Thompson’s assertion might have seemed puzzling, given his Bulldogs lost to the Norfolk school, 45-34, to end their season a victory short of glory. But as he wrapped up his opening remarks in the postgame news conference, he looked over at his players on either side of him.
On one side of Thompson sat senior Jordan Kaiser, who had never played quarterback until starter Brandon Pena went down with an injury in the second quarter Saturday. Safety Myles Turpin, the team’s typical emergency quarterback, went down with an injury of his own soon after, leaving an inexperienced Kaiser under center. “We didn’t even have pass plays; we were making them up as we went,” Thompson said.
To the other side right sat senior wide receiver Na’eem Gladding, who kept the Bulldogs in the game. Gladding recovered a Maury fumble in the first quarter and took it to the house for a 79-yard touchdown; on the ensuing Maury drive, he snagged an interception.
Gladding could only do so much. Maury quarterback Au’Tori Newkirk threw three deep touchdown passes in the first quarter and ran for another in the second, putting the Bulldogs at a 20-point deficit going into halftime.
But Thompson’s team didn’t quit. It was a microcosm of Stone Bridge’s season — the Bulldogs (9-5) dropped their first four games (aside from an opponent’s forfeit) and, in Thompson’s words, “had a bad culture” — but rattled off eight straight wins to advance to the state championship.
On Saturday, Thompson’s team rattled off 24 second-half points to give Maury (15-0) a late scare. Kaiser tossed his first career touchdown pass, 57 yards into triple coverage, tipped into the air and improbably caught by Gladding. Senior running back Troy Marquez found the end zone minutes later for his final high school touchdown, then watched the Bulldogs’ special teams unit block a punt through the end zone for a safety to trim the deficit to 10 points with just under seven minutes in the game.
Ultimately, Newkirk’s six-touchdown day proved too much, and the Bulldogs finished as the runners-up for the ninth time in 23 years. But as Thompson sat with his players and digested the loss, he left at peace.
“The culture is back,” he said.