CRAWFORD, Texas — Injuries helped derail Crawford's dream of back-to-back state semifinal appearances in 2021, as the Pirates were dethroned by Marlin. Now, the two share a district, putting Crawford's run of district titles in jeopardy as well.
Fortunately for the Pirates, Crawford returns 15 starters from last year's squad. including 13 seniors.
Luke Torbert will line up under center once again in 2022 after being sidelined with injury in the final game of Crawford's playoff run. Behind him in the backfield, Breck Chambers will once again be a bell-cow in the ground game.
Head Coach Greg Jacobs believes their improved passing attack could be the difference which allows them to get over the hump and reach a state championship.
"The farther you get down the road, the better teams get in preparation for you," Jacobs said. "They're gonna stop certain things you do well. So you have to have a plan if you want to be successful in the long run. You've got to have other ways to move the ball, to stop offenses, to contribute."
Crawford, as always, enters the year with high expectations. The Pirates start the season ranked No. 7 in 2A-I.
If you ask the players, they will be quick to tell you there goal this season is to finally make it to AT&T Stadium and the state championship game. Crawford's senior class has played 42 games in their first three seasons of high school. They hope to push that number to 58 by season's end.
"We talk about it all the time," senior linebacker Logan Borkowski said. "Whenever we get in trouble, we have to do up-downs. And once we get to 16 we all say 'state.' That's how many games it is. We talk about state all the time because we know it's there. We know that opportunity is there so we're going to work as hard as we can to get there."
2022 FOOTBALL SCHEDULE:
8/26 at Goldthwaite 7:30
9/2 vs Centerville 7:30
9/9 at Rio Vista 7:30
9/16 Open
9/23 vs Rosebud-Lott* 7:30
9/30 at Valley Mills* 7:30
10/7 vs Marlin* 7:30
10/14 at Moody* 7:30
10/21 vs Bosqueville* 7:30
10/28 vs Riesel* 7:30
11/4 at Bruceville-Eddy* 7:30
*District Game
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