Honor Before Victory!

A couple of weeks ago we had our first ever cross-town rivalry here in Rockwall. The Rockwall Yellowjackets played the Rockwall Heath Hawks for the first time ever. So, since we have 3 future Yellowjackets in our house we decided that we should not miss this historical event. I have been to LOTS of high school football games. As a member of my H.S. drill team and then as a high school teacher...we're talking countless games. I also have experienced that rivalry at it's worst. When I was in high school at Lakeview our big rival was South Garland. One year as the drill team was lined up on their side of the field waiting for half time, they threw live mice on us. Then, as a teacher I taught at both North Mesquite and Mesquite High Schools whose rivalry began with a real horse's head run up the flag pole. So, I have seen up close how nasty those games can be.

I was absolutely blown away by the exceptional way this inaugural event was handled in Rockwall ISD. They had shirts made that had the helmet of each team on the front and the date of the game, but on the back it simply said, "Honor before Victory." They showed a pre-game video of interviews of kids from each school, players, school board members, administrators, etc. explaining what "Honor Before Victory" meant to them. The cheerleaders from both schools did cheers together before and during the game, performed to each side. The competition and rivalry was kept strictly on the field. It was amazing. My hats off to the many who worked so hard to establish a tradition of HONOR for our schools, our community and most important all those little Yellowjackets and Hawks that were watching!

Football Blessings,

Leslie