'Goosebumps': Cocoa Tigers hunting for back-to-back football state championship win

The Cocoa Tigers are on the hunt for another football state championship title. 

The team is in Tallahassee, gearing up for their big game Friday night. If they win, they’ll be back-to-back state champions. 

Students, faculty and staff gathered at Cocoa High School and Saturn Elementary to send the team off on Thursday morning. 

"The kids work hard. The school supports us. We have a great administration, great faculty. It’s just an awesome place to be, and we’re in a good spot right now," said head coach Ryan Schneider. 

He says what sets his players apart from the competition is their desire to keep improving.

"We are proud to represent that," the coach added.  

The Tigers already have five state championship titles under their belt. On Friday, they’re going for their sixth. They ended the regular season with a 13 – 1 record and will square off against Bradford.

"I get goosebumps just thinking about it. It would be an amazing accomplishment. It’s not for me. It’s really a representation of what it would mean to our kids, our students and our community," said Cocoa’s athletic director, Mark Carstens. 

Carstens says the entire community has backed them 100%, giving the team "money, drinks, snacks, anything we’ve asked for, we’ve gotten."

The players are ready to give 100% under the Friday night lights, in their biggest game of the season.