A road trip to Elizabeth ended the Titans' long run of regular season success on Friday, as Class 2A's top-ranked squad dropped to 8-1 after 26 consecutive regular season victories dating back to October 2023. Coach Justin Rich noted that two presidential administrations had come and gone since the program last suffered a regular season defeat. Despite the result, Rich characterized the loss as preparation for what lies ahead rather than cause for alarm.
Elizabeth had beaten TCA 35-7 in their previous matchup, also a regular season finale, and the game's opening stretch looked like it could produce a similar margin. The Cardinals raced to a 20-0 lead and generated two interceptions — one of which was returned for a touchdown — across the first 24 minutes. Elizabeth also confined the Titans to their own side of the field on three of TCA's first five offensive possessions.
Rich placed the blame squarely on early execution. "We didn't play well in the first half and made some mistakes," he said. "When you make mistakes against a good team, they're going to make you pay. And that's what Elizabeth did. It boiled down to about four plays in the first half that if we execute better, we'd be OK." Rather than dwelling on the deficit at the break, Rich said he challenged his players to define the second half on their own terms.
TCA responded with a sharp opening drive after halftime. A nine-play, 97-yard march ended with a Wilson Grothe completion to Garrett Moore on a third-and-8 play from the Cardinals' 11-yard line, pulling the score to 20-7 with 6:28 left in the third quarter. The defense then stopped Elizabeth on a fourth-and-5 attempt at the Titan 20, and Josiah Musilli punched in a 3-yard touchdown run in the opening minutes of the fourth quarter to narrow the gap to 20-14.
An Elijah Wilson sack helped force another punt, and Grothe converted a field goal to bring TCA to within three points at 20-17 with 9:48 remaining. The rally came up short when Elizabeth took over with 3:43 on the clock and needed only 10 seconds to seal the contest on a 28-yard run, setting the 27-17 final.
Rich drew a clear lesson from the defeat heading into playoff season. "The lesson from this game is we have to minimize mistakes," he said. "From here on, everyone we play is going to be very good. There's no margin for error." He also voiced pride in how his players responded to the early hole. "The thing I'm so proud of is most teams down 20-0 are worried about running clock. Our boys are like, 'We dug a hole, let's see how we get out of it.' We don't always stay on script, but it always seems to be exciting."
Whether those lessons translate when the Class 2A playoffs begin remains to be seen.