When Muenster head coach Brady Carney last won a state championship in 2017, he felt like he left AT&T Stadium and didn’t remember anything. 

He’ll think about the moment the clock hit 0:00 to mark a 36-29 win over Shiner in the Class 2A Division II State Championship, and he embraced his daughter, Ady, a cheerleader, and his son Casen, the Muenster’s Offensive MVP.

“That’s every Texas high school football coach’s dream,” Carney said.

Casen, a junior quarterback, completed 15-of-20 passes for 171 yards and added 147 yards on the ground and four touchdowns, the last of which came with 40 seconds left and proved the game-winner. Casen turned to the Muenster crowd and pointed to his ring finger; he grew up watching them cheer for his father, and now they were going crazy for him.

While Casen accounted for 318 of the team’s 352 total yards, both father and son insist it was only possible because of his supporting cast of linemen and receivers. Oh, and special teams.

Muenster stole a possession on the opening kickoff with a surprise onside kick. The difference in the ball game was the touchdown that came off the onside.

Facing a 4th and 14 with 5:28 left in the game and down 29-28, Carney gambled on his punter, senior Caden Klement.   

“I was hoping for (a punt) inside the ten,” Carney said. “Caden came through and put it inside the one.”

Shiner moved it to their own seven-yard line and faced a 3rd and 4 with 3:58 left in the game. Shiner threatened to ice the game with their signature midline veer, but Klement again came up with the play of the game. The senior linebacker tackled Shiner quarterback Carson Schuette for a two-yard loss, setting up Muenster’s game-winning drive. 

“We had a solid idea of what they were going to run,” Klement said. “As soon as the ball’s snapped, the quarterback takes off outside, we’re downhill and physical. That’s probably one of the biggest plays of the game.”

While the moment was special for Carney because he was sharing a title with his son, it was also special because he was sharing it with all the friends his son grew up with.

“I’ve watched them all play flag football together,” Carney said. “I’ve watched them all grow up playing T-ball, then sliding over to coach pitch, then basketball. I’ve seen them grow up since they were babies. It means the world to me to see them accomplish something they dreamed.”

BOX SCORE

Scoring Summary

Shiner Passing

Shiner Rushing

Shiner Receiving

Muenster Passing

Muenster Rushing

Muenster Receiving

Shiner Defense

Muenster Defense