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Wildcat Football -
more than a game
10/3/2006
Anyone who has ever been to a high school football game
knows the feeling. It’s more than just a game that
you’re there to watch. It’s more than just the sport
that you’re there to enjoy. You’re there to be a part of
something. It’s communal. It’s tribal.
College football is
terrific, and the NFL is exciting too, but high school
football defines the thousands of communities across the
United States, and it occasionally even gives us a
preview of the select few that will be moving on to
larger venues in the future.
Simply put, high school
football is pure, open-ended, unmitigated joy. And now
more than ever, it’s increasingly sophisticated.
Most importantly it helps
young men to find out who they are. The sacrifices they
make are all worth it when Friday night shows up and as
the band plays, the bright lights showcase the fact
these kids do really care, and they want to be a part of
something larger.
Ask anyone who’s ever
played.
If you don’t think high
school football’s popularity is at an all-time high,
then check out MTV’s new reality series called
Two-A-Days, or NBC’s Friday Night Lights.
Friday Night Lights is a
take-off of HG Bissinger’s popular book and subsequent
feature length movie. As a former player and a huge fan,
I still get that ‘Friday night feeling’ every time I set
foot in a packed high school stadium.
Riding the excitement of
high school football is the last bastion of the serious
sports fan. No scholarships, no contract disputes, no
baloney. Just young kids competing for the love of the
game and the chance to mold themselves into productive
citizens.
To that end, I can say
without trepidation that in Wildcat Country they do it
with the best of them. I’ve been blessed to have
attended high school football games in California,
Washington, Arizona, Texas, Illinois, Michigan, Ohio,
Florida and New Jersey.
Having said that, the
experience in Wildcat Country is as genuine as anywhere
I’ve been.
Wildcat Football, it’s
more than a game.
It’s your life on a
stage, and we all get to see it live.
Especially in Wildcat
Country…
(C) 2006 Novi Information
Network
All rights reserved.
Bernie
Fratto's
column appears right here each
week during the football season.
Bernie is a member of the Minor League Baseball Alumni Association
and in his former life, he spent time in the Cincinnati Reds Farm
System. He is an accomplished Freelance writer, and sought after keynote
speaker, appearing often at Award Ceremonies, Athletic Banquets, and
Company functions.
He is passionate about sports and the life-lessons
they teach. "Behind every sports story lies the hearts and minds of real
human beings," Fratto said..."And these athletic endeavors often serve
as a metaphor for the game we call life."
Bernie is also on the broadcast team at Live 97.1FM talk-radio, and is a
frequent
co-host on the popular "Parker &
The Man Show," a nightly sportstalk show which airs Monday-Friday from
7-11pm.
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