No matter where you are in NEPA on a Friday night between August and November, you will undoubtedly hear the deafening cheers, the rumble of the bands, and the whistles of the officials at a high school football game. Friday night football has been an NEPA staple for decades, something that has united communities in ways that only a sport can, and with the PIAA playoffs in full swing and the state tournament within reach, NEPA is taking back the football crown in a big way. After this week’s slew of battles, NEPA could find itself with many hometown teams leading the charge to a state title.

With everyone in a flurry about the Friday night lights and alumni coming back to support their school and bleed their colors with parents and present students, here’s a few things that hit those with nostalgia when they can finally return and put high school football up on its pedestal.

1. The Social Atmosphere

(The cover name for saying you’re super proud to see your friend raising heck on that field). In all seriousness, part of this one is definitely that fact, especially when you get to see the joy on their faces after a hard fought victory. However, a high school football game is more than just a game. Like I said, the entire community comes out to support, and those who can’t are following the tweets or getting updates from those in attendance or waiting patiently for the house across the Big Chief to post their hand-painted sign with the winning score on their porch railing. You can find a range of ages at the football games, from as young and infants to as old as grandfathers proud to watch their school. It is a place to hang out and catch up with friends and see parents and other neighborhood familiar faces, all while watching your team kick butt.

(There's no picture of "social atmospehere" because people are not glued to their phones but instead are extremely focused on their friends and the reason they are there: the game.)

2. The Signature Chant

Let’s be honest, your team’s spirit cheer was always stuck in your head during the season and it pops back in at the most random, inopportune times, but you wouldn’t trade the memories and pride that comes flooding back for the world. Whether it’s the Chief Rumble, Blue Devil Chant, or Cougar Call, everyone has that one tune that they find themselves unconsciously doing the moves to when they see a football post or broadcast.

3. The Crowd

NEPA high school football fans are some of the most passionate, honest, and brutal people when you see them in the bleachers or the beside the sidelines, even from the concession stand when a Hail Mary pass is intercepted and run back downfield for a touchdown. You can always count on the crowd to give the officials the hardest time, betting on their lives that another school bribed them for this reason or that reason. You can always count on them to break the moment of silence after a disappointing or failed play and offer words of encouragement (before blaming the officials again, of course). And who could forget those legendary cowbells?

4. Frigid Nights

Admit it, there is a love-hate relationship with the freezing cold nights spent huddled in layers upon layers and blankets through 48 minutes of play. From the mile hike to the field from your parking space to the long wait in the ticket line to the laps around the filed just to stay warm and the race for hot chocolate before the concession stand ran out (you would think they would learn to buy more at this point), the runny noses, numb hands, and shivering legs are all a part of what makes Friday night football the best. Just remember not to look at those negative temperatures as the night goes on.

(Maybe we haven't been quite this bad, but there has been snow. Old Forge played the state championship game with snow.)

5. The Band

In NEPA, it isn’t just the marching band, it is the cheerleaders, the drill team, the student section (I’m looking at you, Lakeland Loonies), so many different aspects. It is kind of amazing how a sport is not solely about the sport. The ride is taken by everyone that shows up at those games week after week, donning their school colors and performing their hearts out for the alma mater that they love. The emotions ring true throughout every cheer, song, halftime show, play on the field chant, everything. It is family.

6. The Pride

If you ask anyone from any school, past or present who the best team in NEPA is, you won’t even get to finish your question before they jump in the school in their heart. School pride runs deep in NEPA, especially when it comes to football. Just a few examples of the slogans these schools come up with are: “Valley Who?” and “How do you like your deer meat? Dun-more.” Yes, I’m a little biased in naming these (Chief pride never dies, right?” but any school will have their own versions of these, and you can’t go five minutes without hearing them during football season. One of my personal favorites was from our vice principal turned English teacher at the end of every pep rally (which happened every week, by the way, to showcase that pride even more) when he would ask over and over with increasing volume and make team specific, “Who comes into our house and pushes us around?” to which the entire student body would respond “No one!” School pride is evident on every face in the stands at every game, clearly etched into the nervousness and bright-eyed glows at every play and every turn. In your heart, there is no one better.

7. The Feeling

There really isn’t a much better feeling than the exhilarating adrenaline rush you get from pulling into the parking lot and seeing those bright Friday night lights and hearing the band warming up. Whether you were in the locker room or on the sidelines, nothing could beat that feeling week after week, with the stress of a week of school over and just a chance to be true to your heart, play with everything you had and cheer on the team.

Coming from somebody who hardly even knew what a football was, let alone the game, before coming to high school, I would say football in NEPA is a little more than just football. It is the coming together of families, of communities, and even uniting rivals for the greater good when necessary (looking at you, Dunmore and the religious activist group. Follow your heart, boys). Northeastern Pennsylvania is where the heart and soul of Friday night lights resides in our great state, and even though it may wane at times, it won’t be for long and it will always come back to us. Always. There’s nothing quite like spending your time under those Friday night lights.

P.S. For anyone wondering, Dreams of the Heart is the photographer for all of our sporting events.