When you hear “Friday Night Lights,” you picture a packed student section, hear the blaring marching band and smell aromas drifting from concessions. Awaiting a touchdown, you are in the familiar environment of a Friday night football game.
This year, MCPS mandated the addition of sports games other than football on Fridays in hopes of diminishing violence and combatting referee shortages. Despite the policy change, the difference in attendance between football and other sports remained drastic. Friday night football games maintained the lead in turnout compared to other sports events that were held on Fridays this year. For example, “Our best Friday night football game sold over $6,000 in tickets. Our best ‘any other sport’ we sold around $500 in tickets,” Athletics Director Alton Lightsey said.
The home football games that were on a Thursday night still had a larger turnout than other sporting events held the next day.
It is evident that attendance is higher at football games than any other sport, and that can be credited to the spirited tradition high school football holds. From rivalry games to nail-biters, and whether you watch the game or not, the event is a staple high school experience. Not only do students show up to football games, but also the entire community. Parents, friends, family and fans fill the bleachers eager to support our team. During the two-hour event, most attendees purchase concessions, merchandise and tickets, which contribute to our school’s profits. This benefits the athletic department as a whole, including the budgets for other sports.
It is also a chance for other students to broadcast their talents, such as marching band, cheer and poms at halftime. Football games are not limited to only a sports match; they provide a performance by student musicians, dancers and athletes for the whole community to appreciate.
A common complaint is not being able to support other sports teams that have games held on other nights of the week. However, if you want to support friends who play other sports, the night of the game shouldn’t dictate your attendance. There are often ways to make time to show up regardless of the day of the week.
It may be true that there have been brawls and acts of violence at football games across the county in the past, however, there were zero incidents on Friday night games this past season. The presence of trustworthy security guards and the new entrance policy are more than enough to diminish any disruptive acts.
Since the most spirit and student/community attendance is visible at football games, the best way to maximize it is by assigning football games to Friday nights. This way, students who prioritize homework, studying and other activities on school nights have the opportunity to tune in to the fun.
Though it may be fair to give other sports a chance to play on Friday night, the overall benefit of a football game outweighs the latter. Since the benefits of a Friday night football game outweigh the costs, they should be held on Friday to avoid the hurdle of homework or other extracurriculars that the weekend excuses you from.
