SHORT GAP, W.Va. — It took all 48 minutes for Frankfort to lock up their 28th consecutive victory and a second consecutive Class AA state championship. Braydn Tyler’s 43-yard touchdown pass to Keiton Nestor with 3 seconds to play allowed the Falcons to hoist another trophy earned at University of Charleston Stadium with a 49-42 win over Bluefield.
“It was so stressful,” said Frankfort senior lineman Anthony Smith. “There were points I was about in tears. There was a point I was about to throw up. There was a point where I was smiling. There were points where I was laughing. It is all part of the game. It is all fun.”
“It has been such a surreal experience throughout the whole high school career,” said Frankfort senior RB/DB Braydn Tyler. “Two, back-to-back state championships, it is almost like a dream, to be honest.”
Like most teams fortunate enough to win their last game of the season, Frankfort quickly pivoted to 2026 and unlike a year ago, the Falcons return several starters and key contributors.
“You’ve got to turn it as soon as you start working back in the weight room,” said Frankfort head coach Kevin Whiteman. “That’s the past. I told them the other day, ‘We can’t ride on ’24 and ’25’. This is a new team, a new situation and a new group of people that have got to come together as a team. That’s what we’ve got to do.”
In Frankfort’s run-heavy offense, the Falcons will once again by led by their offensive line. It is a group led in large part by senior Anthony Smith. He also accounted for 81 tackles and seven sacks as a junior.
“He is a true key component,” Tyler said. “He is just so big and agile,” Tyler said.
“He makes amazing blocks. There isn’t a play that I could look back on in the state game where he didn’t make an important block.”
Tyler returns to lead an experienced and deep backfield. He rushed for 1,302 yards and accounted for 30 touchdowns in a first team All-State junior season.
“He is a really good halfback,” Smith said. “He is good at making cuts and good at reading the line. He is an amazing safety. He makes big hits and big plays when we need them. He is just an all-out great player.”
“He brings a lot to the table,” Whiteman said. “Just has speed and I always say that speed kills. It really does. He is a hard-nosed kid. He is aggressive and he is very physical. He loves contact. He helps us in all three phases of the game. I have no doubt he is going to be big for us this year.”
“We have been doing this since pee wee. Being surrounded by the same guys, it is just another day,” Tyler said.
Tyler will be joined in the backfield by junior Cole Shanholtz. He accounted for three touchdowns in the state final.
“Cole Shanholtz at fullback and we also have Gunnar Bradshaw and Peyton Brittingham as the other halfbacks,” Whiteman said. “Cole did a great job last year and a great job in the championship game. He is a hard runner and he is hard to bring down. He is a very determined football player.”
In the early stages of training camp, a pair of quarterbacks were battling for the starting spot.
“Quarterback is open competition. We’ve got Carson McBee and Austin Twigg. They are both working really hard,” Whiteman said. “Both are good boys and they get along well, which is awesome. I an sure we probably won’t know until after the scrimmage games who is going to be the starting quarterback.”
The Falcons enter the season as the only team in the state with a chance to 3-peat, and they’ll look to do so with their typical formula for success.
“There’s always pressure holding the number one spot,” Smith said. “We’ve got to just keep working hard and taking over. Just got to work hard, that’s all you can do.”