Small-town athletics at its best
It was good to get out of town on Saturday and see another part of the state.
I made my first-ever trip to Burns to cover the Burns-Big Horn Class 2A state title football game for the Casper Star-Tribune. Well, I can't say I got a tour of the town, as the football stadium was on the southern end. I guess I'll have to go back to see the rest of the community, population 200-some and change.
It had been a while since I had covered small-school football. When I say a while, how about 22 years. As sports editor of the Northern Wyoming Daily News in Worland, schools like Ten Sleep, Basin, Greybull and Burlington were part of my beat. I always enjoyed those small schools, as when the game was in process, the rest of town was deserted. There is something to be said about community pride and it often begins with rural America.
Sometimes I wish Laramie and its high school sports fans would take a look at communities such as Burns and Big Horn. I'm wondering how many people were left in the Northeast Wyoming community. There were plenty at the game. Like the saying goes, last one out, turn off the lights.
I'd say it was safe to say that there were more Burns' football fans at the game than many Laramie High School games at Deti Stadium. In case you didn't know, Laramie is a 5A school.
With little room in the smallish press box (but newer than the press box at Deti Stadium), I plugged away in the mud along the sidelines. It brought me back to my days in Worland. I was much younger, of course, as was my current aching back.
Burns won the game 41-12 and won its first title since 1983. Hopefully, there wasn't too much looting going on. Actually, there were probably chores to do after the game --- for some of the players even.
Nevertheless, it has been a rockin' good time in Burns this week, even before the victory.
“The atmosphere around the school and the community has just been electric all week,” Burns head coach Bill Fulmer said. “To come out and play like we did today and completely dominate a good Big Horn team, it was just icing on the cake for us.”
That's probably some sweet icing, if you ask me.
I made my first-ever trip to Burns to cover the Burns-Big Horn Class 2A state title football game for the Casper Star-Tribune. Well, I can't say I got a tour of the town, as the football stadium was on the southern end. I guess I'll have to go back to see the rest of the community, population 200-some and change.
It had been a while since I had covered small-school football. When I say a while, how about 22 years. As sports editor of the Northern Wyoming Daily News in Worland, schools like Ten Sleep, Basin, Greybull and Burlington were part of my beat. I always enjoyed those small schools, as when the game was in process, the rest of town was deserted. There is something to be said about community pride and it often begins with rural America.
Sometimes I wish Laramie and its high school sports fans would take a look at communities such as Burns and Big Horn. I'm wondering how many people were left in the Northeast Wyoming community. There were plenty at the game. Like the saying goes, last one out, turn off the lights.
I'd say it was safe to say that there were more Burns' football fans at the game than many Laramie High School games at Deti Stadium. In case you didn't know, Laramie is a 5A school.
With little room in the smallish press box (but newer than the press box at Deti Stadium), I plugged away in the mud along the sidelines. It brought me back to my days in Worland. I was much younger, of course, as was my current aching back.
Burns won the game 41-12 and won its first title since 1983. Hopefully, there wasn't too much looting going on. Actually, there were probably chores to do after the game --- for some of the players even.
Nevertheless, it has been a rockin' good time in Burns this week, even before the victory.
“The atmosphere around the school and the community has just been electric all week,” Burns head coach Bill Fulmer said. “To come out and play like we did today and completely dominate a good Big Horn team, it was just icing on the cake for us.”
That's probably some sweet icing, if you ask me.
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