Football Friday Nights Live On
September 10, 1996

Richard Brian McCarty

It is still warm and muggy down in South Carolina, but fall Friday nights are already in the air. And, with them comes the tradition that is Southern high school football.

For the outsider, or the malcontent, southern high school football games hold little weight in his life. But, to the average southerner, and to the person who wants to understand the South, there is nothing like high school football to see what a community is like, and what people are really made of.

First, no program of government or carefully crafted speech can unite a community quite like a high school football game. The poor black single mother joins the affluent white couple in cheering on the home team. Both have sons on the field, or sons and daughters cheering or playing in the band. They put their differences aside, both political and social, for a few hours on Friday night, and cheer together as each other's sons and daughters make them proud.

The unity starts with the prayer, the pledge of allegience to the flag of the United States, and the singing of the national anthem. In my years of covering high school football, my most memorable moments are all the bowed heads to God, and all the voices that sing together the national anthem of the greatest nation on Earth. Of course, there is the occasional malcontent that refuses to acknowledge God, or sing, but on the whole, the stadium is filled with people who stand together. That standing reminds us that the belief in God, and the belief in America and the freedom it stands for, is bigger than any of us.

The high school Friday night provides many other things as well. Politicians make themselves available. And, in South Carolina, you will find candidates from both parties present at games, eager to give football schedules out with their names upon them.

But, even bigger than politics is the opportunity that the high school football games give a youth. The youth on the field learns team work and accomplishment. His character is molded by trying, regardless of whether he wins or loses. The youth in the band learns to play with all his heart and to work as hard as the atheletes to make himself and his hometown proud. And, even the youth in the stands learns to care about others, the ones on the field, and to cheer on those who accomplish.

I drift back to the memories of my favorite high school team I covered. That team was the Calhoun Falls, SC Blue Flashes. Calhoun Falls, SC, is a small town that is divided by all the traditional sterotypes. The railroad track separates the White side of town from the Black side of town. The town is poor, and it is shrinking according to census statistics. But, one season brought pride to that town.

That season was in 1992. Calhoun Falls made its way to the state playoffs. I will never forget the packed stadiums during that season and the cheering crowds. The Blacks and Whites of that town united together to cheer on accomplishment. Old stereotypes about one another were set aside, in order to get behind the home team. Though many of you know I am rather conservative, I could not help but feel the moment. The football team had done what no politician could do to that point, it had, through accomplishment, made the community unite in pride.

The Liberal politicos can learn from this. Accomplishment, and great effort without poltical involvment had united the town. No speeches from Bill Clinton movitivated the town. No government program had worked. But, accomplishment by young men and their coaches went beyond the bounds of government.

And, in the process, it raised money for the various charities that ran concession sales at the stadiums. So, for all of you that chuckle at sports, remember Calhoun Falls, SC. The rather simple game of football did what politicians can only dream of. It united a community with years of division behind. So forgive me, but I will always get goose bumps when the residents of a little Southern town sing the national anthem. There is nothing like it on Earth. And, I am grateful that God let me be a part of it.



Richard Brian McCarty has worked on several political campaigns of conservatives. He holds a Juris Doctor from the University of South Carolina and a BS degree from Lander University. An experienced writer, McCarty's columns are written from a distinctly Southern point of view. He is sometimes Southern, sometimes conservative, sometimes humorous, and sometimes all three.


Football Friday Nights Live On
September 10, 1996

Richard Brian McCarty

It is still warm and muggy down in South Carolina, but fall Friday nights are already in the air. And, with them comes the tradition that is Southern high school football.

For the outsider, or the malcontent, southern high school football games hold little weight in his life. But, to the average southerner, and to the person who wants to understand the South, there is nothing like high school football to see what a community is like, and what people are really made of.

First, no program of government or carefully crafted speech can unite a community quite like a high school football game. The poor black single mother joins the affluent white couple in cheering on the home team. Both have sons on the field, or sons and daughters cheering or playing in the band. They put their differences aside, both political and social, for a few hours on Friday night, and cheer together as each other's sons and daughters make them proud.

The unity starts with the prayer, the pledge of allegience to the flag of the United States, and the singing of the national anthem. In my years of covering high school football, my most memorable moments are all the bowed heads to God, and all the voices that sing together the national anthem of the greatest nation on Earth. Of course, there is the occasional malcontent that refuses to acknowledge God, or sing, but on the whole, the stadium is filled with people who stand together. That standing reminds us that the belief in God, and the belief in America and the freedom it stands for, is bigger than any of us.

The high school Friday night provides many other things as well. Politicians make themselves available. And, in South Carolina, you will find candidates from both parties present at games, eager to give football schedules out with their names upon them.

But, even bigger than politics is the opportunity that the high school football games give a youth. The youth on the field learns team work and accomplishment. His character is molded by trying, regardless of whether he wins or loses. The youth in the band learns to play with all his heart and to work as hard as the atheletes to make himself and his hometown proud. And, even the youth in the stands learns to care about others, the ones on the field, and to cheer on those who accomplish.

I drift back to the memories of my favorite high school team I covered. That team was the Calhoun Falls, SC Blue Flashes. Calhoun Falls, SC, is a small town that is divided by all the traditional sterotypes. The railroad track separates the White side of town from the Black side of town. The town is poor, and it is shrinking according to census statistics. But, one season brought pride to that town.

That season was in 1992. Calhoun Falls made its way to the state playoffs. I will never forget the packed stadiums during that season and the cheering crowds. The Blacks and Whites of that town united together to cheer on accomplishment. Old stereotypes about one another were set aside, in order to get behind the home team. Though many of you know I am rather conservative, I could not help but feel the moment. The football team had done what no politician could do to that point, it had, through accomplishment, made the community unite in pride.

The Liberal politicos can learn from this. Accomplishment, and great effort without poltical involvment had united the town. No speeches from Bill Clinton movitivated the town. No government program had worked. But, accomplishment by young men and their coaches went beyond the bounds of government.

And, in the process, it raised money for the various charities that ran concession sales at the stadiums. So, for all of you that chuckle at sports, remember Calhoun Falls, SC. The rather simple game of football did what politicians can only dream of. It united a community with years of division behind. So forgive me, but I will always get goose bumps when the residents of a little Southern town sing the national anthem. There is nothing like it on Earth. And, I am grateful that God let me be a part of it.



Richard Brian McCarty has worked on several political campaigns of conservatives. He holds a Juris Doctor from the University of South Carolina and a BS degree from Lander University. An experienced writer, McCarty's columns are written from a distinctly Southern point of view. He is sometimes Southern, sometimes conservative, sometimes humorous, and sometimes all three.


Football Friday Nights Live On
September 10, 1996

Richard Brian McCarty

It is still warm and muggy down in South Carolina, but fall Friday nights are already in the air. And, with them comes the tradition that is Southern high school football.

For the outsider, or the malcontent, southern high school football games hold little weight in his life. But, to the average southerner, and to the person who wants to understand the South, there is nothing like high school football to see what a community is like, and what people are really made of.

First, no program of government or carefully crafted speech can unite a community quite like a high school football game. The poor black single mother joins the affluent white couple in cheering on the home team. Both have sons on the field, or sons and daughters cheering or playing in the band. They put their differences aside, both political and social, for a few hours on Friday night, and cheer together as each other's sons and daughters make them proud.

The unity starts with the prayer, the pledge of allegience to the flag of the United States, and the singing of the national anthem. In my years of covering high school football, my most memorable moments are all the bowed heads to God, and all the voices that sing together the national anthem of the greatest nation on Earth. Of course, there is the occasional malcontent that refuses to acknowledge God, or sing, but on the whole, the stadium is filled with people who stand together. That standing reminds us that the belief in God, and the belief in America and the freedom it stands for, is bigger than any of us.

The high school Friday night provides many other things as well. Politicians make themselves available. And, in South Carolina, you will find candidates from both parties present at games, eager to give football schedules out with their names upon them.

But, even bigger than politics is the opportunity that the high school football games give a youth. The youth on the field learns team work and accomplishment. His character is molded by trying, regardless of whether he wins or loses. The youth in the band learns to play with all his heart and to work as hard as the atheletes to make himself and his hometown proud. And, even the youth in the stands learns to care about others, the ones on the field, and to cheer on those who accomplish.

I drift back to the memories of my favorite high school team I covered. That team was the Calhoun Falls, SC Blue Flashes. Calhoun Falls, SC, is a small town that is divided by all the traditional sterotypes. The railroad track separates the White side of town from the Black side of town. The town is poor, and it is shrinking according to census statistics. But, one season brought pride to that town.

That season was in 1992. Calhoun Falls made its way to the state playoffs. I will never forget the packed stadiums during that season and the cheering crowds. The Blacks and Whites of that town united together to cheer on accomplishment. Old stereotypes about one another were set aside, in order to get behind the home team. Though many of you know I am rather conservative, I could not help but feel the moment. The football team had done what no politician could do to that point, it had, through accomplishment, made the community unite in pride.

The Liberal politicos can learn from this. Accomplishment, and great effort without poltical involvment had united the town. No speeches from Bill Clinton movitivated the town. No government program had worked. But, accomplishment by young men and their coaches went beyond the bounds of government.

And, in the process, it raised money for the various charities that ran concession sales at the stadiums. So, for all of you that chuckle at sports, remember Calhoun Falls, SC. The rather simple game of football did what politicians can only dream of. It united a community with years of division behind. So forgive me, but I will always get goose bumps when the residents of a little Southern town sing the national anthem. There is nothing like it on Earth. And, I am grateful that God let me be a part of it.



Richard Brian McCarty has worked on several political campaigns of conservatives. He holds a Juris Doctor from the University of South Carolina and a BS degree from Lander University. An experienced writer, McCarty's columns are written from a distinctly Southern point of view. He is sometimes Southern, sometimes conservative, sometimes humorous, and sometimes all three.


Football Friday Nights Live On
September 10, 1996

Richard Brian McCarty

It is still warm and muggy down in South Carolina, but fall Friday nights are already in the air. And, with them comes the tradition that is Southern high school football.

For the outsider, or the malcontent, southern high school football games hold little weight in his life. But, to the average southerner, and to the person who wants to understand the South, there is nothing like high school football to see what a community is like, and what people are really made of.

First, no program of government or carefully crafted speech can unite a community quite like a high school football game. The poor black single mother joins the affluent white couple in cheering on the home team. Both have sons on the field, or sons and daughters cheering or playing in the band. They put their differences aside, both political and social, for a few hours on Friday night, and cheer together as each other's sons and daughters make them proud.

The unity starts with the prayer, the pledge of allegience to the flag of the United States, and the singing of the national anthem. In my years of covering high school football, my most memorable moments are all the bowed heads to God, and all the voices that sing together the national anthem of the greatest nation on Earth. Of course, there is the occasional malcontent that refuses to acknowledge God, or sing, but on the whole, the stadium is filled with people who stand together. That standing reminds us that the belief in God, and the belief in America and the freedom it stands for, is bigger than any of us.

The high school Friday night provides many other things as well. Politicians make themselves available. And, in South Carolina, you will find candidates from both parties present at games, eager to give football schedules out with their names upon them.

But, even bigger than politics is the opportunity that the high school football games give a youth. The youth on the field learns team work and accomplishment. His character is molded by trying, regardless of whether he wins or loses. The youth in the band learns to play with all his heart and to work as hard as the atheletes to make himself and his hometown proud. And, even the youth in the stands learns to care about others, the ones on the field, and to cheer on those who accomplish.

I drift back to the memories of my favorite high school team I covered. That team was the Calhoun Falls, SC Blue Flashes. Calhoun Falls, SC, is a small town that is divided by all the traditional sterotypes. The railroad track separates the White side of town from the Black side of town. The town is poor, and it is shrinking according to census statistics. But, one season brought pride to that town.

That season was in 1992. Calhoun Falls made its way to the state playoffs. I will never forget the packed stadiums during that season and the cheering crowds. The Blacks and Whites of that town united together to cheer on accomplishment. Old stereotypes about one another were set aside, in order to get behind the home team. Though many of you know I am rather conservative, I could not help but feel the moment. The football team had done what no politician could do to that point, it had, through accomplishment, made the community unite in pride.

The Liberal politicos can learn from this. Accomplishment, and great effort without poltical involvment had united the town. No speeches from Bill Clinton movitivated the town. No government program had worked. But, accomplishment by young men and their coaches went beyond the bounds of government.

And, in the process, it raised money for the various charities that ran concession sales at the stadiums. So, for all of you that chuckle at sports, remember Calhoun Falls, SC. The rather simple game of football did what politicians can only dream of. It united a community with years of division behind. So forgive me, but I will always get goose bumps when the residents of a little Southern town sing the national anthem. There is nothing like it on Earth. And, I am grateful that God let me be a part of it.



Richard Brian McCarty has worked on several political campaigns of conservatives. He holds a Juris Doctor from the University of South Carolina and a BS degree from Lander University. An experienced writer, McCarty's columns are written from a distinctly Southern point of view. He is sometimes Southern, sometimes conservative, sometimes humorous, and sometimes all three.