When a team is used to success, any deviation from that can be destructive to their chemistry. In other words, championship caliber teams don’t take losing well.

Which is why Chilton Christian Academy’s recent losing skid was ended this past Friday with a 52-13 win over Brooklane; they simply got tired of playing under what they felt capable of.

“It puts us back to where we want to be,” said Athletic Director and assistant coach Todd Stephens. “We knew we had some things to even out; this got us back to who we are.”

The road has been tough for the defending Christian Football Association six-man football champions this year; the Patriots are 3-3 and are trying to combine the players left from the championship team with new ones that are coming up from junior varsity ranks.

“It’s a very delicate balance between remembering what it took last year but realizing that we’re a different team this year,” said Stephens. “Half of the guys were on the team last year, and half are new.”

Stephens said adjusting his defense has been the biggest issue facing the Patriots, but the entire team stepped up before the Brooklane game.

“Six-man defense is probably more key than eight-man or 1-man,” he said. “Each player set a goal of how many tackles they were going to make.”

Stephens said he felt his team was finally back on track and felt like the team was turning into a team capable of a deep playoff run.

“We’re still in contention,” he said. “Just taking it one game at a time. It’s kind of cliché, but it’s true.”