Huntley Friday night football now thing to tune in to

At Huntley Community Radio, we have had some amazing things happen in the past four-plus years, but in my opinion, none as impactful as the Huntley High School Red Raiders Friday night football games.

I had the opportunity to visit Dallas, Texas, where "Friday Night Lights" is a lifestyle. So much so that a movie and TV series were made about it.

Five years ago, other than students and parents and some die-hard Huntley fans, the high school football games were not a big deal. As the program grew with a new coach and new stadium, Huntley has developed a new attitude. Recently voted as one of the top 20 prep football venues in the state of Illinois, Huntley High School football is now the thing to do on Friday.

Inspired by our WGN Radio Hall of Famer Jim Carollo, the idea and planning to try and broadcast a game began last year about three weeks before the homecoming game against rival Jacobs High School. The thought was let's try one game and see how it goes. One turned into two and so on.

It really does take a community to pull off a meaningful broadcast. Allen Pollack, Ken Czerwinski, Eric Thomas, Jim Eggers and others work the games from the studio ensuring top-notch production on the games. Robert Yeoman is in the booth with the mixing board and making sure the sound between the microphones and radio are flawless. In the booth, Curtis Koch, who has become a seasoned professional voice of the Red Raiders, Steve Wilt who is the statman, Andrew Burkey and I are responsible for bringing the action into your living room. The broadcast would not be complete without out sideline reporters Don Drzal and Joe Loiacano. But there are so many more people that make the broadcasts so impactful.

First of all the coaching staff of the Red Raiders, especially head coach Matt Zimolzak have been incredibly accessible to our team. Athletic director Chris Rozanski and PR Man Dan Armstrong have helped coordinate and promote our games. Finally, the community who has been listening and supporting Huntley Community Radio. There is nothing more gratifying than someone listening from home sending an email that they enjoyed the game because they could not be there for one reason or another.

We hope you enjoy your Fridays as much as we do.