LORENA, Texas — The Lorena Leopards are hoping Christmas comes early on Thursday afternoon.
“I mean everybody wants to be a champion, whether it’s pop warner or the NFL," head coach Ray Biles said. "Even Tom Brady and the Bucs don’t get tired of that, so it’d be fantastic.”
Biles' team will play Brock High School in the 3A Division I UIL State Championship Game. Lorena hasn't won a title since 1987 and last went to the game in 1989.
It was just three years later that Biles became the head coach, the start of his 30-year run.
With a win, it would be Biles' 200th win and his first state title at any level. He's had just two jobs, the head coach and Lorena and an assistant at Katy in a coaching career that has spanned more than 40 years.
Despite what seems like a monumental game for him, senior running back Rhett Hanson says he's treating it like it's nothing out of the ordinary.
“If you just know him, out here with practice, it just another game, we’re gonna go out there and treat it just like it is at the start of the season," he said.
Biles has coached hundreds, if not more than a thousand players. After the team's win in the semis, he had plenty of text messages sent his way.
“An awful lot, even kids who I coached at Katy back in the '80s who are 50 years old now, I’ve had a lot of those guys even contact me," Biles said.
He's the kind of coach who puts relationships above anything else. It's a reason why much of his coaching staff is loaded with former players.
Current running backs coach and 2010 Lorena grad says he looks up to him.
“Playing for him, you have the upmost respect for him, you’d run through a brick wall for him," he said. "And as a grown man, it’s no different.”
Current receivers coach and 2005 grad Brandon Graves says that his players love playing for him.
“I'd say who I am today, a lot of it is because of him," he said. "He gets the kids to buy in and they love to play for him.”
This win would mean a lot to a guy who has been going at it for 30 years at the same school. But Biles says that this win would also mean a lot to each and every player who has ever worn a Leopards uniform.
“These guys understand, it’s not just about this group of kids right now, but there are a lot of people who have gone before them that didn’t get to where they are right now," Biles said. "We’ve got an awful lot going on for a awful lot of people and not just the people in that field house right now.”
If the North Pole is receiving letters, a brand new banner could be coming to town. The Leopards will kick off their game against Brock at 2 p.m. on Thursday at AT&T Stadium.