By Alejandra Dovale-Puig

Friday Night Lights is the one night of the year that an entire school community gets together for one purpose. The feeling of excitement before heading down to Rob Ford Stadium to cheer on your high school football team is truly like no other—especially when your high school football team belongs to Richview Collegiate Institute. WR Mason Franco DeRyck explained the FNL experience to us from a player’s perspective: “It’s not a usual experience for everyone, there’s a feeling of a higher power, where you feel greater than something than yourself. You feel in place, together as a team, like brothers. You’re working for something bigger than yourself.”

Richview football creates an electric atmosphere at every game, but FNL is special. No matter the differences between students, everyone pops out wearing Richview’s scarlet and gold to show their unconditional support for this group. Center Max Quinn shares a similar opinion regarding the impact of Friday Night Lights: “Whether you’re friends, enemies or you’ve just never talked to a person. You’re in the same space as them and you’re all there for one reason: to cheer and show support for your favourite high school football team.” These dedicated players aren’t just playing for themselves; they’re fueled by the passionate sea of red that fills the stands each year. They don’t just play to win, they play to make their school proud. We interviewed some star players on this year’s team to uncover the preparation, mindset, and school-wide pressure going into tonight’s big game. All eyes are on the Richview Senior Football team tonight, but with a crowd full of supporters, the lights shining down, and something to prove, there’s no place they’d rather be.

Coming off of Richview’s record breaking season last year, securing victories at the Toronto Bowl, the Metro Bowl, and OFSAA, the expectations for Richview’s iconic football team this September were higher than ever. So far, the team has put up a solid effort at each of their regular-season appearances, but they’ve come up short each time. Even with their 0-3 starting streak, the strength of the team has been shown by their many game highlights, including defensive back Cole Forrest’s interception against Brebeuf and two impressive touchdowns in their match against Michael Power from Isaiah Jones and Alex Schinas. Unfortunately for this pack, the group has faced a number of unlucky breaks throughout the season so far, with 5 team injuries in just 3 games. WR Mason Franco DeRyck acknowledges their streak of bad luck, but chooses to look past it: “We also had a lot of injuries on the team this season so far, but I’m back. Ryan Mezik’s back. It’s going to be different on Friday.” The team is hopeful that FNL can be a fresh start, and as they’ve shown in the past, they shine under pressure. One thing that’s never dwindled for this team is their spirit, and the players have told us that their drive is even stronger than last year. “We’ve been doing a lot in practice, we’ve been showing up more, better attendance, and we’ve really just been locking in,” says defensive back Dylan Weeks. Max Quinn tells us that they’ve not only been installing great new plays, but building the team mindset as well. Quinn and Franco-Deryk are now seniors on the team, and they discussed how this seniority has impacted their perspective. “Last year, there wasn’t as much weight on my shoulders being a grade 11,” Franco-Deryk explains. “But now this year, I’m a senior student. I’m more of a leader on the team…so there is more weight on my shoulders to help lead the team going into Friday.” After their rocky start and unfortunate injuries, the Richview Senior Football team knows that this is the time to show everyone what they’re made of. The team is feeling strong, the leaders are stepping up to the plate, and these players are ready to prove themselves. In the words of Max Quinn, “I love being doubted… That’s how we won cities last year, and that’s how we won OFSAA last year. We were doubted, nobody thought we could do it. And we’re looking to make history again.”

Richview vs. ECI has been the biggest football rivalry in Etobicoke for the past 6 decades, which is why FNL stands to be one of the most important games of the year. Both schools show up to support their beloved football teams, but only one leaves with a win in the books. These teams match up well when it comes to skill level, but Richview takes pride in having stronger spirit. This has to do with their undoubtedly strong culture, legacy, and lasting traditions. QB Noah Mckenzie, a senior who is new to Richview, shares: “Everything I’ve heard about this football team has been accurate. This is a great culture and a great team. I’m hoping to have the same product this year that they had last year.” The Richview team takes pride in having outperformed ECI for the last two years, but the ECI football team this year is said to have gotten stronger. We turned to Dylan Weeks to hear what he had to say about that: “It’s going to be a tough game but I have no doubt that we will come out on top. Hard work beats talent when talent doesn’t work hard. ECI is a very skilled team but we’ll definitely outwork them in the end.”

Richview football can be described in many ways — competitive, skilled, aggressive, determined — but the word that truly illustrates this team going into tonight’s game is resilient. If any team in this league can bounce back after 3 consecutive losses, it’s the Richview Saints. No amount of pressure can overcome this team’s confidence—a fact that they’re looking to prove tonight. They demonstrate constant determination in the face of adversity. There is an obvious external pressure on each player’s shoulders, but they turn that stress into motivation. As Max Quinn said: “I think we got guys on this team who hate to lose, like myself. Not so much we love to win, we just hate to lose. So for the biggest game of the year, so to say… we’re bringing the heat. That’s all it is.” As they step onto the field tonight, they not only carry the burden of their past losses, but also the unwavering spirit that pushes them to rise stronger, proving that true strength comes from their relentless drive to walk out of that stadium with a victory.