TMHS Football named national finalist, THS Football earns state finalist honor for NFF National High School Academic Excellence Award

THE WOODLANDS, TX -- Tomball Memorial High School Football has been named a National Finalist after joining Tomball High School Football on the State Finalist list for the National Football Foundation National High School Academic Excellence Award, announced recently by the National Football Foundation and College Hall of Fame.

Tomball Memorial High School is the lone 6A Texas finalist and one of just 65 teams from across the nation that have been named a National Finalist, vying for the NFF Hatchell Cup, Presented by Bob's Steak & Chop House.

The Hatchell Cup winner will be announced Feb. 4, recognizing the top individual high school football team in the nation for excellence in the classroom, on the field and in the community. The Hatchell Cup, named in honor of NFF President & CEO Steve Hatchell, comes with a $10,000 donation.

This coveted award is the first nationwide recognition honoring individual high school football teams for excellence in the classroom with a team 3.0 or above grade point average.

"Our coaches and I are extremely proud of our team for being named a finalist for this prestigious award,” said Tomball Memorial High School Football Head Coach Joe Cary. “The staff and students of Tomball Memorial take great pride in the high standards of academics as well as athletics, and we strive each day to uphold those standards. Our athletes work extremely hard to balance the challenges of being great in the classroom as well as on the field. It is very rewarding for our kids to be honored by the NFF Network as a finalist among so many great schools across Texas."

In the last three years, a Tomball school has been named a NFF National Finalist with THS earning the honor in 2022-2023 and TMHS now in 2024-2025.

Representing Texas as a National Finalist this year:

• Private – Houston St. John's School
• 1A - Sanderson High School
• 2A - Spearman High School
• 3A - Idalou High School
• 4A - Sanger High School
• 5A - Lubbock Cooper High School
• 6A - Tomball Memorial High School

Prior to being named a National Finalist and State Winner for 6A, Tomball Memorial High School joined Tomball High School as two of the 15 6A schools recognized as a State Finalist for the NFF National High School Academic Excellence Award, announced by the Texas High School Coaches Association.

The Wildcats were selected among the State’s 15 6A Finalists:

• Alexander HS
• Allen HS
• Clements HS
• Cypress Park HS
• Cypress Woods HS
• Edinburg North HS
• Klein Cain HS
• Lake Travis HS
• Longview HS
• Ridge Point HS
• San Antonio Johnson HS
• Stratford HS
• Tomball HS
• Tomball Memorial HS
• Westlake HS

The 2024-2025 school year marks the fourth straight year Tomball High School has been named a State Finalist.

“This just shows the type of kids that I am so blessed to get to coach,” said Tomball High School Football Head Coach Dave Handal. “Our kids model what a student-athlete is supposed to look like each and every day. The Culture of our program has a standard of how we do things and Academic Excellence is at the top. I am excited for our kids to get this honor and much deserved recognition.”

Each state's high school coaches association selects their respective state's winners from a pool of nominees submitted by each school's head coaches. A national selection committee is responsible for choosing one school as the recipient of the Hatchell Cup as the best team in the nation.

"Texas is honored to collaborate with the National Football Foundation in recognizing high school football teams that exemplify excellence in academics, athletics, and community service," stated Joe Martin, Executive Director of the Texas High School Coaches Association (THSCA). "We extend our congratulations to the seven Texas state finalists for their remarkable GPA and demonstrating exceptional performance both in the classroom and on the field, as well as within their communities."