Shining Bright Under Friday Night Lights

Just Another Runner’s Perspective October 2023 Written by Gale Fischer

Shining Bright Under Friday Night Lights

“Cross Country is a sport where the pain of the race quickly turns to the joy of the finish.”

10/6/2023: Light rain fell from the clouds above Harper Creek’s football stadium with a thermometer reading of fifty-five degrees. Harper Creek football fans and supporters from cross-town rival Pennfield were making their way to the bleachers with kickoff an hour away. Panther and Beaver football players were going through their pre-game warm-up on the turf with their focus on the task at hand. The weather was almost perfect for football but football wasn’t the only show tonight. Cross-country runners from both schools would share the spotlight tonight with their gridiron classmates.

More than two decades prior I had read a story in Runner’s World Magazine, about a unique event that two schools in upstate New York had participated in. Runners from both schools’ cross country teams competed in a duel meet that started and finished inside the stadium just before the kickoff of the game between the two school’s football teams. The format of this unique cross-country race appealed to me and seemed like a great way to promote the sport while giving runners a little more spectator support for at least one race. 

Ten years later when I signed on to help out with Pennfield’s cross-country team, I mentioned the unique race that I had read about in Runner’s World to head coach, Rick McKire. A year later Harper Creek and Pennfield joined a new conference, the Interstate 8, and would now be competing against each other in athletic competitions each year. It seemed obvious that this could be an opportunity for the two in-city rivals to give their cross-country teams a chance to compete each year in a duel meet as part of Friday night football festivities. Harper Creek was open to the idea and the first Friday night race took place in 2015. The initial race was everything that I had imagined it would be. It instantly became the favorite race for many of the athletes from both schools. The tradition would be put on hold in 2020 when COVID hit. 

The Friday Night Lights race finally made its return with the 2023 Pennfield/Harper Creek football game, giving the seniors from both schools an opportunity for one Friday night race.  Although I was no longer involved with this event as a coach I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to go and watch some local high school runners showcase their talents in the spotlight. The scene as I arrived was surreal and energetic. The gun sounded at 6:15, forty-five minutes before kickoff. Football fans sat in the bleachers while parents of the runners ran from the stadium across campus to watch their sons and daughters. Athletes from each school’s football team went through pregame routines on the field and classic rock from the seventies and eighties could be heard from the stadium speakers throughout Harper Creek’s campus. In the distance, the home school’s marching band added to the frenzy as they made the procession from the high school to the stadium with the echo of drumsticks tapping on snare drums. 

Runners started with a partial loop around the track before exiting the stadium and running on the grass covering the practice fields. Eventually, the course would loop through a wooded trail on the south side of campus. Fifteen minutes after the race began the leaders entered the stadium, sprinting around the track past the visitor side bleachers before finishing in front of the home crowd. 

All the elements present in the minutes leading up to a Friday night high school football game were there. Spectators were seated in bleachers on both sides of the field. Cheerleaders and marching band members lined the edge of the track. Football players had returned from the locker rooms where their coaches motivated them with pregame speeches, waiting on the sidelines for their time to compete. Runners with looks of grit and determination decorating their faces gave their all for the final stretch, adding to the electricity and providing an extra element to the normal Friday night tradition.

As a runner watching these athletes race across the finish line, I could feel the energy in the air. Harper Creek junior Dominic Lowrie crossed the finish line first with a time of 16:24, with senior teammate Brian O’Dell coming in twenty seconds later. Harper Creek senior Emma Monroe held off Pennfield sophomore Payton Roades as the first girl with finish times for each of 20:05 and 20:09. Many of the runners in the lead pack waited at the finish, cheering for each of their teammates. 

As impressive as the times were for Dominic and Brian and as exciting as the race to the finish played out for Emma and Payton, the most thrilling moment for me came from Pennfield junior Hunter Jenney. Hunter’s excitement and enthusiasm after crossing the finish line were off the charts. He dished out words of excitement, high fives, and hugs to his teammates.  It was obvious from his reaction that he had accomplished something very special. After talking to Hunter’s mom a few moments later I understood why he was so excited. He had finally broken the twenty-minute barrier with a finish time of 19:49, eclipsing his previous PR by fifty-six seconds. He created a memory that will surely be with him for years to come. His mom will also savor this memory as demonstrated by the same level of excitement as her son. It was a moving moment to witness.

How fitting that Hunter reached his goal for this particular race. I’m sure his preparation and hard work put him in a position to PR but perhaps the electricity generated from this unique race gave him the extra nudge to push a little further beyond the level of physical discomfort experienced in previous races. Maybe it was just his day to shine.

As is common in all sports and many aspects of life, setting and working to accomplish goals is a driving force in helping individuals remain focused while continuing to work hard. In running, measuring the progress in achieving goals is often easy. The clock doesn’t lie. Hunter’s goal of running a sub-twenty time for a distance of 3.1 miles is unique to him. In my mind going after a goal that is attainable but also challenging on an individual level is always impressive. I like to define success as not necessarily achieving a goal but having the desire, focus, and work ethic to try to make it happen. Although success is not always a contingency of achieving a goal, I suppose that the reward is greater when the goal is achieved. 

Hunter’s display of emotion is a great example of the impact that running and participation in athletics can have. Seeing other runners reach a goal is always exciting for me. Witnessing this moment for Hunter as part of this unique event under Friday night lights was magical. I hope that there will be memories created for Pennfield and Harper Creek runners for years to come under Friday Night Lights.

Until next time, this has been just another runner’s perspective.