THE FAT LADY SINGS! FAULK 7TH GRADE BISD CHAMPS, 9-0

By Juan Montoya
For 30 years, the long-suffering fans of the Faulk Middle School Hawks waited for a chance to win the district football championship.
Last night (Monday) they overwhelmed a Cummings Middle School Red Ants contingent by a 39-0 score to end the drought.
It's been a long wait in the Southmost and 421 barrios school whose practice field (an old resaca bed) gets flooded every time there is a moderate shower. Additionally, unlike other schools, Faulk had no weight room for its young players to tone their muscles. The silver lining there is that the school will inaugurate its' new $450,000 weight room at the end of the season to get ready for the next year.
The practice field, however remains a problem.
"That is usually the way it is all season, " said coach Charlie Atkinson. "We practice in the halls and in the pavilion."
To understand the show that Faulk fans have been enjoying this season, look at some of the statistics the Hawks compiled.

*They remained undefeated

*The Hawk offense scored 279 points

*The Faulk defense allowed only 12 points to its opponents

*Faulk never punted the ball all year and never from deep in their side

* Faulk kicked onside and recovered possession 12 times

*And over the past four years, it has fed Porter High with outstanding athletes

"We wanted to prove to everyone that Southmost can produce solid football players," Atkinson said. "The kids here just don't play soccer."
Five years ago the school had only one athletic period and had 138 eighth graders and 177 seventh graders. Today, there are two sixth grade athletics classes with about 160 students in each, a seventh grade athletics class with 85 students, and an eighth grade class with about 55 students participating.
"Kids have really bought into the program," he said.
The results are readily apparent, he says, because Porter just wrapped up the city championship last week.
But on the academic side, there are also some notable successes. For the first time in the school's history, all players passed their six weeks exams and not one player flunked. Usually, administrators say, about half of them fail.
Atkinson said that the support for the success of athletics in the school by former principal Carla Pereira and current principal Benita Villarreal have changed the atmosphere in the school.
"Players must sit up front of their classes and show respect for their teachers and administrators or they don't play," he said. "We wanted to shake things up and improve the program and with the help of our principals we have done just that."