A bitter end: Heathwood can’t hang with Northwood in SCISA state championship
The Heathwood Hall dream season came to a crashing end Friday night in the Class 4A SCISA football state championship.
The Highlanders ran into a buzzsaw against Northwood Academy in a 61-7 loss, ending the school’s best season since 2009.
Northwood quarterback Kevin Johnson threw for 340 yards and five touchdowns, three of them to Aydan Hogan, as the Chargers won a state championship for the first time since 2014. Johnson threw his fifth TD pass to open the third quarter. There was a running clock the rest of the way.
The Highlanders finished the season 9-4 with a win over rival Hammond in the state semifinals that snapped a 20-game losing streak in the series. It was the first time since 2009 they reached the state championship.
It was a season of growth under coach Tymere Zimmerman.
“We just won more games this year than we won over the course of the last four years. I’m excited for my team,” Zimmerman said. “This football season changed the culture at Heathwood. ... The energy at the school has been great. You saw the fans cheer the kids at the end because they know how much work they put in.”
Things started promising for the Highlanders. They took the opening kickoff and marched down the field without much resistance. QB Patrick Belk connected with Keon McKinley on a 57-yard pass to set up a Belk 5-yard touchdown run that gave Heathwood Hall a 7-0 lead just 53 seconds into the game.
The Highlanders had 67 yards on the opening drive and finished with 51 total yards for the game. They also suffered three turnovers in their second loss to Northwood this season.
“Like I’ve been saying all week, that’s a great football team,” Zimmerman said. “We’ve just have to find a way to get back to this point next year.”
It was all Northwood after that. The Chargers answered that score with a 36-yard pass from Johnson to Drew Wolfe that was a harbinger of things to come.
By the time the half was over, Johnson had four touchdown passes, the Chargers had two rushing scores and it was 40-7 at the break.
Hogan ended with seven catches for 126 yards, and Wolfe added five catches for 103 yards and two touchdowns. The Chargers finished with 440 yards of total offense.
This story was originally published November 21, 2025 at 11:09 PM.