Templeton’s Eagles fall short in bid for Central Section football title

By Camille DeVaul · Thu Dec 04 2025

Despite 48-7 loss to Immanuel, THS takes many positives from landmark season

By Mike Chaldu and Camille DeVaul

TEMPLETON — In it’s first bid for a CIF Central Section Division IV title, the top-seeded Templeton High football team built a lot of enthusiasm and a lot of support going into its championship game on Friday, Nov. 28, at Templeton’s field.

However, it wasn’t enough for the home team as another batch of Eagles, those from second-seeded Immanuel High, came down and posted a 48-7 victory to claim the Division IV crown, and a spot in a state semifinal playoff game.

It was the first CIF section title game for THS since they were in the CIF’s Southern Section and lost to Morro Bay in the 1995 Division XI game. The Eagles were looking for their first section title since beating Hamilton High of Hemet for the Division XI title in 1992.

However, the visiting Eagles took off right out of the gate with touchdowns on its first two possessions, then a third after they regained the ball with a surprise onside kick to take a 21-0 lead in the first quarter. Then in the second quarter, Immanuel scored twice on short touchdown runs, both on fourth down, for a 34-0 halftime lead.

“The whole key to that game was fourth downs,” said THS head coach Don Crow afterward. “They converted like seven and we converted one. So that's in a nutshell right there. We couldn't get off the field on defense and we couldn't convert on offense, so you could look at a whole thousands of things as a coach, but that was really the difference in the game.”

Photos by Rick Evans/PRP

However, Crow made sure to give credit to Immanuel.

They're good,” he said. “They're great, they're a great high school football team.

For the game, THS was able to produce just 187 yards of offense on the night, with quarterback Colt Tannehill (106 yards passing), Tyler Cunningham (90 yards rushing), Colby Sims (85 yards receiving) standing out individually.

The Eagles thought they had a score in the third quarter, behind by 41, with Ethan Armet caught a touchdown pass from Tannehill, but the play was called back due to an illegal shift penalty.

THS was able to avoid the shutout on its last drive of the night when Tannehill hit Sims on a 30-yard TD pass. Kicker Luke Kahler added the extra point to make it 48-7.

Despite the loss, Crow said his team should be proud of what they accomplished this season. The Eagles came into the game with a 12-0 record and outscored its opponents 499-174.

Photos by Rick Evans/PRP

“It’s like Coach Reynolds [offensive coordinator J.R. Reynolds] told them — and his dad and mom coached here, so he's been around Templeton football all his life — this is the best team Templeton's ever had,” Crow said. “The level we played at and the teams we played — we played at a high level, very high level.”

Despite the loss, Crow said he’s focused on the efforts and results it took to get the team to this point and the bond that they formed in the process.

“You know, these guys from last Jan. 6 to now, for 11 months, sacrificed to do this and they worked their butts off and they did a great job,” he said. “I'm so proud of them. I mean, you know, I tell you right now, if they'd have told us on Jan. 6 we'd be 12-1 and in the section finals, we'd have taken it in a heartbeat. This group made it, they became really a family and they became brothers in the game. And, that’s what I just told them at the end. They became brothers in the game and that, and that's something they'll never forget.”

So now for Crow and the Eagles, they look ahead to next season, a season that will see the return of their quarterback Tannehill, among many others.

“On offense we'll have some juniors coming back next year,” Crow said. “I’m looking forward to it.”