Following his eighth-ranked Bears’ win over 5th-ranked Joaquin, Timpson coach Kerry Therwhanger admitted he didn’t see it coming.

Not the 63-0 win. Not an offense that averages 50 points per game. Not the team’s perfect regular season – Friday’s win made the Bears the state’s first team to post a 10-0 mark.

 “I knew we had talent on both sides of the ball, but you don’t know how it’s going to gel,” Therwhanger said. “I thought we might be pretty decent, but to tell you we would average 50 points and be 10-0? No, I didn’t expect this.”

The Bears capped their perfect season with a perfect storm of a performance against previously unbeaten Joaquin to claim the District 10-2A, Division 1 title. Braden Courtney’s 80-yard touchdown – part of 222-yard, 5 TD effort – effectively put the game out of reach. Trailing 20-0, Joaquin’s Slot-T offense found itself out of its element.

“We got some turnovers early and our kids played really well,” Therwhanger said. “Once we got ahead, they felt like they had to throw it and that really isn’t their forte. We got some interceptions and it snowballed from there. Everything we did worked, and it just got out of hand.”

Therwhanger can say the same thing about nearly every other game his team has played this year.

“Our defense has been solid all year and our offense keeps putting up points,” he said.

Not even an injury to starting quarterback Terry Bussey has slowed the Timpson’s offense. The Bears average 54 points per game and haven’t been held below 34 all year. Only one team, Shelbyville, lost by fewer than 20 points, 41-25 on Oct. 1.

Bussey, a dynamic freshman, injured his shoulder a month ago and moved to receiver to take strain off that shoulder. He intercepted a pass and caught a touchdown pass against Joaquin. L.T. Washington took over, and the Bears kicked it into another gear, scoring 56, 63 and 63 in his three starts.

“He’s really done a tremendous job,” Therwhanger said. “Since he’s come in, nothing has dropped off. We’ve actually picked it up a bit. With him playing quarterback, we’ve been able to use Terry at the receiver spots and even at running back.”

While the quarterbacks have impressed and Courtney has gained yardage in chunks, Therwhanger knows where the offense starts.

“Our offensive line has been key,” he said. “Coming into the season, we knew we had skill players who could do some things if they had time, but none of our linemen had started. We play four juniors and a sophomore, and they have really been good. They’ve stayed healthy and continue to do what they do.”

Timpson’s perfect regular season is the school’s first since 1975 and only the school’s second winning season since 2012. Having survived playing 10 straight games, the Bears will enjoy their bye week and not worry about possibly losing any momentum.

“The bye comes at a good time,” Therwhanger said. “We’ve been going pretty good with no break ever since the UIL said we could start. It’s nice to back off a bit and take the chance to get refreshed. Plus, our six weeks [grading period] ends Friday so the kids have the chance to concentrate and make sure they take care of their grades.”

Once the grades are taken care of, the Bears will focus on the playoffs, but only the pending bi-district game. Timpson could face a familiar foe – it beat both Frankston and Price Carlisle in non-district play – but Therwhanger isn’t too focused on who it will be. He’ll ask his team to do the same thing they’ve done every week so far.

“We have a saying around here where we just want to be 1-0 this week,” he said. “That’s kept us focused, and we’ll try to stay focused that way moving forward.”