When the Gordon Longhorns take the field at ATT Stadium on Wednesday in the Class 1A Division I state championship game, they’ll carry more than their helmets and pads. They’ll carry the hopes of a North Texas community still rebuilding after an EF-1 tornado tore apart their school and destroyed their sports facilities back in May. The 13-0 Gordon Longhorns will face the 12-2 Rankin Red Devils at 11 a.m. as they try to win their third straight state championship — something made even more remarkable by the challenges they’ve faced this season. This team didn’t just lose a home field. They lost the familiar routines, the places they practiced, and the spaces where high school memories are made. Still, they picked up the pieces and played on. Their head coach, Mike Reed, told USA Football just how deeply the destruction affected his players. “The devastation, how it affected the players, I think, was really super emotional. The reality is in three minutes, you’re reminded how small of a part you are in this world — I knew was gonna crush them,” Reed said. Instead, they became the ones doing the crushing. The Longhorns enter today’s championship showdown undefeated and unshaken by opponents, and certainly not defeated by Mother Nature or the circumstances stacked against them. They didn’t get here alone. Their community rallied behind them, as did supporters from across the country. Football powerhouses stepped in, too. USA Football, the NFL Foundation, and the Dallas Cowboys awarded the team a $92,000 equipment grant to help replace gear lost in the storm. One player described the emotional lift of finally receiving new equipment: “We walked in here and saw our new shoulder pads, new helmets and everything. Kind of a sense of relief that maybe we could have a somewhat normal season. Strapping on a new helmet and shoulder pads. Maybe I’m a new player now, too, so I’m coming into this new season with new gear, a new mindset, new football field, new supplies and equipment. And so it makes me feel like a new player that’s gone through some trials and it’s going to make me better for it.” Players said Wednesday is about more than pursuing a three-peat. It’s about playing for their town, their community and everyone who helped them get back on their feet. Win or lose, they already sound like champions. ...read more read less