Perry Henry's defense helped win a championship. His offense was more than worth the price of admission.

There were few questions remaining after South Charleston High (13-1) wrapped up its second consecutive Class AAA football state championship Saturday with a 28-7 win over previously unbeaten and top-seeded Brooke (13-1).

One question that might be debated at watering holes, domino tables and Mound Festivals of a South Charleston well into the future, however, could be:

What was more important in the 2009 title game: Henry's interception return for a touchdown against Brooke, or Henry's jaw-dropping navigation through what looked like the entire Bruin defense to help give the Black Eagles a 14-0 lead less than 5 minutes into the game?

"All week in practice they told me to spy on No. 10," Henry said of Brooke standout wide receiver Joey DiNardo, who came into the game with 44 receptions for 889 yards and nine touchdowns. "But we also wanted to keep in mind No. 8 (Ian Morris). So I dropped back, and it was like last week and the week before: The defensive line and the linebackers put pressure on the quarterback, and I was just able to finish it."

Henry leaped to snag Brooke senior quarterback Cotey Wallace's first pass attempt of the game, and then returned it 44 yards to give South Charleston a 6-0 lead with just 1:21 seconds having elapsed.

The game began as a potential Kennedy Award face-off between Wallace and SC junior quarterback Tyler Harris. Wallace won the Samuel Mumley Player of the Game award for Brooke, but was held to less than half of his average offensive production on the season.

Harris had what has become a regular day at the office. He completed 8-of-14 passes for 198 yards and two touchdowns while rushing 12 times for 77 yards and a 46-yard touchdown that capped the game's scoring.

Henry was the South Charleston's recipient of the Player of the Game award.

"Perry's just a phenomenal athlete. Everybody looks at him as just a basketball player, but that kid, he's made for football," Harris said after the win. "People told him 'Oh, don't play football, you'll get hurt.' He played football and he won us a championship.

"That kid's got a lot of heart coming out here and being part of this program."

Of Harris' passing total, 138 yards were gained by Henry, who caught three passes. The first catch came with 7:16 left in the first quarter, and left a shell-shocking impression on the Bruins.

Henry took a 3-yard screen pass and turned it upfield dancing, prancing, breaking tackles and hurdling defenders before reaching the end zone and supplying what was ultimately the game-winning score.

Henry's YAC (yards after catch) exposition pushed former Super Six record-holder Randy Moss right off the page. The 86-yard score broke Moss' record for longest pass play in a Super Six Class AAA championship. Moss established the record in 1992 with a 79-yard reception from Mike Ford in the Panthers' 36-7 win over none other than the Brooke Bruins.

Henry's second reception was a 45-yard touchdown that put SC ahead 21-7.

South Charleston's consecutive titles make it the first Kanawha Valley team to repeat as Class AAA champions since the Moss-led DuPont teams in '92 and '93.

Henry said it was his interception that had a more lasting effect.

"It gave them second thoughts," he said. "I have nine or 10 interceptions and after that and later on in the game they really stopped throwing to my side.

"You've got to have confidence in your team. Everybody makes mistakes. This is their first time coming here, and we've been here. We experienced it (last year against George Washington). It's a blessing for me to be able to take it from them, but then again they have a good program."

Wallace said SC's first-quarter flex of muscle was an eye opener. The Bruins had trailed in eight of their 13 wins entering the title game.

"All year we've been coming back. The pick-six putting us down by six, it wasn't really that big of a deal for us," Wallace said. "But they showed that they were just a much better team. They were nothing like anyone we'd ever seen."

South Charleston also claimed a piece of history as a team.

The Black Eagles became the first team in the Mountain State Athletic Conference to win the league championship and state championship in consecutive seasons. The only other MSAC team to win back-to-back titles was Parkersburg, in 2006 and 2007. George Washington won the 2007 MSAC crown.