Tiger Football Finishes Longest Season Since 2020

The 2023 Hastings Tiger football season came to an end on November 3 at Waverly following a 21-45 point loss.

The 2023 season has been a long journey for Hastings. 

“The whole last six weeks, it was really fun,” head coach Charlie Shoemaker said. “Watching the kids get better and play well every week was the fun part. The early part was frustrating at times, but we knew we had a good team in the making.”

From the first game (and win) of the season against Gretna East to the season-ending defeat at Waverly, this has been a long and exciting season for the Tigers. 

“I think the favorite moment was probably that first-round playoff game,” junior Chance Vertin said. “We lost to Seward earlier in the season, so focusing up that week and getting ready to go play them and then winning by a lot was really fun.”

During the regular season, the Tigers had a record of 7-4.

“I think our fan base was great this year. It was awesome to see how many people were showing up,” said Itzen. “We were pretty much winning and losing back and forth for the first four weeks. We’d win one, we’d lose one. And even throughout that kind of uncertainty flip, flopping off of wins and losses, I felt like we had a great fan base.”

The Hastings Tigers were undefeated at home and had a losing record of 3-4 on the road. 

“Personally on Friday night, there’s nothing better than showing up to play a game and knowing that your stands are almost full,” defensive coordinator Brian Itzen said. “You know you have a lot of people there to support, and yet even when we were traveling, it felt as if we had people in the stands cheering for us. And we have a lot of families and parents behind us in the stands, and so that’s it’s a good feeling for the boys because then you know you’re playing for somebody you know, you’re not just the visiting team where everybody’s ragging on,  you have people that are your cheering for you too. I definitely think that our fan group is awesome, and I thank them and I appreciate them coming out and everybody supporting us.”

The Tigers had a 58-0 win at home against Lexington on September 22. Hastings finished second in the B-5 district with a record of 3-1, which included splitting two away games against Seward. 

During their first matchup, which was in the regular season, the Tigers lost to Seward. 

“Going into the first time we played Seward, it was definitely the fact that we knew that they were talented. And when they play at home, as many years as I’ve been coaching, they play really, really well at home,” Itzen said. “So going into that first time, we knew that we had to play well, we can’t make mistakes. And unfortunately, the very first kickoff was a mistake, you know, and then that kind of play can be a huge psychological factor in the game. And so I felt like we’re kind of at a deficit right away, just in the sense of like, are we really here and ready to play this game? We hung around and made quite a few mistakes, but we did a lot of good things and we put ourselves in a position to win at the end and we just unfortunately couldn’t capitalize on it.”

The Tigers qualified for the playoffs which was their first postseason appearance since 2020. According to Vertin, the playoff  

“The playoffs are a whole different breed. I mean, it’s state football. So it’s always more tense and more nerve wracking knowing that your season could be over with just one loss,” Vertin said. “So there’s a lot of pressure but you just kind of have to forget it and have fun and just play.”

Hastings drew seventh seeded Seward in the first round of the playoffs. The Tigers, who were seeded tenth, played at Seward who were the higher-seeded team.

“Seward was different because the first time we played we played really badly, so when we knew we had the draw to play them in the first round, we knew exactly what we needed to do,” Vertin said. “And we already knew what they were going to try to do. So we just had to change what we were going to do to go in.”

The Tigers went on to beat Seward 35-6 on October 27, marking their first win in the playoffs.

“We were extremely happy with our draw, you know, to be able to have a second chance to play them to fix the mistakes that we made,” Itzen said. “The first time [mistakes] caused us to lose was just an opportunity you don’t get very often in any sport. Definitely not in football because usually you have your regular season and then if you’re lucky enough to make playoffs, you’re probably going to get a draw somebody else you haven’t played and so having that kind of redemption game was nice, and it was fun to coach and I know the boys relished in the fact that they got to play them again and kind of just beat on them.”

The win against Seward advanced Hastings to the quarter finals where they faced second-seeded Waverly.

“[My thoughts were] mainly I wanted us to show up the same way we showed up in Seward the first round of playoffs. We were extremely focused. The team had this kind of eerie aura, in the sense that we had a job to do and everybody was just very dialed in. The concentration, the effort, the both wanted to win and the one to play well was definitely there,” said Itzen. “I was hoping that we would be able to just carry that same momentum, that same confidence into Waverly. 

Leading up to the game, Itzen felt good about the team’s position going into the game.

“Throughout the week, we had a great week of practice. And so I really felt good going into Waverly. 

Itzen remained hopeful about the game throughout the first half even when the Tigers were down.

“I felt like we put ourselves in a position where we could play with these guys. And in all honesty, during the first half we took a beating here and there, but we were only down ten points,” said Itzen. “I felt like we’re in a good position where if we fix some things and go on to the second half, you never know how the game is going to end. At that point we struggled and made a few too many mistakes.”

The quarter final game at Waverly was the final game of the season for the Tigers following the 21-45 point loss.

“Waverly was just very physical,” Vertin said. “They were very strong and very fast, so they were definitely the most physical team we’ve played all year.”

Even with the loss, Vertin was content with the outcome and experience of the season.

“The playoff run was actually really fun. It was an experience that I haven’t had yet. I mean, my freshman and sophomore year we both went to seventh. So for us, this whole group to turn around and have the chance to make the playoffs is really special for all the guys because we worked so hard to accomplish that,” Vertin said.

Itzen had similar feelings about the outcome of the season.

“…You can’t ask for much more at that point. You know, to win and move on would have been amazing. But when you’re playing quarter finals, when you’re playing at that level in the playoffs, every team is really good and you can’t make mistakes, and unfortunately, we made some mistakes and they played a great game,” Itzen said. “So definitely really, really happy with the outcome of the season.”