As the band blares and the crowd roars, the cheerleaders form a tunnel while the football team storms onto the scene. To a normal student, this occurrence every other Friday may seem simple to put together and just a tradition every school has, but there is so much more that goes on behind the scenes.
There are a lot of different parts that go into Friday Night Lights. A few of the main things that go into it are the cheerleaders, dancers, band and Athletic Director Gabe Middleton who oversees it all.
With everything that goes on behind the scenes during the week in preparation for FNL, many would admit its very unifying being able to gather with both the student body and community to support the football team, even if the Pirates don’t come out on top. Senior cheerleader Delany Thomas, who has been cheering for 14 years and is in her final year cheering for the pirates, “And even if we don’t win, it’s still fun to be with my friends and cheer on the football team.”
Middleton is in charge of making sure everything runs smoothly for every football game. It helps that things are pieced together long before each season, ensuring that scheduling will flow smoothly.
“[We] know the suburban conference schedules two years in advance, we get our schedules done with all the other schools,” Middleton said.
Middleton also makes sure that officials are hired for the game, clubs are worked with in advance, security is on the same page, everything is set and ready on the field, and all student activities are prepared for their part.
“We have to show up around 5:15p.m. to get in uniform,” senior trombone player Drew Smith said. “At 5:30p.m. we’re in the South Gym, rehearsing until around 6:15p.m. Then we start heading down to the field and play some warm-up songs.”
Along with this, the band also has a camp during the summer where they jump right into learning the music for the upcoming year and practicing the drill for the season, showing their commitment to making FNL a great experience.
Regardless of all preparation, dance team member junior Iman Elmi, still experiences different stressors before her dance team responsibilities.
“I’m not gonna lie, after going through an entire day of school, sometimes even practice beforehand, it can be quite a long day,” Elmi expressed. “But I just try to keep a positive mindset the entire time, and it’s fun being around people that you love.”
“I don’t like to use the word stress,” Middleton said.“Something I’ve always tried to do in this job is to not tell people I’m stressed out. And I don’t know if it helps, I don’t want the coaches to see me as stressed, because I think that when they see me stressed, that might cause some stress among them, just like with my kids at home. So I don’t use that word, but if you’re asking me, is it stressful? Yes.”
These two accounts show just how much work and commitment it takes from different activities to put together football games for the community. But with hard work comes rewarding moments and impactful memories.
“I haven’t played high school football in 25 years,” Middleton said, “Still, there’s certain things that kind of bring you back to high school, if you will. And honestly, a big part of that is the band, just the sound of the band playing the fight song.”
“My favorite part is adding on to the environment of being at the game,” Smith answered, “the NFL doesn’t really have a band, but we have a lot of tradition that’s been able to add to the atmosphere.” Elmi also described her favorite part of FNL by saying, “Definitely the fight song, because it’s the song I feel like everyone knows, and you just want a touchdown.”
After lots of hard work, it’s rewarding to staff, students, community and especially Middleton to watch Friday Night Lights unfold smoothly. “Just everytime something good happens, hearing the roar of the crowd, and seeing the cheerleaders and the dance team get excited, that’s a pretty special moment.”
