On Wednesday, a signing ceremony was held at Warren Gym for 10 Brownwood Lion and Lady Lion seniors who will continue their athletic and academic careers collegiately.

Damian Sanchez in one of four student-athletes from Brownwood’s Class of 2023 who will be attending Howard Payne, as he awaits the opportunity to suit up for the Yellow Jackets football program in the fall.

“I didn’t really expect this and now that I have the opportunity to keep playing, it means a lot,” Sanchez said.

During his senior season, Sanchez earned honorable mention at offensive guard for a unit that averaged 40 points and 386 yards – 229 on the ground and 157 through the air – per outing, including two games of at least 60 points.

Brownwood finished the season with a 10-3 record, won its first district championship since 2010 and advanced to the third round of the playoffs.

Lions offensive coordinator Dex Dennard said of Sanchez, “Damian’s story is a story of perseverance. If you’ve played football, not every day is fun, and Damian would struggle with that. There were a few times where he might have wanted to quit, but the lesson is if you persevere through those times you don’t feel like doing it but you still go out there and attempt to get better, you’ll be rewarded, and he was. Now he has an opportunity to go play at Howard Payne.”

Regarding his fondest memories as a Lion, Sanchez said, “We won some games and we lost some, but I’ll always remember all the fun times we had.”