Season Opener...

Last Thursday was the opening night of high school football in Texas. I've always kind of found it ironic that Friday Night Football always opens on Thursday. So, I got sent up to Jayton to shoot defending six-man state champion Throckmorton playing Rotan, who was playing in the school's first-ever six-man game. The game was supposed to be a 7:30 kickoff, but with the two previous games going long, the kickoff never happened until 9:30. Not good for deadlines!

So, with plenty of time to kill, since I got there at 7pm. I was able to type in both teams' rosters for code replacements then walk around looking for features before the game. One good thing about having been here so long is some of the great working relationships I've developed with the coaches. Throckmorton coach Mike Reed is a great guy and has always been helpful. So, it was nice to get such a great response when I asked to get some behind the scenes shots of players getting taped up before the game. He told me "Man, you've got VIP access, you can do whatever you want." So, I went and made the best of it, including probably my favorite photo of the night with the cowboy boots and shoulder pads, I can't think of better way to illustrate high school football in Texas.

When the game did finally start, Throckmorton wasted no time showing why it was the reigning king of six-man football, taking the opening play into the end zone for a touchdown. After the first quarter Throckmorton lead 44-8. Then Rotan started looking a lot better, but the game was never in doubt they won it 78-40. I ended up missing much of the third quarter because I had to edit and send photos. Which ended up being sent just before 11pm. I decided to stick around to the end of the game which didn't get over until almost midnight. After the 100 mile drive home and I put the slideshow together it was almost 5am when I finally got to bed... the first of many late nights, glad I love my job!