For the second year in a row, the football team from the California School for the Deaf in Riverside has clinched their division state championship, overcoming a 14-0 deficit early in the game. Communicating through an American Sign Language translator, coach Keith Adams expressed his astonishment at the team winning back-to-back championships, calling it a rare and difficult feat.
Throughout the season, the team faced a number of challenges, including dealing with multiple injuries and adjusting to the departure of some of their best players who graduated. Adams noted the unprecedented number of injuries but also recognized how these challenges allowed them to discover other players' strengths. The school's athletic director Jeremias Valencia says the fact that many of the players have been playing together since kindergarten was also a key factor in their success.
Looking forward, Adams is already preparing the team for next year's championships. He says that he encourages the players to play hard, but above all, to enjoy themselves because winning isn’t everything. "In life, that's going to happen, you're not always going to win,” Adams says, “You have to be prepared for those losses."
Source: GOOD MORNING AMERICA