The excitement has been building since the final horn sounded last Friday night with a big win over Sullivan South under the belt of the Elizabethton Cyclones.

Ask any Cyclone whom they might want to play in the quarterfinals this week and the answer would have been the same – it doesn’t really matter.

At this stage of the season, in the saying of one of the most famous professional wrestler of all time – Ric Flair, to be the man you have to beat the man.

In other words, if you want to be a champion, you have to take on whoever is up next and for the Cyclones that will be the Greeneville Greene Devils – a team that the Cyclones defeated by the narrowest of margins in October.

One thing that is for sure, when Greeneville gets off the bus it isn’t going to be all giggles as the Greene Devils will have the look of someone who has just bitten into a sour grape with one thing on their mind – revenge and another semifinal berth next week.

The Cyclone players and coaches along with support staff are doing their job and the other side of the coin that needs to be addressed is well…community and fans.

Last week we saw two of our county teams fall in heartbreaking fashion in their contests as Hampton and Cloudland saw a great, great season come to a bitter end.

In a community like ours, it’s hard for everyone to come together to support each of the five schools when they are playing simultaneously.

I would have loved to be at each of the games because anyone would tell you that I am super proud of all our schools and kids in Carter County and it was my hope all three would be playing this Friday as well.

Now, however, with football completed for four of the five schools, Elizabethton carries the banner representing Carter County and the Cyclones needs everyone’s support to help inspire them on to victory,

I can already hear the laughter and knee-slapping going on but bear with me for a minute.

All throughout Tennessee, there are communities who will not see the lights turned on at any of their football fields again until next year but not Carter County.

Friday night, the lights of Citizens Bank Stadium will be ablaze with what in all reality be the actual championship game in Class 4A for 2019.

The Cyclones finished the regular season the No. 1 ranked team in the state in Class 4A while Greeneville was No. 2.

Yeah, I know Mr. Weatherman is calling for a 90 percent chance of rain but you know what, that doesn’t stop the teams from taking the field and giving it their all and neither should the community and fans.

The basis for everything that I am penning today comes down to this – this football team needs everyone that loves high school football and loves this town to come and support this team Friday night as they are carrying the Carter County banner loud and proud.

If Hampton and Cloudland were still playing, I would be giving out the same battle cry.

Football is not about orange, maroon, blue, gold, or navy. It’s really about community and Lord knows this community needs to learn to come together and unite in things aside from sports.

It would be great to see guys who have put in the blood, sweat, and tears as members of the Warriors, Bulldogs, Rangers, and Highlanders to be sitting in the stands with their lettermen jackets cheering on their comrades on the field.

You can count on North Greene, West Greene, South Greene, and Chuckey Doak being present to represent Greeneville because the bottom line is it’s about C-O-M-M-U-N-I-T-Y!!!

I will never forget when Unaka won the state basketball championship and the streets through Elizabethton were lined to welcome the boys home from Murfreesboro.

There was no Stoney Creek, Hampton, Gap Creek, Roan Mountain, or the City of Elizabethton on display…it was community.

So, get out those rain slickers and whatever your best rain gear is and come out Friday to Citizens Bank Stadium. The color of the night is orange for Elizabethton.