WINNSBORO, Texas — They've got a great thing going up in Winnsboro. Once the underdog, the Raiders have made a meteoric rise to the top of the standings, sitting in the top three in the state for 3A.
It's no secret the key to their success has been not just one of the top quarterbacks in East Texas, but in the whole state. Senior Kyler Finney was at the top of very passing statistic in the region at the end of 2022, and he's repeating his success again this year. He's led the Rugged Red to an 8-0 record so far after a tough October stretch.
Just let the numbers speak for themselves:
In Week 7, Winnsboro took down their archrival Mount Vernon 44-0, with Finney collecting three touchdowns and over 200 all-purpose yards.
In Week 8, the Raiders took down fellow undefeated and state ranked Pottsboro 52-28. The senior quarterback put together 236 yards passing, 191 yards rushing and three touchdowns in a statement victory.
Last week, Finney and company traveled to Mineola where they took down the host Yellowjackets 42-0, led by four first half touchdowns from none other than Kyler Finney.
"We went in there with the mindset of taking what they give you. At the end of the day, it's a numbers game and offensively we took care of business," said Finney. "Ranks are just ranks, but it's whenever you can show people that you're worthy of being ranked. We're something worth being talked about."
The Player of the Week award is nothing new for Finney. In the last couple years, he's received plenty of hardware from multiple outlets. The most important thing Finney has emphasized since day one however, is that these all aren't just Kyler Finney awards. They're awards and successes to be shared with the entire team, too.
"We work out together, we all practice together. We share our same accomplishments with each other. Without any of them, I wouldn't be able to have any of the credit I deserve," Finney said. "They help me through it all, and I help them through it all. It's nice to get these awards because I know it's shared amongst our team, so that's awesome."
Being 8-0 is a dream start for most teams, but in Winnsboro it's just business as usual going forward. Week by week, they continue to focus on the main goal ahead... being that final team standing in Arlington come December.
And when Finney is your starting quarterback, the odds remain in your favor.