From the warm days of late August and early September, through the often changeable weeks of October, Mexico High School finds itself still playing varsity football this first Wednesday of November.
Considering how many programs can’t say that right now, that’s no small feat, especially for a team that suffered through a five-game losing streak this season before hitting its stride.
In his two years as Mexico head coach, Devin Brown has preached the ‘one-game-at-a-time philosophy’ that’s become a stock phrase in coaches’ speak and – with the help of the Missouri State High School Athletic Association’s expanded playoff qualifying plan – made those words a way of life for a program still seeking to return to the glory days of its 1995 state semifinal campaign.
The Bulldogs still have a way to go in terms of expanding their talent pool, beating the teams they’re supposed to beat and posing more of a threat to the bigger, more football-crazy schools on their schedule. But even if they should finish with another losing record this fall, Brown and his Bulldogs have taken two important steps in the right direction during his short tenure here, and now it’s time for Mexico fans to do their part.
With Friday night (and the occasional Thursday night or Saturday night) reserved for high school football, sports fans have the opportunity to concentrate on just one sport at a time during an autumn filled with many athletic choices from the prep level to the college and the pro. And, yes, the weather can be a pain as anybody who attended Mexico’s district-clinching win over North Callaway last week will attest, but tried-and-true football fans (like former MHS coach and athletic director Bob Gooch and others too numerous to name) know how to come dressed for the weather and make some of us wonder why we didn’t dress like that ourselves.
All any fan asks is that his team, whatever the sport, gives a good account of itself, keeping mistakes to a minimum and giving it their best effort. Very few teams go undefeated, fewer still win it all by season’s end, yet key games, historic rivalries and the unique activities of homecoming all add their special spin to the hard-hitting, strategy-filled gridiron game.
The cheerleaders will be there tonight when the Bulldogs make their first home playoff appearance of the 21st century in a 7 o’clock rematch with Sullivan. So will the band, and The Ledger tips its cap to both groups and thanks them for their loyal service.
But it sure would be nice to see the west stands packed with lots of noisy Mexico rooters, more than just the usual proud parents and family members. Prep sports have a long list of benefits that go beyond winning and losing, but post-season contests at home also can “bring a town and school together” in the words of Sullivan coach Patrick Burke, who saw that happen this time last year with his Eagles.
Anybody who seriously thinks he can predict the outcome of a prep sporting event runs the risk of being hoisted on his own petard (feel free to pause now and look that up if you like), but my crystal ball predicts a 20-16 Mexico victory tonight, hopefully in front of a packed house.
“The kids feed off the energy they get from the fans and they play harder when it's a full house,” Brown noted.
And should Fulton knock off Salem in the other pairing of District 7 and District 8 qualifiers, then I suggest coming early and staying late next Monday night wherever the sectional clash of the Hornets and Bulldogs is played. That will be the NCMC rivals’ second meeting in a month and the heat will be on, no matter what the temperature turns out to be.
Good luck, Bulldogs, and keep up the good work! Fans, dress warm tonight.
Mexico, Mo. —
