Cobber Football team to open season with first night game since 2006

FARGO, N.D. (Valley News Live) - < Corn, like any other crop, tends to shine in the bright midday sun. And for the Concordia Cobbers, they’re...

“So used to playing 1:00 games,” head coach Terry Horan said.

But this season presents a new challenge, one not seen in ages for the 27 seniors in maroon and gold: a night game. A Thursday night opener, no less.

“Ah... I don’t know, I don’t even know if I can put it into words,” senior quarterback Tanner Dubois said. “There’s just something about it, and I know you grow up watching your high school team play under the lights, you wanna be those guys, you get to high school, you are those guys. And I don’t know, something about it, it’s just special.”

The Cobbers last played under the lights in the final weekend of the 2006 season, defeating UM-Morris at the Fargodome. They have yet to play a single outdoor night game this millenium.

“Man, I’m pumped,” senior linebacker Noah Jenson said. “It’s gonna be electric, it’s gonna be cool. Yeah, it’s something none of us have been able to experience since maybe high school, playing under the lights on Fridays, I’m excited, I’m ready for a night game, I like being under the lights.”

Concordia gets a two-for-one deal too, opening the season with back-to-back road night games at Valley City State and Presentation before their home opener against Gustavus Adolphus on September 24.

But given their tough schedule no matter the time of day, some players pay it no mind.

“Uh, if I’m being honest, we don’t care when it’s played, it can be Thursday, Saturday, Sunday, 7 o’clock, 1 o’clock, we’re just, we’ll be there, ready to play, doesn’t mean much to us,” senior center Collin Fleisch said. “Yeah, we don’t care, we’ll play whenever.”

Head coach Terry Horan says that even with the focus on each game’s importance, the sheer joy of staring up at the bright florescent lights of a night of fall football will stay on his player’s minds.

“But in every football player, every single one of them, ya know, they talk about their high school experiences, Friday night lights,” Horan said. “That’s what they talk about.”

So the corn of Moorhead will keep pushing up out of the summer soil into the fall, missing that 1-pm sun but not minding a little bit of moonlight instead.

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