Every athlete’s journey has to begin somewhere.
For Houston Christian’s Bret Kilchrist, his journey ironically started where another’s had ended.
“It started when I was really little at my grandmother’s funeral,” said Kilchrist. “My mom had given me a little toy and I threw it towards the altar. Despite the setting, everybody in the church was laughing. After that, my parents said ‘he’s going to play quarterback’.
“We’ve always been a big football family. I’d be up at 7 am watching football highlights. I eventually just kind of grew into it, from flag football, to high school, and to where I am now.”
After transferring from Klein over the past offseason, Klichrist helped to turn the Houston Christian program into a major-player in the SPC, as the team’s QB1.
“It was harder than I expected,” he said. “Coming in, there wasn’t as much of a ‘winning-culture’ initially, but I knew that we had plenty of athleticism on the roster. The hardest thing was getting everyone on the same page in order for each of us to succeed.”
Succeed, they did.
Under the direction of coach AJ Eisenman, the Mustangs went on an unprecedented run in the Fall to reach the SPC-3A Championship for the first time in program history, and finished the season with an overall record of 8-3.
Despite narrowly falling 30-27 to Trinity Valley in the title game, the achievement itself should not go unnoticed.
So, what was different about this particular squad?
“It was just a collective moment where everybody realized we could actually make it,” Kilchrist said. “With a few additions to the program, everyone’s confidence just began to improve. The teams before weren’t too far off, but I think the overall mentality of this group really strengthened as the season progressed.”
Kilchrist, in particular, finished his senior season with some hefty numbers (3,122 total yards, 31 total TDs, 72.4 completion percentage), which has garnered him the opportunity to play collegiate football.
He will soon join teammate Jordan Elie-Stuart as another college-commit, as he holds offers from numerous programs such as Southwestern, McMurry, Calvin and Langston University.
Despite only playing for Houston Christian one season, the impact that the team had on him was just as great as the impact he had on it.
“I made a lot of great memories over this past year, my favorite of which was before the State game. We went into a meeting room in the hotel and we listened to a song called ‘Gratitude’, and it talks about who you do it for – we have to bow down to God. It brought the team together and you could just feel the energy. I’ll never forget it.”
That mentality is exactly what could compel the Mustangs moving forward, as they’ll undoubtedly be looking for another statement season next Fall.
For now, however, Kilchrist still has another big decision to make in the coming months.