Photo by David Phillips/CLASS!

Game time!

‘Thursday Night Lights’ heats up football fever in Vegas

Photo by David Phillips/CLASS!

Above: From left to right, Middle Linebacker Julian Yearwood (age 18), Quarterback Dalton Leilua (17) and Defensive Tackle Tala Atimalala (16).

On Friday nights in the fall all across the American South, little ol’ grandmas break out their pom-poms, burly truck drivers snuggle up in blankets and starched executives whip off their ties and paint their faces in their favorite colors. Folks from all walks of life fire up for their shared love: football.

Yet, it’s not big-name, overpaid professional teams, nor even deep-seated college rivalries these fans turn out for by the thousands. It’s high school football, and that kind of excitement may just be starting to take root in Southern Nevada.

Kindling this spark of community pride and athletic spirit is “Thursday Night Lights,” a weekly, live telecast of selected local high school football games, broadcast on KVMY, My LVTV, channel 21, cable channel 12 on Thursday nights from 8 p.m. to 10 p.m. The program launched its inaugural season on Aug. 27 with a game that saw the Chaparral Cowboys fall to the Silverado Skyhawks at Silverado, 6-42. The televised season will close on Nov. 5 when the Rancho Rams challenge the Las Vegas Wildcats at Las Vegas in the 52nd Bone Game, the oldest tradition in Nevada prep football.

“We want to make ‘Thursday Night Lights’ to high school football what ‘Monday Night Football’ is to the NFL,” says Sonia Maxwell, KVMY’s local sales manager, who was one of the people instrumental in bringing “Thursday Night Lights” to Las Vegas.

She says the intention is to build local pride and to draw national attention to the talented high school players and excellent academic programs in Southern Nevada’s schools.

“This is not just about high school football,” says Maxwell. “It’s about community involvement, creating awareness and developing goodwill.” Local support for “Thursday Night Lights” has grown quickly, since it was first proposed back in June. In less than nine weeks, the crew at KVMY had adopted the program from its Sinclair Broadcasting sister station in Nashville, Tenn., proposed it to the Clark County School District and other high school athletics organizations, recruited sponsors and signed on a production company. CCSD approved the move of selected varsity games from Friday to Thursday nights to accommodate KVMY’s programming schedule, and “TNL” took off from there.

“Within 72 hours of pitching the idea to coaches and CCSD’s althetic director Ray Mathis, we had a schedule of games put together by Palo Verde coach Darwin Rost,” says Tommie Gonzalez, KVMY Programming Director. Rost also heads the Southern Nevada Football Coaches Association and has been a supporter of the “Thursday Night Lights” program since its inception in Las Vegas.

Photo by David Phillips/CLASS!

In developing the slate of games to be televised, Rost focused on giving as many teams their spot in the limelight as possible, as well as featuring some longstanding rivalries. In 11 game broadcasts during the regular prep football season, 18 of the 35 schools with eligible football teams will have their moment in the spotlight. Powerhouse teams like Bishop Gorman, Las Vegas and Palo Verde will have additional games broadcast. “TNL” cameras will also capture high-adrenalin rivalries like Basic vs. Green Valley and Las Vegas vs. Rancho, giving Southern Nevadans a chance to be part of these community traditions.

Though “Thursday Night Lights” features amateur players as young as 15 years old, the production quality rivals some nationally broadcasted games. Eight cameras capture the action from various vantage points. Whether listening in at the coach’s huddle or scanning the stands for familiar faces, the viewer has the best seat in the house, thanks to the wide-ranging coverage provided by the Caples Production crew. Knowledgeable playby- play offered by ESPN Sports Radio announcers Brian Blessing and Kenny White, and guest appearances in the booth by sports notables like former UNLV and Philadelphia Eagles’ quarterback Randall Cunningham and Pittsburgh Pirates’ announcer Tim Neverett, keep the viewers’ interest even during lulls in the action on the field.

While the first few games of the season ended with lopsided victories, such as Palo Verde’s rout of Foothill, 49-0, some of the games have been true gems and some have delivered a few surprises: -Capitalizing on a strong team’s miscues gave Del Sol the victory over the Las Vegas Wildcats on Sept. 17, despite a late push for three touchdowns in less than five minutes by the Wildcats in the fourth quarter. The Dragons, however, had enough steam to hold back the ’Cats attack and hang on to the win, 33-28.

-In only its second year in the district, Desert Oasis took every opportunity to use Gorman’s weaknesses against the undefeated team in their face-off on Sept. 24, putting 11 points on the board to Gorman’s 42.

-Fans couldn’t have asked for a better match up between teams than the Legacy vs. Cimarron- Memorial game on Oct. 1. In overtime, Legacy pulled out a win when senior William Purcell used a two-point conversion to steal the victory from Cimarron, 30-29.

-Despite playing without some of its starters, sidelined by academic ineligibility, the Valley Vikings made the Desert Pines Jaguars earn their win on Oct. 8, 28-8. Viking star QB Garic Wharton fought through the Jaguars defense to land a touchdown with 12 seconds left on the clock, stealing the shutout from Desert Pines.

Jaguars quarterback Dalton Leilua threw for 128 yards and three touchdowns to cap the Jaguars 400-yard running game and take the win.

“The players were excited to play on TV,” says Jaguars coach Paul Bennett, Sr. “Their attitudes were great, [though] I think there’s some pressure to do well.” Bennett says his team showed the same intensity in preparing for their televised match as they do for all their games.

“Football taught me how to apply mental strength when times are tough. I try to coach my players the same way my coach coached me.” “Whether they win or lose, the players we’ve seen on ‘Thursday Night Lights’ just play their hearts out,” says Gonzalez. “The kids love it, especially when the MVP and ‘TNL’ trophies are awarded.” Among numerous promotions and prizes awarded to both players and fans of “Thursday Night Lights,” sponsors Athleticare Physical Therapy and Terrible’s Gas Stations offer the big awards of the night: the Game of the Week Trophy, an impressive addition to any team’s trophy case, and the Most Valuable Player of the Game Award. The MVP is chosen by the fans at home and in the stands who text in their favorite player’s name. Votes are counted during the game and the award is presented at the end.

“We want to make ‘TNL’ as interactive for the fans as we can,” says Maxwell. “Everyone has a lot of fun, and it feels more like a carnival than just a football game.” Other promotions include Gatorade’s Great Attendance Award, which gives two $500 prizes to students with perfect attendance in the first nine weeks of school; the PACE Safe Driving Competition, awarding a group of four students with a free weekend trip to Disneyland for their winning driver safety message; and the end zones are lined with booths where community organizations provide numerous other giveaways, while also raising health and safety awareness among fans in the stands.

“We’re proud that ‘TNL’ is part of the Scholar Athlete of the Week program, sponsored by DeLuca and Associates,” says Gonzalez. “We spotlight a male and female high school athlete during the ‘TNL’ broadcast and in our final game on Nov. 5, one of those students will be awarded a $5,000 scholarship.” Gonzalez says the weekly broadcast has benefited local teams in unexpected ways as well. At some games, ticket sales have increased as more fans turn out to support their school or simply to be part of the fun.

Also, coaches and players have been taking the opportunity afforded by the Thursday night game schedule to scout an opponent they will face in an upcoming regular Friday night game.

“We’ve also had scouts and colleges contact us for copies of the game broadcast, so they can take a look at a local player they’re interested in recruiting,” says Gonzalez.

“This is the most rewarding project I’ve ever been involved with in my 27 years in broadcasting,” says Maxwell. “The response from the public has been overwhelming, and we’re already getting started on next year!” “Thursday Night Lights”

Upcoming Schedule

October 15 Basic @ Green Valley

October 22 Gorman @ Spring Valley

October 29 Centennial @ Palo Verde

November 5 Rancho @ Las Vegas

Photo by David Phillips/CLASS!

Julian Yearwood gets his game face on during football practice for Desert Pines High School.

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