The Elizabethton Cyclone Football Team this weekend brought home the state 4A Championship Trophy. It was an event that brought the Elizabethton community together — some 6,000 to 7,000 fans traveled to Cookeville for the game and to support the Cyclones — a record number of fans for one school according to TSSAA officials.

High school football starts long before the first day of school in August. Players practice, get themselves in physical shape. Coaches go over game films and as the season nears, practice becomes more focused to the tasks at hand.

Meanwhile, cheerleaders hone their routines and the band tunes up its halftime show. Booster Club members make sure the concession stand is stocked, and athletic department officials meticulously prepare the field. Students scream at a pep rally.

High school football on Friday nights holds a special place in many people’s hearts. And, many fans are quite passionate about it. In fact, some are rabid. High school sports teams are vital fixtures of community pride as exhibited this weekend by the number of fans who made the trip to Cookeville to support the Cyclone football team. Some fans had attended all 15 games played by this year’s team.

High school sports provide a community such as Elizabethton with an identity that nothing else can do. Smaller schools such as Elizabethton and those in the Carter County School System offer more opportunity for an athlete to participate in multiple sports (and activities). A large number of the athletes compete in multiple sports, sing in the school chorus or choir, or participate in a classroom project in the same school year.

Sports teach important life lessons, too. In fact, high school athletes not only have higher grade point averages and fewer school absences than non-athletes, they also develop the kind of work habits and self-discipline skills that help them become more responsible and productive community members.

Attending high school sporting events teaches important life lessons, too.

Among them, it teaches that we can live in different communities, come from different backgrounds, faiths and cultures, cheer for different teams, and still have a common bond.

It’s not only an opportunity to cheer for your hometown team, it is also an opportunity to celebrate our commonality. And that’s something our country needs right now.

As the football season comes to a close and basketball takes over, we congratulate the Cyclones on their championship season. We celebrate their persistence, tenacity, preparation and hard work. And regardless of the color of the uniform our student athletes wear, they deserve our support.

High school sports not only enhance the lives of the athletes, but those that live in the community, in ways that few other activities can. And regardless of what side of the field we sit on, attending a high school sporting event is an uplifting, enriching, family-friendly experience for all of us.

Our high schools — Elizabethton, Happy Valley, Unaka, Hampton, and Cloudland — lie at the heart of their community. They not only are educating our next generation of leaders, they are a place where we congregate, where people from every corner of town and all walks of life come together as one. And at no time was this unity more evident than during this weekend’s championship game between Elizabethton and Springfield. And, it’s been that way all year for the Elizabethton Cyclones.

Our congratulations not only to the players and coaches, but to the fans who have come out every Friday night to support the team and to cheer them on to victory. You make us proud!