Friendship Christian SchoolDivision I, Class 2A High School Football

COMMANDERS

ASpecial Section of The Lebanon Democrat and Mt. Juliet News

2012STATECHAMPS

2 � Friendship Christian State Championship 2012

Friendship Christian entered the 2012season as the defending Class 2A statechampions.

When teams seek to defend a champi-onship, the focus is usually on how manystarters are back and can players who grad-uated be replaced.

At Friendship, the focus was on a keyaddition - quarterback A.J. Long.

The junior moved to Lebanon early inthe summer to live with his mother afterpassing for over 6,500 yards as a freshmanand sophomore at Pius X, a Class ACatholic school in Bangor, Pa. As a sopho-more, he accumulated 4,600 total yards and

63 touchdowns. An equal threat runningand passing, the 6-foot-1 Long had alreadyattracted interest from a dozen BCS schoolsin all of the major conferences.

He’s a mixture of 6-4 Lee Sweeney, whoheld all of FCS’ passing records and morethan his share of marks at Tennessee Tech,and the 5-11 Lee Maasen, who was new toplaying quarterback but more than madeup for it with his running.

“He has as strong as arm as Lee,” Com-mander coach John McNeal said of Long,whose Keystone State highlights are avail-able for viewing on YouTube. “Lee’s advan-tage was he was 6-4. A.J.’s is he can run.

Arrival of starquarterbacklaunchesanother run

Quarterback A.J. Long throws during pregame warmups. photo Darren Brown

“We’ll definitely open up and dosome things we did with Lee[Sweeney] and some things we didwith Lee Maasen. We’ll still runsome power stuff... Teams loadedthe box last year. He’ll make it a lit-tle harder for people to do that.”

Week 0: Aug. 17Friendship Christian 41,Donelson Christian 7

Long and the Commandersmade it hard on people in opposinguniforms - period, starting with aseason-opening trip to longtime-rival Donelson Christian.

In his Tennessee debut, Longcompleted half of his 12 passes for221 yards and two touchdownswhile running for another score and54 yards. His scoring strikes covered26 and 47 yards to wideout HunterWatts.

Running back Austin Taylortacked on rushing scores of 10 and 2yards. Watts got a third touchdown,on a 26-yard interception return.

Week 1: Aug. 24Friendship Christian 49,White House Heritage 27

It was Cale Mitchell’s turn to getrich in Friendship’s home opener asthe senior wideout caught touch-down tosses of 64 and 18 yardsfrom Long, who opened the scoringwith an 18-yard run. Long com-pleted 7 of 13 passes for 144 yardsand three TDs.

Sophomore running back StevenHollis ran for three touchdowns onhis way to a 98-yard night on 13carries.

Friendship opened a 49-7 leadbefore White House Heritage put 20on the board in the fourth quarter.

Week 2: Aug. 31Gordonsville 28,Friendship Christian 21

A meeting between the 2011 2Achamps and a 1A semifinalistsbrought Channel 4’s Rudy Kalis andhis Touchdown Friday helicopter toGordonsville’s Turney Ford Field onan ultra-muggy night.

Long faked out the Tigers andbolted for a 44-yard touchdown run24 seconds into the game.

But Gordonsville’s Kaelin Casondidn’t need to fake out Friendshipdefenders. He simply broke their

By Andy Reed,Sports Editor

Long hands off to running back Steven Hollis. photo Andy Reed

Friendship Christian State Championship 2012 � 3

Congratulations FriendshipChristian Commanders!

State Champions 2 years in a row!

Greg Landers • 615-758-74511767 N. Mt. Juliet Road

Mt. Juliet, TN

Jim Landers • 615-443-1919401 S. Cumberland

Lebanon, TN

Monday-Saturday10:30 a.m. - 8:00 p.m.

We Cater Anytime & Anywhere!We deliver & set up!

Stay & serve if you wish!

Congratulations FriendshipChristian Football 2012!!

Way to go,Commanders!

from your friends at

1928 Leeville PikeLebanon, TN 37087

rosetire.com

444-8120Bring in this ad for 10% OFF Oil Change

tackles and ran for 229 yards and atouchdown on 23 carries as the Tigershanded the Commanders their first losssince the previous September.

“Too much arm tackling,” McNealsaid.

The humidity took its toll as Casonhad to temporarily leave in the fourthquarter, after most of his damage hadbeen done. Long was completely laid outagainst the fence on the sideline afterscoring all three Friendship touchdownsand essentially serving as the Command-ers’ one-man offense with 295 totalyards. FCS outgained Gordonsville intotal yards 348-315, but came up emptyon two trips inside the Tiger 10-yard linein the third quarter.

“I’ve played when it was this humid;I haven’t played with that few people onthe depth chart,” McNeal said. “Ourdepth is real thin and there’s nothing wecan do about that. We have so few play-ers that just aren’t ready, yet. They can’thelp that. We had a lot of them goingdown. Other guys went in and did thebest they could. I’m proud of them.

“It looked like they started trying tostop the run and with our guys goingboth ways, a little fatigue up front andother areas, it seemed like they were giv-ing us certain things in the passing game.We did well there. We put ourselves inposition twice inside the 5 or better and

didn’t score, and that’s my fault. We justtook what they gave us. Our intentionwas to have more running, but they wereplaying tight on us and running more inthe box than what we originallythought.”

Though the two teams play in thesame district, because of the TSSAA’splayoff system which doubles the threeregular-season classes to six for the play-offs, there would be no postseason re-match as they play in separate classes.

“Hats off to Gordonsville,” McNealsaid. “They played well. They’re a goodteam. I don’t see them not being in the[1A] state championship game. To me,that’s where they’re going to be.”

McNeal was spot-on as a prognosti-cator. As it turned out, two of 2012’s statechampions met on this night.

Week 3: Sept. 7Friendship Christian 49,Clay County 6

With the two-week fall break eatingup two weeks of prime October home-coming time, this football tradition oftencomes earlier than ever at some schools.

Long riddled Clay County with fourtouchdown passes almost as early - inthe first 13 minutes - covering 64, 42, 62and 25 yards as the Commanders gotback on the track in the first of a four-

Running back Steven Hollis [2] was named Offensive Most Valuable Player andlinebacker Tanner Martin [55] garnered Defensive MVP honors. photo Darren Brown

4 � Friendship Christian State Championship 2012

and

Jack PrattWilson County

Property Assessor

615-449-UMC

game homestand.

Week 4: Sept. 14Friendship Christian 45,Jackson County 0

The Commanders put up 42 first-half points forthe second straight week, scoring on all six pos-sessions while limiting Jackson County to a singlefirst down.

After scoring on a 1-yard run, Long threw threescoring strikes to Stefan Remus covering 7, 67 and70 yards.

Week 5: Sept. 21Friendship Christian 49,Pickett County 8

FCS bought out Pickett County’s home game,giving the Commanders’ six at home in 2012.

Wrapping up the four-game homestand,Friendship put up 42 in the first half for the thirdstraight week. This time, the Commanders got 35in the first quarter.

Long threw for all six scores in the first half -covering 65, 54, 31, 4, 67 and 82 yards. Amazingly,all went to different receivers.

Week 6: Sept. 28Friendship Christian 31,Trousdale County 0

The Commanders’ breakthrough to their firstchampionship a year ago began with a second-

round win at longtime nemesis Trousdale County.The Yellow Jackets were rebuilding, at least bytheir standards. But this game also marked the endof the three-week run of overmatched opponents.

That didn’t keep Friendship from striking to a21-0 first-quarter lead on a pair of short Hollis runsand Long’s 37-yard pass to Remus.

FCS had trouble scoring after that as TrousdaleCounty kept a spy on Long, keeping him frombreaking long runs to the outside. But Hollisemerged as a threat with 151 yards on 22 carries.He also intercepted a pass at cornerback.

“My linemen were making huge holes for me,”Hollis said.

Friendship’s defense held Trousdale to 167 totalyards. The Yellow Jackets’ best shot at scoringcame on Zach Blackwell’s 100-yard interception re-turn, which was called back by a penalty.

“[The defense] did a good job,” McNeal said. “Ithought they played really well.”

Week 7: Oct. 5Friendship Christian 66,Watertown 26

The Commanders’ final trip to historic RobinsonStadium turned into a score-a-thon as Friendshiphanded the Purple Tigers their first loss for the sec-ond straight season.

Behind quarterback Ty Jobe, Watertown’s spreadoffense moved the ball with ease - with the exceptionof six turnovers. Those miscues either left Friendshipwith short fields for easy scores or stopped the Tigersshort of a score of their own.

Punter Cale Mitchell takes off on a fake to help set up Friend-ship's first touchdown. photo Darren Brown

Friendship Christian State Championship 2012 � 5

Congratulations Commanderson your 2012 Championship!

Fur PersonsDog Grooming & Boarding

442 Gulf St.

615-443-4742

Congratulations, Champs!

Congratulations Friendship ChristianState Champions, 2 Years in a Row!

Family Medical Associates1407 W. Baddour Parkway • www.familymedicaldocs.com

Dr. Roger McKinney • Dr. George Roberson • Dr. Bill Roberson • Dr. Bernie SeyDr. Sam Crutcher • Dr. John Fisk • Benita Qualls, PA • Erin Capps, PA

Jason Black, FNP • Jamie Blaylock, FNP • Richard Kincaid, FNO • Tracy Moss, PNP

Hamblen’s...The name to knowwhen you need a tow.

HAMBLEN’S WRECKER SERVICE8594 Central Pike • Mt. Juliet, TN 37122

Family Owned Business since 1962

Phone 615-758-5142 • Fax 615-754-5142

Proud Supporter of Friendship Christian!

Joni Cochran, Owner401 S. Mt. Juliet Rd., #235 • Mount Juliet, TN 37122

M - F 8 am - 7 pm • Sat. 9 am - 4 pm, Sun. closed615.773.8015 Tel • 615.773.8031 Faxstore6148@theupsstore.com • www.theupsstorelocal.com/6148

Way to Go, Commanders!

Sandra LocklearOwner

663 S. Mt. Juliet Rd. • Mt. Juliet, TN 37122Phone (615) 758-8887 • Fax (615) 758-8819

www.partyzonemtjuliet.com • partyzone@tds.net

Congratulations, Commanders!

“It could have changed the outcome,”Watertown coach Gavin Webster said. “Ithink we turned it over on the 5 twice andall they had to do was turn around andpunch it in. We were getting ready to scoreone time and turned it over.

“We did put 26 on the board, butwhen you leave your defense hanging outthere a long time, you turn the ball oversix times, you’re leaving your defensehanging out to dry.”

Watertown did borrow a page from Trous-dale County’s book and kept Long under con-trol. But McNeal again turned the ball over toHollis, who exploded for 244 yards and threetouchdowns on 26 carries while interceptinga pass and recovering a fumble.

“We lined up pretty much in two tightsand ran it downhill, nothing fancy,” McNealsaid after running the I-formation the entiresecond half. “We felt like that was our bestdefense. We struggled a little bit containingJobe from a defensive standpoint.”

Week 9: Oct. 19Friendship Christian 41,Red Boiling Springs 0

The big story this week wasn’t Friend-ship’s final road trip until December. It wasFCS’ announced move to Division II start-ing next year which will mean a differentset of rivals. DCA, Ezell-Harding and

Franklin Road Academy - though longtimerivals - will step up in importance toFriendship while Watertown, Gordonsvilleand Trousdale County step back, if not offthe schedule altogether.

Red Boiling Springs probably won’tmiss seeing Friendship either after the Bull-dogs watched Long launch four first-halftouchdown passes after launching himselffor a 52-yard scoring run to start the night.

Week 10: Oct. 26Friendship Christian 43,Monterey 16

Senior Night also took somewhat of abackseat as, for the second straight year,Friendship prefaced a season-ending winover Monterey by going to Murfreesboro towatch the school’s volleyball team take astate championship.

The Commanders completed a 9-1 sea-son by taking a 28-0 first-quarter lead asdefense and special teams produced almostas many points as the offense.

After two Long-to-Watts touchdowntosses, Dillon Hodges scored on a 37-yardpunt return, Watts on a 50-yard intercep-tion return and Gabe Bentley on a 46-yardfumble recovery.

Now, all that was left was to wait for theTSSAA playoff announcements the follow-ing morning. Joshua Luck kicks the final extra point out of Cale Mitchell's hold. photo Andy Reed

6 � Friendship Christian State Championship 2012 Friendship Christian State Championship 2012 � 7

OFFENSE

QB — #3 A.J. LongRB — #2 Steven Hollis

#8 Austin Taylor#10 Cale Mitchell

WR — #6 Hunter WattsWR — #12 Stefan Remus

#15 Michael HawksWR — #10 Cale Mitchell

#17 Dillon Hodges

TE — #1 Parker Pinnell#34 Cody Walker

T — #61 Andrew Wood#70 Ben Dunn

G — #62 Ian IsbellC — #53 Colton GainesG — #55 Tanner MartinT — #74 Gregg Norton

DEFENSE

DT — #62 Ian Isbell#74 Gregg Norton

NG — #59 Jeff Cherry#61 Andrew Wood

DT — #70 Ben Dunn#53 Colton Gaines

OLB— #8 Austin TaylorILB — #34 Cody Walker

#53 Colton Gaines

ILB — #55 Tanner MartinOLB— #17 Dillon HodgesCB — #2 Steven Hollis

#15 Michael HawksFS — #6 Hunter Watts

#3 A.J. LongSS — #10 Cale Mitchell

#1 Parker PinnellCB — #12 Stefan Remus

SPECIAL TEAMS

P — #10 Cale Mitchell#9 Tallon Mehlhoff

PK — #12 Stefan Remus#80 Hunter Anderson

Congratulations Commanders

on winning the 2012 State

Championship!271 Weatherly Drive

Lebanon, TN(615) 453-2600

UMH.com

Quality Homes & Communities

Licensed by the TN Dept. of Revenue. NMLS #200331

2012 Friendship Christian School

COMMANDERSNo. Name Height Weight Class1 Parker Pinnell 6-3 185 So.2 Steven Hollis 5-8 150 So.3 A.J. Long 6-1 180 Jr.4 Dylan White 5-9 155 So.5 Hayden White 6-0 145 Fr.6 Hunter Watts 6-0 160 Sr.7 Marshall Taylor 6-1 185 Fr.8 Austin Taylor 5-8 165 So.10 Cale Mitchell 5-10 180 Sr.11 Jordan Macnamee 5-2 130 8th12 Stefan Remus 5-10 190 Sr.13 Price Cochran 5-10 135 Fr.15 Michael Hawks 5-9 165 Jr.17 Dillon Hodges 5-11 170 Sr.18 Parker Hodges 5-6 140 Fr.19 Eli Hunt 5-7 135 Fr.21 Will Burruss 6-0 155 Fr.22 Adam Neal 5-8 160 Jr.23 Spencer Burge 5-6 130 8th24 Gage Bentley 5-5 140 Fr.26 Joshua Luck 5-6 135 Jr.30 Jacob Self 5-7 165 So.32 Heath Johnson 5-10 145 8th33 Noah Leschorn 5-9 150 Fr.34 Cody Walker 5-8 210 So.39 Cade Ramsey 5-4 130 Fr.40 Bob Edwards 5-10 140 8th43 John Michael Petty 5-8 145 8th44 Gene Carman 5-10 190 Fr.50 Justin Truszkowski 5-9 160 Jr.51 Logan Mehlhoff 5-6 200 Fr.52 John Hendricks 5-8 190 So.53 Colton Gaines 6-3 225 So.54 Jordan Farris 5-10 215 Sr.55 Tanner Martin 6-0 225 Sr.59 Jeff Cherry 5-10 210 So.60 Will Hall 6-2 195 Fr.61 Andrew Wood 6-5 290 So.62 Ian Isbell 6-3 280 Sr.66 Jonathan Luck 5-5 125 Fr.67 Joshua Eatherly 5-6 165 Fr.70 Ben Dunn 6-0 260 Sr.72 Dalton Paschal 5-9 165 Fr.73 Nick Norton 6-0 210 Fr.74 Gregg Norton 6-0 260 Sr.77 Luke Shoulders 5-5 170 Fr.79 Travis Gaither 6-0 150 8th80 Blake Grosch 5-11 165 Jr.88 Brad Ham 5-11 210 Fr.

8 � Friendship Christian State Championship 2012

PLAYOFFSRound 2: Nov. 9Friendship Christian 42, Cascade 6

Commander Nation couldn’t have scripted a betterscenario on playoff paper. With 2A heavyweights Boyd-Buchanan, Grace Christian and Oneida in Pod 1, Friend-ship took the top seed in Pod 2, leaving the Commandersat Pirtle Field for as long as they kept winning. It alsomeant a first-round bye.

Many Friendship players, coaches and fans returnedto Robinson Stadium as Watertown held a playoff gamefor the first time since 1985. After matching Cascadescore for score in the early going, three turnovers ulti-mately did in the Purple Tigers as the Champions pulledoff a 24-21 upset to earn a return trip to Wilson County,this time to Possum Town.

And the week off appeared to do Friendship a lot ofgood as the Commanders were clicking in all threephases of the game.

Hollis had 132 of Friendship’s 269 rushing yards anda pair of touchdowns. Long hit 9 of 11 passes for 175yards and a couple of scores while adding 61 more on theground.

Blake Grosch’s hit all six extra points and Remus’kickoffs kept Cascade bottled up most of the night.

The defense had a shutout going until Creed Rosebroke loose for a 77-yard run down the Cascade sideline,setting up his 1-yard score in the fourth quarter.

“Our balance in our running and passing was betterthan it had been in a while,” McNeal said. “[Defense]

did a good job. They stayed with their game plan.”

Quarterfinals: Nov. 26Friendship Christian 49, Marion County 12

MCHS, a longtime power in the old Class AA, turnedto McNeal friend Mac McCurry to bring the Warriorsback to prominence and Marion County responded bygrabbing the No. 2 seed in Pod 2.

McCurry may have been a friend, but that didn’tkeep McNeal from unleashing the full force of A.J. Longon the Warriors after scaling the quarterback in recentweeks. Long passed for five touchdowns and accountedfor 344 total yards in the rout. Remus caught three touch-downs and finished with 145 yards on five receptions.

“Our game plan was to get our backs the ball on theoutside and let them run,” Long said. “And then we re-alized their defense was trying to flow outside tostopthat. So we ran our duck - we read it and the middle wasside open. It was just a great call by Coach.”

Several on Long’s 13 completions [out of 19 throws]were of the diving variety.

“This is a special group of guys,” said Long, whose2011 season in Pennsylvania ended in the quarterfinalround. “When the ball is up in the air, they go and getit, and there’s no doubt in their mind that they’re goingto come down with it. I’m blessed to have them on myteam and I just want to win a state championship forthem.”

While Friendship finished with 528 yards of offense,Marion’s attack was one-dimensional as all 226 of theWarriors’ real estate came on the ground. Hollis andRemus picked off two of the visitors’ passes.

“We were able to make some audibles in the secondhalf when we caught them with no safeties,” McNealsaid. “We didn’t [run Long] in certain games when wedidn’t need it. There’s no reason to run him and let himtake hits and stuff. We knew coming down the stretchwe were going to have to, and we did last week.

“I was proud of our defense. We tried hard this weekto be disciplined and make sure receivers weren’t justrunning loose on us. Our guys did a great job with theirreads.”

Semifinals: Nov. 23Friendship Christian 27, Boyd-Buchanan 6

A controversial overtime win at Boyd-Buchanan inlast year’s quarterfinal sprung Friendship free to its firstchampionship. This time, the bad break for the Bucca-neers came when quarterback Jim Cardwell rolled hisankle late in the first half, limiting his effectiveness therest of the way and leaving the Chattanoogans’ offenseas sitting ducks for Duane Lowe’s defense.

“We knew [Caldwell] was hobbling a little big,”Lowe said. “They weren’t able to roll him out, which re-ally hurts their passing game that much more. Their of-fense goes as he goes.”

And their offense couldn’t get going much anywhereafter Long’s 9-yard scoring flip to Remus in the first quar-ter and his two 1-yard scores in the second. The lattercame on the final play of the first half after he foundWatts at the 1 for a 20-6 halftime lead. Long sealed thedeal with a 30-yarder up the seam to Mitchell late in thethird period.

Friendship’s third Black Friday win put the Com-

Stefan Remus [12] signals 'touchdown' as Steven Hollis plunges across the goal line for Friendship's final score. photo Darren Brown

Friendship Christian State Championship 2012 � 9

CongratulationsCommanders onwinning the

championship 2years in a row!

Like a good neighbor, State Farm is there.®

State Farm®

Providing Insurance and Financial Services

Home Office, Bloomington, Illinois 61710

Carolyn MillerAgent

2614 N. Mt. Juliet Road,Mt. Juliet, TN 37122615-754-4604 Fax: 615-754-8362carolyn.miller.bwm8@statefarm.com

24-HourGood Neighbor Service®

Congratulations!

Way to go,Commanders!Houston’s Meat & Produce

Hours: Mon-Sat. 9 a.m. -7 p.m. • Sun. 12 p..m. - 6 p.m.3930 N. Mt. Juliet Rd • Mt. Juliet, TN • 758-7226

Visit us at www.houstonsmarket.com

manders back in the BlueCross Bowl, which they lost in 2006 and won in ‘11.McNeal and Lowe, a 1994 FCS graduate, have seen the Commanders go from a

program where five wins were considered a success to the verge of a dynasty.“There were deals years and years ago we were just wanting to win ballgames,”

McNeal said. “We were just wanting respect, and that’s what we built on. And thenwe started getting in the playoffs and getting further in the playoffs. And then all of asudden, we’re thinking ‘Can we get there? Can we make this reality?’

“Winning one and getting a chance at two, it’s the best feeling in the world.”“The program’s come a long way and there’s a lot of people who have laid the

groundwork for us to get to where we are,” Lowe said. “I’ve seen a lot of alumni here,and I know they’re proud of the school and the program, where it’s come from.

“It adds a little extra pressure, but that’s pressure you want.”

BlueCross Bowl: Dec. 1Friendship Christian 44, Adamsville 7

Both teams entered the season’s final game at Tennessee Tech with 12-1 records.The Cardinals featured a big line and deep roster - 74 strong.

Friendship dressed 49, but many were eighth-graders and freshmen. The Com-manders’ ace was an explosive offense, a more-than-solid defense and the experienceof having been there and done that just 12 months earlier.

One day earlier, Gordonsville made McNeal’s late August prediction come true bypulling off a 21-20 triumph over Huntingdon in one of the most exciting finishes imag-inable.

Now, 24 hours later, coaches Ron Marshall and Mark Medley [the architects ofLebanon’s seven-season playoff run of glory which began 25 years ago] were wearingtheir blue Gordonsville garb high in the Tucker Stadium stands watching their soon todepart rival give Region 4-A two championships.

Unlike Friday, there would be little suspense on Saturday. Austin Taylor, whoselone carry in the 2011 BlueCross Bowl punctuated Friendship’s 34-0 win over Dresden,scored on his first two carries of the ‘12 game - from 7 and 55 yards - to stake theCommanders to a 14-0 lead. He scored three times on just five carries.

“To win one is a dream come true,” said Taylor, a sophomore who does double dutyat outside linebacker. “To win two is unbelievable. It’s something you never think of.When you’re little, you hope to win one. To win two is incredible.”

But is was Hollis who earned Offensive Most Valuable Player honors after rushingfor 169 yards and a touchdown on 27 carries.

Inside linebacker Tanner Martin, a guard who was a finalist for Class A Mr. Foot-ball Lineman [an honor won by Gordonsville’s Tyler Coen earlier in the week], wasnamed Defensive MVP.

“We knew we had a chance to come back and win it again,” Martin said. “Weknew we had the players to do it.”

Remus’ 32-yard field goal in the final minute opened a 17-0 halftime lead.With the lead, McNeal played the field-position game in the third quarter and

Mitchell, whose punts played a big role in this game the season before and whose runoff a fake set up this game’s first score, pinned Adamsville deep. But John Reed Odomtook the snap and swept 73 yards down the Friendship sideline to bring the Cardinalswithin 17-7.

Though plenty of time remained, Adamsville coach Brandon Gray rolled the diceand went for it on fourth and less than a yard from the Cardinal 13. The sneak wasstuffed and Friendship took over. Long whistled a 15-yard strike to Hodges up the mid-

The victorious Commanders hoist the championship trophy for the second straight year.photo Andy Reed

10 � Friendship Christian State Championship 2012

dle for a 24-7 lead.“That was huge,” McNeal said. “As

a coach, I never second-guess anybodybecause I second-guess myself enough.Fourth and inches, I told [Lowe] weneed to get our two big boys on thecenter and at least name them not goin the A gap. They did and we got agood push backwards. That was huge.But scoring made it even better. If wehadn’t scored, all it would have donewas eaten some clock.”

Remus then blocked a punt, whichrolled all the way to the 5, from whereLong rolled out and flipped a toss totight end Parker Pinnell three plays intothe fourth quarter.

Martin, who had seven solo tacklesand a pass breakup, recovered a fum-ble, and Hollis took it into the end zonefrom 3 yards out to seal the deal.

“It’s an amazing feeling,” said Long,who said he has been offered scholar-ships by UCLA, Syracuse and Arizona.“Coming in and being able to sharewith this group of guys is amazing.There is no other group that I’ve comeacross that made me feel welcome likethese guys. I came in the first day and Ifelt like I had been here forever. I told

them, from the time I got here untilnow, we were going to win a statechampionship at any cost. It didn’tmatter what it was.

“They backed me up, I backed themup and we got it done.”

In addition to back-to-back footballchampionships, this marked Friend-ship’s fifth in just over 13 months. Mc-Neal was an assistant coach last Marchwhen the boys’ basketball team hoistedthe gold ball. His stepdaughter is a set-ter on the volleyball team and he tookbaseball to the school’s first crown in2007.

“It doesn’t ever get satisfying. It doesget addictive,” McNeal said after com-pleting a 25-4 two-year run. “A lot ofpeople don’t ever get a chance to evenplay in one. We went a lot of years try-ing to win a few games, not try to playin the playoffs or play for a state cham-pionship. You got people like CoachLowe, who was a part of us getting beata lot and now, a lot of the past people Isaw here today were part of the buildingprogram to get it where it has been overthe last few years.”

Stefan Remus [12] celebrates after he and his teammates successfully drench defensive co-ordinator Duane Lowe [center] and head coach John McNeal with water at the end of thegame. photo Andy Reed

Friendship Christian School students continue toprove they are champions both on the field of play andthrough community outreach.

Friendship Christian School has seen growth in bothenrollment and retention, thanks in part to success inthe athletic arena.

“We are adding three more students at the [winter]break,” said Friendship headmaster Jon Shoulders, wholauds the 106 new students added to the rolls in recentyears. “Freshman and sophomore classes have the mostnew students.”

The freshman and sophomore classes combinedmake up 128 of the 217 students in high school at the tu-ition-based pre-kindergarten through senior school thatwill celebrate its 40th anniversary next year.

Shoulders said the school has also seen a strong re-tention rate, “which is wonderful in this economy.”

He pointed to several recent successes in sports as abig reason for the increase in enrollment. Since the 2006Commanders football team finished runner-up for thestate championship, teams have garnered five statechampionships in various sports. Its first was a state titlein baseball in 2007.

Last year, the school celebrated three state champi-onships in volleyball, football and boys basketball. Andwith the volleyball repeating as state champs already thisyear, the football team will try and do the same Saturdayat 11 a.m. against Adamsville at Tucker Stadium on thecampus of Tennessee Tech in the Blue Cross Bowl.

“We are seeing [enrollment] numbers start to rise,”

Shoulders said. “Athletics is a big draw for us.”And while Friendship Christian is seeing growth

through successes in sports, community outreach playsa role in retention, as well as the school meeting needslocally, statewide and even in other countries.

Shoulders is also proud of the students’ outreachprograms that included mission trips to Haiti for waterpurification and a necklace ministry, as well as provid-ing aid to Sneedville students. Sneedville ranks nation-ally among poorest areas, and students help feed peoplethere at Thanksgiving, as well as providing clothing andtoys at Christmas.

“We set it up like a huge store, and everyone gets1,000 Sneed Bucks,” Shoulders said. “They can buywhat they need, but it also gives them a chance to buyfor others.”

In addition, Friendship offensive lineman Ian Isbell,recently named among the top linemen in Tennessee,plans to dress up like Santa Claus to deliver gifts to peo-ple in the Sneedville community.

At Thanksgiving, Shoulders said Friendship studentsfed 1,025 people in Sneedville using the school’s cafete-ria there.

“They let us come into the school and feed everyonein the cafeteria,” he said. “We fed 500 students and fac-ulty and carried another 525 into the community.”

Run4Water, a nonprofit organization headed byFriendship Christian School teacher Greg Armstrong re-turned from a summer mission trip to Haiti where thegroup worked to install three water sterilization systems

in that country, which is still recovering from a devas-tating earthquake in 2010.

But water systems weren’t the only thing the groupdid to make life easier for the people of Haiti.

“Our trip to Haiti was amazing,” Armstrong said atthe time. “We installed three water purification systems,delivered food to over 50 homes, conducted a VacationBible School for approximately 100 children, taught anEnglish class and built a dog pin – all in one week.”

Shoulders said the school is working with a group ofwomen in Haiti to have themmake necklaces. The neck-laces will be sent to the school soon, and students planto sell them and send the money back to Haiti.

“Right now they are making them,” Shoulders said.“Once they are made, they will send them to us and wewill sell them and send them the money.”

But it’s not just the older students who are making adifference. As part of a mission projects by third- andfourth-graders, senior citizens will get a little somethingextra this Christmas.

Shoulders said the younger students decorate bagswith Christmas scenes as part of an art project. The third-and fourth-graders then fill the bags with gifts for seniorcitizens.

Students also recently adopted a single mother withtwo children in the community. Soon she will receive do-nations of food, money, small appliances and other ne-cessities all collected by the students.

“Everybody gets to have a part,” Shoulders said. “It’snot just the high school kids or the elementary kids.”

Friendship outreach championscommunity needs By Jared Felkins, Director of Content

Friendship Christian State Championship 2012 � 11

While Friendship Christian's football team was making its run for back-to-back championships, the volleyball team was wrapping up a repeat of its own. The Lady Commanders compiled 57 victories againstjust four defeats in 2012. Friendship has posted a two-year mark of 104-15 since Randy Alley became coach. Kaitlyn Teeter repeated as State Tournament Most Valuable Player. One of the most coveted col-lege prospects in the nation, the outside hitter signed to play for Lipscomb University shortly after the season. She was joined on the Tennessee Sports Writers Association Class A All-State team by fellowhitters Ali Burroughs and Alex Sealy. FCS seniors Teeter, Burroughs andMorgan Imler were part of four District 8-A championships and, as middle schoolers, twoWilson County Volleyball Association crowns.photo Andy Reed

Lady CommandersVolleyball

2012ClassAStateTournamentChamps

openhousek3-12

admissions

tuesday february 5th

4:30pm-6:30pm·

www.friendshipchristian.org

plus open campus tour thursday january 10th at 6pm

5400 coles ferry pike | lebanon | 449.1573