Harker Heights started fast then dug in its heels. Now the Knights can fire up the buses and head into the second round.
Hosting a playoff game for the second straight season and third time in the last four, the Knights toppled visiting Cedar Hill 28-14 in the teams’ Class 6A Division II bi-district encounter at Leo Buckley Stadium and advanced to the area round for the first time since 2022.
“I’m just so excited for our kids, our coaches, our team, our community and our school district,” Harker Heights head coach Mark Humble said. “To follow up our district championship with a battle against a team from District 11-6A and be bi-district champions, it goes a long way and it’s not an easy thing to do.”
That’s for sure. Never easy but so very worth it.
The Knights (9-2) gave every ounce of effort Friday night, building a big lead by halftime then holding off the hard-charging Longhorns (6-5), who pulled within two touchdowns late in a rough-and-tumble fourth quarter before Arshawn Spann’s interception with 45 seconds remaining sealed the deal and set off a long-lasting celebration –– gold ball and all.
“It feels great. It’s been a while since we’ve done, so it’s nice to bring back the tradition,” HHHS defensive back Corey McMillan said. “Being able to do this my senior year, I love it.”
The Knights next will play Forney (9-2) in the area round at 7 p.m. Friday, Nov. 21 at Newsome Stadium in Mansfield.
The nine wins for Harker Heights are its most since 2022 when the Knights, who’ve won four consecutive district titles, advanced four rounds deep.
To get that far again, Heights will be on the road the rest of the way. But the Knights sure left their mark for 2025 on their home turf Friday night.
Complementing a stingy defense that forced three punts, a turnover on downs and an got an interception from Cooper Howard in the first half, the Knights’ offense scored points on nearly every possession during the opening 24 minutes to build a 28-0 lead by halftime.
“This is amazing,” Hudson Humble said. “We knew if we trusted our coaches and did what we knew we were capable of, then we could come away with a win.”
Oakley Goins put the HHHS up 3-0 with a 52-yard field goal about 3 minutes into the first quarter. Jaylen Mason made it 10-0 with a 2-yard rushing score, and the Knights went up 17-0 with less than a minute to play in the first when quarterback Hudson Humble connected with wide-open Geoffrey Anderson in the flat.
Goins added a 40-yard field goal to push the advantage to 20-0 in the second quarter, which the Knights capped in scintillating fashion when Spann dived to corral Humble’s deep pass for a 39-yard touchdown with 6 seconds remaining before halftime. Humble then hit Spann for the 2-point conversion.
“One of our keys was to start fast, and scoring right before the half was huge,” Mark Humble said. “They have really good players and a really good team. It was just a matter of time for them to get going. But we were able to play four quarters and hoist a gold ball at the end.”
And the Knights earned at least one more week together.
“Awesome feeling. Bonus football. Our kids fought tooth and nail to get another Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday. So, we will enjoy it and look to play championship football again next week,” the coach said.
More photos: https://www.flickr.com/photos/killeenisd/albums/72177720330326071/