Oak Hill Football hosts Mount View

Oak Hill hosted Mount View for the third week of High School football. It was a warm evening compared to last Friday’s chilly temperatures from the remnants of Hurricane Harvey. It’s weird that a hurricane coming from Texas can bring cooler temperatures up North but it did.

Oak Hill has a very impressive band and drill team plus cheer leaders and majorettes. In a county of small towns and small schools, it’s interesting to see the size of the football teams and bands and drill teams and cheerleaders fluctuate in size, strength, and ability.

Another interesting observation about West Virginia football is how far the teams will travel. Mount View traveled an hour and a half drive to get here. They had a large fan contingent too. I was impressed with how many fans made the drive.

One other thing about small school West Virginia football is that there oftentimes isn’t enough bleacher space for both sides of the field. So the away team’s fans will sit on the far end of the home team’s bleachers. It makes for an interesting sound of cheering for either team.

It’s a bummer these pictures have to be in to the Register-Herald by 10 pm. I wish I could have stayed for the whole game. This was a really good game. It was back and forth in the lead for the first half. Oak Hill came out strong with a touchdown, but then Mount View answered with two. Then Oak Hill scored. Then Mount View scored a touchdown. Mount View doesn’t have a field goal kicker so they went for two and got it both times. Oak Hill answered with a safety to tie it up at the half.

I’d say the energy of the fans rooting for their teams has got to be the best part about high school football. It’s really got a special feel to it. These are people’s kids and their friends and their friends’ kids and people they all grew up with. It’s neighborhoods of friends and neighbors and people they’ve seen around town their whole life. It’s bigger than just the game of football.