Central High was excited to earn its TOC banner.
Photo by Army National Guard
The next stop on the eighth-annual MaxPreps Football Tour of Champions presented by the Army National Guard brought us to beautiful Florida to honor
Central (Miami) on its championship season.
Head coach Telly Lockette and his team won eleven games in a row to finish the season 12-2 after winning their second Florida 6A State Championship. The Rockets who were honored by the MaxPreps Tour of Champions in 2010, also finished 2012 ranked No. 1 in the state of Florida and finished No. 14 in the entire country according to the MaxPreps Freeman Rankings!
Phil DeMuro from MaxPreps and Sgt.First Class Steadroy Challenger and Sgt. Lopez of the Florida Army National Guard were on site at Miami Central High School for the championship parade. Music that could be heard from a mile away was playing as the school, faculty, band and community showed up to support the team on this Saturday afternoon. The Rockets team and coaches were on a double-decker bus, and the Sergeants were in a branded Army National Guard vehicle as the parade procession carved through the streets of Miami. People barbecued and tailgated in their front yards in expectation of the award ceremony.
As the parade finished, the entire procession finished in the back of the school and made its way to the football field where the stage was set for the award ceremony. People packed the field and the bleachers as the coaches, team, faculty and town officials came to the stage. As DeMuro addressed the crowd and spoke of the team's accomplishments, it was evident how important the football team was to this community. Sgt. Lopez then delivered a speech that excited the crowd and spoke about some of the characteristics that the players showed this season and what they will need to succeed at the next level. As Sgt. Lopez presented coach Lockette with the Army National Guard national ranking trophy, the team celebrated on stage.
The ceremony concluded with a celebration on the field where everyone ate, listened to music and took turns congratulating the team on its accomplishments. Being honored by MaxPreps and the Army National Guard was truly an honor for them and was certainly well-deserved. The ceremony, held on a beautiful day in south Florida, was certainly the perfect ending to an outstanding season.
