NEW PALESTINE — After watching from the Shepler Field sidelines and Kelso Stadium stands, they have a chance to be a part of the standard.
When Class 4A No. 1 New Palestine takes on Delta Friday night, the Dragons will have the opportunity to finish their regular season undefeated, hence winning the outright championship in the Hoosier Heritage Conference.
From 2013 to 2019 that was the norm. The Dragons went 9-0 in each of those seasons winning HHC titles along the way. Three of those seasons (2014, 2018, 2019) ended with state championships, another a state runner-up (2015).
It hasn’t been the norm to the current group. Just a handful, as freshmen, were part of the 2019 team and their playing time was sparse.
The past two years were solid seasons, but not what the Dragons had been accustomed to.
They were 8-4 in 2021 – 6-3 in the regular season — losing in the regional championship game to eventual Class 5A state champion Cathedral. In 2020, they finished 8-2 with a season-ending loss in the sectional title game against Whiteland.
On Senior Night Friday, the 8-0 Dragons have a chance to win another title and do it without a blemish on their record.
“It’s an awesome feeling,” senior offensive lineman Luke Burgess said. “I remember coming out here in middle school and elementary and just watching New Pal beat everybody they played, even (Class 6A) Center Grove, when I was in eighth grade.
“I used to think, I am going to be part of that someday. To finally be here, and be a senior leading it, it’s just an amazing, grateful feeling.”
The Dragons beat some of the big boys this season, too. They opened the year defeating Class 6A state runner-up Westfield, 42-28. It was followed by a dominating 49-0 victory over Class 5A standout Decatur Central.
Since that win, New Palestine has won seven straight HHC games, including a 42-6 victory at Mt. Vernon, the Class 4A defending state champion. With the win over the Marauders, the Dragons grabbed the HHC Helmet and the Boundary Rail traveling trophy the schools have played for since 2005.
“It feels like we’re back to the standard of how it used to be,” senior wide receiver/defensive back Blaine Nunnally said. “For a couple years, we, obviously, didn’t set the standard high enough. That was why we didn’t do well. The standard has risen. As seniors, we’ve been talking about this since seventh and eighth grade when we saw those teams every Friday night beat teams by 60-70 points.”
“I’ve grown up playing New Pal football from the (New Palestine Cadet Football League), middle school,” senior free safety Baylor Hurst said. “We were always super involved here. Obviously, we saw the product that was on the field and you want to be part of that when you’re a kid.”
Not at the margin that Nunnally saw as a young fan, but the Dragons have been dominant throughout this season. They are averaging 48.3 points per game and giving up just 10. Class 6A Westfield was the only team to score over 14 points. The Dragons have scored at least 42 points in each game and had a season-high last week in a 63-12 win at New Castle.
Hurst, like Burgess and Nunnally, got a little playing time as a frosh. “I played mop up time,” he said.
He saw how the team accomplished an undefeated season and state title, and like his classmates and current teammates, they’ve experienced a few more losses than those dominating squads from 2013-19.
“Our whole senior class has come together,” Hurst said. “It’s been a great experience and we’re just hoping to keep it rolling.”
If the Dragons win Friday, it would be their 12th undefeated regular season and eighth in 10 years under head coach Kyle Ralph. It would also be their 12th HHC title, and 11th outright championship in 14 years.
“It’s nice to be competing for a conference championship again,” Ralph said. “It comes down to Week 9, so we’ve had to stay focused since we got the helmet back Week 4. We’ve been the one that everyone is chasing now. It feels good to be back in that position again.”
