I couldn't put my finger on it until I began standing in the already long line, looking at the already packed stands on Shanley's west side.
Then it hit me: I'm a fan.
For a moment, I could not remember the last time I attended a high school football game as a fan. For the last seven years in both Wyoming and Idaho, I've been going to high school games mostly as a member of the press. I was covering, not attending.
After I thought about it, I remembered a few -- I caught the fourth quarter of the Natrona JV-Wheatland game in Week 8 last season in Casper. In 2001, I drove out to Hanna to watch my alma mater, Midwest, lose to the Miners. I scouted the Hulett-Ten Sleep game in Buffalo in 1998.
But that was all I could remember. Really, two games (and a quarter) of high school football was all I had watched as a fan in the past 15 years?
No wonder this game felt different.
For those of you who don't know Fargo, Fargo Shanely and Fargo Davies are separated by not much more than a housing development. Shanley is an established, private, religious high school that plays in North Dakota's Class 2A for football; it's big claim to fame is that it was Roger Maris' high school. Davies is the new public high school on the south side of a quickly growing community, a 3A school in its second year of varsity football. To me, it seemed like the perfect introduction to the world of Fargo football.
My wife and I walked into the stadium just as the first play of the game unfolded -- a kickoff that Shanley's receivers could not catch.
In that moment, and as I was reminded throughout the game, one of the things that makes high school football so great is the imperfections.
With about 30 seconds to go before halftime, Shanley had a 14-0 lead and was driving, either to set up a field goal or to maybe get in for a touchdown and really break this game wide open. If that had happened, the wife and I would have probably gone home. (Another benefit of being a fan -- we don't have to stay and watch when the game turns into a blowout.)
And then... imperfection.
Running an off-tackle play left, one of Shanley's players fumbled. Davies defensive back Alek Groth scooped and ran... and ran... and ran... down the west sideline. Touchdown, Davies. 14-7, with 11 seconds to go before halftime.
Now we've got a game.
Or do we?
Shanley scored early in the third quarter, but missed the extra point, to make it 20-7. Again, it looked like the Deacons would pull away.
Then the Eagles found the Deacons' weak point on defense. And attacked it. Over and over and over.
There was some sort of imperfection on the left side of the Shanley defense that Davies found. The Eagles lined up both their tight end and their split end on the same side and sent Groth -- who's also a running back -- off tackle about every other play.
Poking and prodding that weakness led to Davies' second touchdown, which cut the lead to 20-14 prior to the start of the fourth quarter.
Full-on assaulting that weakness led to Groth's second score, a 50-some-yard dash -- up the east sideline this time -- and a 21-20 lead.
The score stood as Shanley's once-mobile offense fell flat. The victory was just Davies' third varsity victory in school history. And the Davies fans soaked it in.
Just like fans do.
Random observations: One thing I've already noticed about high school sports in North Dakota is that they mirror the society: polite, passionate, passive (forgive the accidental alliteration). ... I should have expected it, but it's still weird to me to see guys in priest collars on the sidelines. ... Props to the Shanley chain gang for going all casual Friday on us with the Hawaiian shirts. ... The guy in front of me and I both had the same idea about the Shanley announcer: He did everything right, except urging the crowd to cheer during key Shanley offensive plays. Even the Shanley players were giving the eagle-wing "Shut up" motion on the few occasions he did that.
Next week: I'm going to take in a Minnesota contest -- Goodridge-Grygla at Moorhead Park Christian, on Thursday. It's Park Christian's second season as an independent program.
--patrick
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