Central football finishes historic season

The Cape Girardeau Central High School football season finished a history-making campaign on Saturday.

The Tigers made the school's first trip to the state championship game for Class 4 football. Their opponent, Webb City, won the previous four state titles going into Saturday's contest. But Central was undeterred. It opened the game with 14-0 lead. Despite the early start by the Tigers, the Webb City Cardinals came back and won a fifth consecutive championship by a score of 48-21.

While we know the Tigers were disappointed to lose the title game, the players, coaches and fans should be proud of this year's season.

Central has made significant gains in the past few years. To make an appearance in the championship game is a tremendous accomplishment.

"I was proud of our kids," coach Nathan Norman said. "I felt like they competed, and that was my No. 1 goal. I knew they would hang in there and never quit."

We hope you looked at Sunday's Southeast Missourian. There were some great stories and photos covering the game. A photo gallery is also available online at semissourian.com.

Congratulations to coach Nathan Norman, the players and coaches on a successful campaign.