It was just an ordinary football play as Midwestern State was minutes away from celebrating winning its conference opener.
But then Robert Grays couldn’t get up. And in an instant that Sept. 16 game didn’t matter but the Mustangs and the community around them mattered a great deal.
MSU responded with campus and city-wide support and the team honored Grays with a #24Strong motto that became much more than a hashtag as the Mustangs won the Lone Star Conference, posted their second undefeated regular season and won the first playoff game for the program in 11 years.
It was a memorable year for Wichita Falls as sports dominated headlines for the community.
Before the fall season came around, the Wichita Falls High School soccer team made its first trip to the UIL State Tournament in April.
The Coyotes won five playoff matches all by one goal, not only surviving but thriving under pressure as the city rallied behind the underdogs through two gutsy regional tournament victories.
The first regional title was clinched playing the second half against the wind and with just 10 players. But they stayed together, which is what had gotten them to a place the program had never gone before.
The city also said good-bye to its two Kay Yeager Coliseum tenants as the Wichita Falls Wildcats hockey team and the Nighthawks’ football club both decided not to continue operations.
And, at the same time MSU was winning games on Saturdays in the fall, the Hirschi Huskies grabbed the area’s attention on Thursday and Friday nights as junior running back Daimarqua Foster scored a city-record 50 touchdowns.
The same Huskies who were 0-10 just two years earlier went 11-3. As for Foster? He was named the best player in all of Class 4A. Quite a year!
Here's a look back at other top news stories around Wichita Falls:
- Residents kicked off Lake Diversion: After Stan Kroenke purchased the historic Waggoner Estate in 2016, the residents of Cara Blanca Park on Lake Diversion received an eviction notice once their annual lease ran out. Many of the residents had grown comfortable with the leases and never expected their days to be numbered on their little corner of paradise. For those who called the tiny lake community home, Jan. 31, 2017 will be a day they'll never forget.
- Jail bond passes: During the May election, Wichita County approved a bond for a proposed $70 million jail and law enforcement center with 2,557 votes in favor of the project and 2,054 against it. Sheriff David Duke said at the time that the county has needed a new jail facility for at least 50 years. "I think if people really knew the facts and saw what we see everyday, the vote would have been 90 percent for it," Wichita County Judge Woody Gossom said of the May vote.
- Historic Zales Building sold: When local businesswoman Amber Schacter first looked at the Zales Building as a spot to expand her restaurants, she fell in love with the rich history and the work done to the building by the Downtown Wichita Falls Development. Schacter, owner of A Ganache Co., purchased the building and set to work to create The Karat Bar and Bistro – an homage to the building's past. The new restaurant, along with the adjoining Ganache-to-Go bakery, opened in December. Schacter also plans on developing the Morris Supper Club – a fine-dining option in the downtown area named after Morris Zales himself – in the building also.
Wichita Falls ISD officials gave the public a tour of the district's new crowning jewel in career and technological education on Sept. 14, 2017. The 123,000-square-feet Career Education Center, located at 500 E. Hatton Road, opened in August of 2017 for students desiring to take courses from among the 26 career pathways that will be offered by the school. Patrick Johnston/Times Record News
- Wichita Falls ISD's CEC opens: In August, the school district debuted its new $28 million Career Education Center with a ribbon cutting, welcoming students into the career-focused facility at 500 East Hatton Road. The 123,000-square-feet CEC was built with funds from an almost $60 million bond passed by voters in May 2015.
- Trial of Sara Anne Woody: In one of the more severe cases of child abuse in Wichita Falls, the 25-year-old Burkburnett stepmother of two children was convicted of three first-degree felony counts of injury to a child and 13 third-degree felony counts of injury to a child in September following a three-week trial. She was sentenced to 45 years in prison, with the terms running concurrently. "I know the two oldest victims are still terrified of her," prosecutor John Gillespie said of the case. "...The fact that she is now locked up in a place where she can't get out should give them a sense of peace."
- Sale of the Wichita Falls Winery: In October, Scott Poenitzsch and his wife, Linda, completed their purchased of the Wichita Falls Vineyard and Winery from Alton and Lana Gates through the Bishop Realty Group. After a career in the corporate world, Scott decided a change of pace was needed for the family. Following a few planned projects, the Poenitzsch family hopes to hold events such as concerts and art events out on the property, as well as host private events, meetings and wine tastings. They are also looking to develop a few new flavors of wine while keeping the popular blended wine favorites from the winery under their new brand, Horseshoe Bend Cellars Vineyard & Winery.