Spradling, Sowersby lift Smithson Valley's Hill to first state title

ARLINGTON - Larry Hill was thinking about one of his father’s favorite sayings after winning the Class 5A Division I State Championship, 32-20, over Highland Park.

Before this season, Hill’s legacy as the ninth winningest coach in Texas High School Football history had a caveat with the one game he hadn’t won - a state championship. He’d been four times and lost them all. Most didn’t see the pain this caused him. His father knew. And every time Larry confided in his dad about the frustration that the biggest game was always someone else’s turn to win, his father had the same reply.