game. Bridge City ISD urged its students to wear purple to school on Friday to root the Indians down trails of victory.
It's to these kids that I want to extend my appreciation for all of the memories and all of the accolades they brought us in 2022. This was the season this community needed, and they delivered. When push came to shove, they doubled down, they stuck to their guns, and they showed maturity, wisdom and leadership far beyond their years. In the face of circumstances that would have caused any other group of teenagers to break, they stood firm. When other teenagers would have tucked tail, turned and ran, this season, they chose instead to set an all-time school record for total student participation in PN-G's Friday night experience through the Indian football team, the Indian Band, the Indianettes, the Indian Twirlers, Geronimo's Crew, NDN Press and the other involved extracurricular groups - a truly remarkable feat, given that PN-G's total student enrollment is roughly half of what it was during the "glory years" of the 1970s. Of all the generations of PN-G Indians that came before them, I'm hard-pressed to find one that better exemplified the grit, the determination, the toughness, the fighting spirit, and the heart that PN-G has always been known for.
They set the example, and the community followed. The fruits of their labors are self-evident. PN-G has returned to statewide prominence for the first time in almost a quarter of a century. After thumbing through the history books yesterday, I've determined that the crowd PN-G brought to Arlington Friday night is at least the second largest of the four PN-G crowds to observe a championship game in the greater Dallas area over the decades - and it's closer to first place than people realize. It’s also the largest PN-G crowd to watch any game in more than two decades. By all observable qualitative measures, the community pride is at least as strong in this moment as it ever has been at PN-G, perhaps stronger. Friday night, I listened as the crowd sang along to Cherokee while the band performed the Marching I. I haven't heard the crowd join in during the fight song like that since I was in elementary school. Spirit ribbons, banners on Merriman Street, convoys of fans headed to the game, charter buses for fans, and streamers at the game all made a comeback during the playoffs this season. I haven't seen any of those since I was in elementary school, either. I observed a handful of fans wearing headdresses and facepaint Friday night. The last fan I can recall wearing a headdress to a game was Indian Ken when I was in high school.
Our faith has been rewarded, our honor has been defended, our pride has been restored, our traditions have been preserved for the next generation of PN-G Indians, and all of the credit belongs to these kids. It doesn't matter that they didn't win the title. They brought confidence back to a community that has been beaten down mercilessly, often needlessly, time and time again over the last twenty years. We've talked a lot about history the last few weeks. These kids wrote a new chapter in the PN-G history book that will be hard to top. To those of you who happen to read this, thank you. Your community is immensely proud of you. You have nothing to hang your head over. You’ve more than earned your feather. Proudly wear the badge of a PN-G Indian as you move on to the next stage of your lives, and savor every moment of the great memories you made this year. I promise you will reflect on them fondly as you get older.
Congratulations to the South Oak Cliff Golden Bears on a hard fought victory in the Class 5A Division II Texas State Championship last Friday. I was very impressed with your talent and athleticism, particularly on the defensive side of the ball. It's clear all of the D1 scholarship offers are well-earned. Winning back-to-back state championships in Texas is a rare feat in high school football which few can claim, and y'all have every right to be proud of it. Coach Todd is building a powerhouse program at SOC, and I suspect this is only the beginning. Good luck next season.
I'll end this with an eye toward the future. The horizon is bright for the PN-G Indians. With this state finalist finish, Coach Joseph has become the second coach in PN-G history, and the first since 1955, to coach the Indians to a championship game during his first season at the helm of the program. There's no debating that he's taken our football team to the next level. I look forward to seeing what he accomplishes during his time in the fieldhouse in Port Neches. I have a feeling the Indians will make more trips to AT&T Stadium under his capable leadership.
On to 2023, and future conquests. Until then, always be faithful. And scalp 'em, Indians!
IndianFan
Web Guy
These young men and women will go forward in life, leveraging those challenges, and the strength it took to overcome it all to their advantage. And knowing what it feels to be a part of a strong , supportive foundation. That feeling will last forever. That’s much more valuable than a sports trophy. And they will do it all with class and integrity.
benchwarmer53
Active Member
Very well said Banddkid. Thank yoy. Go Indians
You pretty much said it all, Bandkid. This was certainly a season of adversity for the team, and all of the students involved in the various activities. It seemed like at any one time there were multiple boys and girls on the sideline on crutches, or with casts or knee braces. The loss of a fellow student and sister is of course the ultimate thing that I can't find the words for, and the response from the fellow students and team mates and coaches was moving, and the team's resolve was admirable and may have contributed to bring them together as a team more than anything.
The press and opposing coaches seemed to focus on all of the Srs, but at any one time there were Sr starters injured, and the Jrs and Sophs stepped up and filled the gaps. I'm already looking forward to next season. The Indian mascot thing won't go away I'm afraid, but that won't matter, we know that we belong on the field with any team in the state. Congrats to all of the players, band, Indianettes and twirlers and cheer team, the coaches and sponsors, NDN press and students, for a great and very admirable and successful season. Here's to the remainder of the year, for other sports, off season, and of course next football season.
The press and opposing coaches seemed to focus on all of the Srs, but at any one time there were Sr starters injured, and the Jrs and Sophs stepped up and filled the gaps. I'm already looking forward to next season. The Indian mascot thing won't go away I'm afraid, but that won't matter, we know that we belong on the field with any team in the state. Congrats to all of the players, band, Indianettes and twirlers and cheer team, the coaches and sponsors, NDN press and students, for a great and very admirable and successful season. Here's to the remainder of the year, for other sports, off season, and of course next football season.
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Thank you to the coaches, players, trainers, admin, Band, Indianettes, Indian Spirit, G-Crew et.al! You exuded class and winning the entire football year and made everyone associated with you VERY PROUD!!!. Hold you heads high... you're all one of the Elite!! <3
Usedtocould
2,000+ Posts
To me the term
“Overachiever”
Is a super compliment
Like I try to tell my nephews
Others secretly despise talent(genius)
But they respect hard work
PNG has always overachieved in most areas
The work showed this season “WE” surprised everyone. All year. I’m super proud of the team (band etc everyone)
And I don’t know any of them personally
See y’all next year.
“Overachiever”
Is a super compliment
Like I try to tell my nephews
Others secretly despise talent(genius)
But they respect hard work
PNG has always overachieved in most areas
The work showed this season “WE” surprised everyone. All year. I’m super proud of the team (band etc everyone)
And I don’t know any of them personally
See y’all next year.
IndianFan
Web Guy
How’s this for appreciative feedback. 3+ levels of Indian fans cheering Landon Guarnere after he burned SOC’s top defensive back.
VERY cool!
PNGIndian75
100+ Posts
IndianFan, couldn't have said it better if I spent 2 hours on it. Excellent post and fully agree. Congratulations on an excellent season Indians and hopefully many more to come. Merry Christmas to all.
NEXT GAMEDAY
5A DII REGIONAL ROUND
PN-G Indians (11-1)
vs.
Texas High Tigers (12-0)
Friday, Nov. 29, 7:00PM
Northwestern State University Turpin Stadium, Natchitoches, LA
PN-G INDIANS FOOTBALL
I could not be more proud of our team and our community. The spirit here is unmatched! I am so lucky to be a part of it and to wear the purple and white! The journey of this football season, with these coaches and our players, will stay with me forever. -- PN-G Head Coach Jeff Joseph
