I stood on toward the top of a set of concrete steps. From this spot I could see almost the entire thing. I had heard of it, knew it was a big deal, but had no idea as to its true scale. The cars, vans and motorhomes seemed to go on forever. And endless flow of people in various shades of green milled around. Almost every one of them seemed excited, even anxious, about what was to come.
As I looked over the scene, I thought to myself, “How did this go on under my nose for four years?”
I had intended to pay a visit to another annual event in Louisville last weekend – the St. James Art Fair. Hundreds of booths were lining the Old Louisville neighborhood as artists displayed their paintings, drawings, sculptures and other works. Last year I even commissioned a piece of art for the first time, so I was looking forward to seeing the artist again and thanking him. Those plans were cancelled, however, and as it turned out I witnessed a totally different city tradition.
Those of you who live in the Louisville area have probably figured out already where I was. I stood outside Papa John’s Stadium, where the University of Louisville plays its home games. I was not there for college football, however. I was there for some Friday Night Lights on a grander scale than I’d realized. I was there for the Trinity – St. Xavier game.
This is the biggest rivalry in Kentucky football. The annual game between the two private Catholic high schools in Louisville has in fact grown to be one of the biggest games in the country. Both have won multiple state championships (Trinity in fact has won 20 of them and lost in four finals, so they are one year away from spending the equivalent of a quarter of a century playing for a championship). They both have home stadiums with price tags in the multi-millions, enormous coaching staffs and numerous alumni in the top-level college football and even the NFL. It’s a little bit of Texas high school football dropped into the Ohio Valley.
The schools have learned to capitalize on this, as the game has become a festival unto itself. It’s now held at Papa John’s Stadium. Bands play in tents in the parking lot, and the tailgating is simply epic. I went to the game with Ryan, a good friend of mine, who invited me to tag along with him right after he found out I had not attended before. He had made several trips and convinced me it was something I just had to see.
I was told both schools have alumni functions all week and many make the big game an excuse to take a vacation back, home. This made sense because the number of people I saw there far exceeded the student populations of the schools even if you added in their families.
The stadium was surrounded by fans. I lived across the street from the stadium at Indiana University and I saw many game days there during my four years. I believe there were just as many cars, vans, and even motorhomes set up for this high school game as many of the Big Ten clashes I witnessed in Bloomington. The lots were absolutely full. Both teams have similar green and yellow colors, so green flags flew everywhere. The smell of burgers and brats cooked on hundreds of grills wafted through the air.
The fans intermingled throughout the lot. Across the lot you could see footballs arcing through the air as kids played catch. People with Trinity shirts partied next door to families with St X painted on their faces, yet there was no trash talking and certainly no violence. The game was important, but hating the other side wasn’t. The students, alumni and families wanted their side to win badly, but they showed a lot of respect. It was everything a sports rivalry should be.
The whole thing struck me as surreal as I took in the spectacle. A good friend of mine plays football in high school in Louisville. He’s the nephew of one of my best friends and I’ve been to his games. Even at the varsity level, there aren’t enough people in the stands to represent a parent for each of the players. That always struck me as profoundly sad. Those kids were practicing, working out, strapping on their pads and playing hard, and most of their parents couldn’t even be bothered to attend the games. I know some of them (and I do mean only some of them) may work nights. But really? That many work Friday nights? I’m not buying it. What could they possibly be doing that’s more important than seeing their son participate in an activity like this? They should be supporting these guys. If they have brothers and sisters, well bring them along too. High school football games are fun to watch if you’re a fan and a good social activity if you’re not. I’m not buying very many excuses when it comes to this.
Anyway, those were not issues when it came to the St. X – Trinity game. Over 30,000 people poured into Papa John’s Stadium on a rapidly cooling evening. Ryan and I spotted seats at the 35 yard line and settled in. At the box office, we noted there were reserved seats being sold – for a high school game – but we had gotten general admission. As we sat there thousands more poured in, finding assigned seats all around us. We were prepared to be busted back to the end zone sections but we got lucky. No one came for ours.
The game was close in the first half. The rivalry is fairly close as only a few wins separate the two schools. Trinity is ranked in the top 20 teams in the nation and St. X was going toe to toe with them. We were sitting on the Trinity side and despite the close score the fans seemed poised and confident. As it turned out, they should have been. The first half had drained St. X’s tank. The 14-6 halftime score blew up to a 41-6 Trinity rout, and by the final whistle Ryan and I were headed for the warmth of the car.
I’m glad Ryan invited me. I got an eyeful of a massive rivalry, one that showed to me what the good side of high school football can be. I saw enthusiastic fans supporting the kids on the field and doing so with respect to the other side. It was a fine way to spend a Friday night.
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