COLUMBIA COUNTY, Pa. — There was dancing, kids holding up signs, and, of course, cheerleaders. Southern Columbia Area High School is once again sending off its football team to the PIAA state championships.
"A lot of people may think just because we've been in this position seven times before that, we take it for granted, but it's a blessing every single year that we get to this position, so hopefully, we just get out there and win it,” said Blake Wise, a senior from Southern Columbia Area High School.
This is Southern Columbia's seventh straight appearance in the state championship, 14th overall.
"Not many teams in the state, in the nation, can say they've played for as many state championships as this school. Not many teams can say they've played in the state championships, so it's an awesome feeling," said Louden Murphy, a senior at the school.
The Tigers play Westinghouse High School from the Pittsburgh area. Southern beat Westinghouse in the championship game last year.
"We had a great week at practice, and we are looking forward to the game on Friday. I know if we come out strong, we'll win another one," said Isaac Carter, a senior at the school.
Newswatch 16 caught up with some of the seniors on the team. Many of them grew up playing together.
"There's Raiders and Redskins, and at one point, we all come together as Little Tigers. I started off in Redskins, some of my teammates were Raiders but we are on the same team, we are all family," stated Murphy.
"It's the most ideal way to end your football career in high school is to win a state championship and I think we're quite capable of that if we come out ready to play like we did the last two games," said Carter.
"There's no better way to end it than even playing in a state championship, let alone winning it, so it's just a blessing we can even go out there and compete for this opportunity," Wise added.
The pep rally got everyone psyched up for the big game.
Southern Columbia plays Westinghouse on Friday at 1 p.m. at Cumberland Valley High School in Mechanicsburg. You can bet the Tigers will have a lot of support.