The Turnaround – Our 9/11 game

Lubbock High School footballLubbock High School wore red bandanas for Friday's 9/11 game. Photo by Eric Karr Photography - erickarr.com
gamestrat high school football sideline instant replay

by Jason Strunk, Lubbock High School Head Football Coach

Friday night we dropped a tough game to the Dumas Demons by a score of 41-26.  It was a back and forth game all night.  We pulled within a score late in the fourth quarter, but missed the PAT, which all but ended our chances of pulling this one out.

Two weeks in a row we dropped close games.  We are getting better, there no question about that. But the loss on the night of 9/11 wasn’t all about football.

Lubbock football 9/11 uniforms

Lubbock High School wore specially-designed 9/11 patriotic uniforms Friday night. Photo by Jason Strunk.

We took the field wearing the colors of the United States on Friday night.  It was a special feeling. It was an honor. Our kids played tough. We played with resolve.  We bounced back when we were down. All of these traits can be associated with our country and how we responded in the face of a national tragedy on 9/11.  Our country is tough; we played tough.

Related: Lubbock to wear patriotic 9/11 uniforms vs. Dumas

The Turnaround: 2015 blogs by Lubbock head coach Jason Strunk

This was a dedication game.  It was dedicated to all of those involved on 9/11.  I think people around the country would have been proud of the way we wore America’s colors that night.  My team represented the best this country has to offer, in terms of attitude, physical toughness and mental toughness. We wore red bandanas on Friday night, in honor of 9/11 hero Welles Crowther.  I spoke with his family the night before the game   They told me they were touched by our gesture. The only request they had? Send them a team picture. I am honored to be sending them a picture of the team I put I the field on Friday night.  They represented the mission tremendously on Friday night.

We honored our country.  We honored Welles Crowther.  We did all of this as Westerners, but in the colors of the United States.  It was a special night.  We may not have won the game but we did everything the right way.

We live in the greatest country in the world. Do NOT ever lose sight of that!

Never forget!

 

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About the Author

Jeff Fisher
Jeff is an award-winning journalist and expert in the field of high school sports, underscored with his appearance on CNBC in 2010 to talk about the big business of high school football in America.Jeff turned to his passion for high school football into an entrepreneurial venture called High School Football America, a digital media company focused on producing original high school sports content for radio, television and the internet.Jeff is co-founder and editor-in-chief of High School Football America, a partner with NFL Play Football.