FAIRBURN, Ga. — Ten years ago, the Creekside High School football team won their first and only state championship. On Friday, when the Seminoles play Mays, the 2013 champions will be honored at halftime.
On that state championship-winning team was linebacker Chris Collins. He is excited for the chance to once again soak in the atmosphere of the crowd and reminisce on the memories from a decade ago.
“Winning a state championship is hard and it’s every kids dream in high school so just the fact that we did it, it was an amazing feeling for everybody,” said 2013 Creekside linebacker Chris Collins. "The community was behind us big time and I think a lot of our fans will be at the game. Just to see everybody, just to be able to celebrate that moment will be real big. I can’t wait to see my brothers."
Creekside offensive tackle Marquel Harrell is just excited to be back with the guys that he was able to reach the high school football mountaintop with back in 2013.
“Actually being in the locker room enjoying my brothers, that’s what I’m looking forward to,” Harrell said.
In a scrimmage before the state-championship season, then 16-year-old De’Antre Turman -- known better as "Tre Tre" -- tragically died after a routine tackle resulted in a severe neck injury.
“The third quarter of the game came. It was a regular tackle, and he was just stopping somebody from getting the first down. Great tackle, we go to celebrate, and he didn’t get up,” Collins said.
“It’s a bad image but you replay it over and over again and it’s tough. Especially dealing with it as kids because it’s kind of hard to answer questions that you don’t have answers for,” Harrell explained.
It was a moment that changed his teammates lives forever, but a moment that made them understand that the 2013 season had a much bigger purpose.
“Our whole mantra was do it for deuce. When we broke it down we said 'one, two, do it for deuce!' Everything was geared towards that,” Collins said.
“Oh, he was with us every game. I remembered we played Tri-Cities and you could see a big 2 in the cloud. Things like that that would remind us he was saying ‘I’m not too far away from you guys,’” Harrell explained.
They want the community to remember their friend and teammate as they celebrate the anniversary of the school’s lone football championship.
“Looking up at the sky it was just like, we did it. We did it for deuce," Harrell said. "It was just a weight lifted off the shoulders and that was a great feeling."