Last night I caught a tweet from my school’s spirit club about “theme nights” for the upcoming football season.

• Hawaiian Night
• Jersey Night
• Toga Night
• White Out
• Camo Night
• Neon Night
• America Night
• Green & Gold Night
• Pink Out
• Lights Out!
• Tie Dye

Those themes are for all of the games – home and away.  And students will come to those games – home and away. And they will scream their heads off. And they will chant. And they will turn a game on another school’s campus into home field advantage.

In college football, the home crowd is sometimes called the “12th Man.” Sometimes in college basketball, it is the “6th Man.”  I am not sure what it is called in high school, but I do know that when a bunch of students show up to cheer on their team in a sports contest no matter the sport, then something neat has happened.

But there is something about a Friday night in Clemmons when 600-800 students (yes, we’ve tried to count), show up before a class even starts  in mid-August to yell for the football team and announce their presence.

They will be decked out in theme wear and have chants ready.  A fantastic student band will come out and keep a rhythm going. A drum line will keep a beat going. A dance team and cheer-leading squad will engage the crowd. And what might be lost in the whole frenzy of the game is that over a third and maybe even half of the student body is at one singular extracurricular activity – cheering, performing, playing, or socializing.

As a community. As a family.

When Raleigh thinks about measuring schools, I might just send them a picture or a video of our students when we score.