BLUEFIELD, VA (WVNS) The Graham High school football team clinched their second trip to the state championship in four years on Saturday, December 4, 2021.
After taking a first-round exit out of the playoffs last year, Head Coach Tony Palmer and the G-Men were determined to make it all the way this season.
In their way stood the Appomatox County Raiders, who knocked the G-men out of the playoffs two years ago. The raiders took an early lead, but on the heels of Xayvion Turner-Bradshaw and his three touchdowns, two of which were kickoff returns. The G-men came away with a 42-28 victory and a trip to the state championship.
Now they are just one game away from achieving their ultimate goal.
The G-men put together a perfect season, and the seniors on this roster are excited for the chance to leave with another state title.
“It’s been amazing this is all we ever wanted as seniors to come out on top but we got to put that in the back of our minds right now we have a big game coming up and we have the chance to make history at Graham High School by being the best team at Graham High School,” said Brody Meadows, a senior lineman on the team.
Coach Palmer attributes the team’s success to the sense of family they instill in the program.
This postseason that connection took on a deeper meaning as Palmer lost his father just a few weeks ago. With everything their coach did for them, the seniors wanted to be there for Palmer when it mattered most.
“We are doing it for him, we want to make him happy we want to make him smile,” said Xayvion Turner-Bradshaw, a senior wideout and defensive back on the team.
“He took a fifteen-year-old child and turned him into a man honestly and for that, I forever owe him everything and I want him to go out on top with us,” said Meadows.
“Having them there for me, that just shows me that we have done a good job with these boys, not even counting football, we are trying to turn them into good men whenever they leave our program,” said Coach Palmer.
Before they leave the program these seniors want to end the way they began. They brought home a state title their Freshman year, but this season, it’s about more than football.
The G-men take on King William High school on Saturday December 11, 2021, at 12 p.m. in Salem.