By Nora Schindler

At the pep rally on Friday, October 6, Steven Lavender-Gray told the crowd full of McCaskey students he was going to win the homecoming game. Then the anticipation began. 

That Friday, the air was cold and it was finally starting to feel like fall. It was dark as people filed in. What initially seemed like a decent amount of students turned into a huge group of students, filling the student section. The turnout was impressive and everyone was dressed in all black for the Black Out theme of the night. After that afternoon’s pep rally and parade, the school was ready for the main event.

The Reading High School football team and band, wearing berets, were introduced. McCaskey’s cheerleaders took the field after them. 

 At seven o’clock the game began and tensions were running high. Everybody was wondering how this game is going to go. On the field, the 1 and 5 McCaskey Tornadoes were ready to take on the 1 and 5 Reading Knights. Could Lavender-Gray make good on his promise and bring home a win?

People often say that nothing is really like the movies. But the screen got the particular football night feeling right with the series Friday Night Lights, based on the book by H. G. Bissinger. The book is written by a journalist who followed a high school football team in Texas in the 1980s. The book is nonfiction—while the show and movie that are based on it are not—and its authenticity is what’s compelling.

While the Homecoming football game at McCaskey might not be a playoff game in Texas, the intensity was palpable. The bright lights, from which the term “friday night lights” comes from, the packed stands, and the electricity in the air all felt ripped from a Hollywood film.

The Homecoming game is known for the royalty getting announced at halftime. Tiyya Geiger took the crown for Homecoming Queen. Luke Speitel took the crown for Homecoming King. They were then paraded around the field, waving to the crowd.

Throughout the game, the teams traded score for score, staying tied most of the time and keeping the players and fans on their toes. As the game entered its final moments, the score was stuck at 28-28, and the game went into overtime.

What happened next was exciting for the Tornadoes. The Tornadoes pulled through with a touchdown and went on to win in overtime with a final score of 34-28. 

No one ever knows what could happen on any given Friday night, but this was certainly a night to remember. Whether you were on the field or up high in the stands, the feeling rang through the whole stadium: McCaskey brought home a win.

It’s also a great thing to know that the promise made by Lavender-Gray at the Pep Rally was fulfilled, McCaskey Tornadoes beat the Reading Knights.