The Pit, as part of the Elder family, we all know what the Pit is. We know that it is more than just a stadium where we come on Friday nights to watch football games. Now, we do have some outstanding football games there, like our most recent win over Clearwater Academy, but that’s not what makes the Pit so special.

The Pit is impressive. It’s a nearly 100-year-old concrete stadium built completely by hand. It holds roughly 10,000 people, and it’s where a high school plays football. Most people think that is absurd that we have this. We have a nicer football stadium, with a richer history than many colleges do. We have a more loyal following than some professional teams. However, it is not only the structure of the Pit that makes it so special.

The Pit is where the past, present, and future of Elder High School convenes to enjoy an outstanding sports game and to feel a piece of the brotherhood that everyone feels as a panther. Football games in the Pit are visual representations of what it means to be a panther. Being a panther means cheering on your brothers no matter if they are beating a team or losing to a team. The Pit brings out the Elder spirit in everyone. You seldom see someone sitting silently in the stands while watching a game.

It is for this reason that the Pit has gained popularity not only city or state-wide, but nation-

wide. The Pit and its fans draw people from across the country, and from all walks of life to see what it means to play Elder High School at home. Playing in the Pit means that you are not only playing against Elder’s football team, but the Elder spirit itself. In the Pit the cheering section and the fans are almost as involved in the game as the players. They can change the outcome of a game almost as severely as the players can. There is a reason the sign hangs from the press box saying “The Pit: Elder’s Twelfth Man.”

The Pit is on the list for 10 high school football stadiums to see before you die for good reason. An assistant principal from Temecula California and his brother made the trip from quite literally the opposite side of the country to see a catch a high school football game at “One of the top high school venues in the country.” He was excited to announce that the Pit did not disappoint his or his brother’s high expectations. Even someone who had never been to Elder and could not truly know how much the Pit means to us, Mr. Ramirez could tell that everyone was there for more than just a football game. He observed that it is not football that makes the Pit so amazing, but the community of Elder.

That night, the Ramirez brothers were not the only first-time visitors among our midst. San Francisco 49ers right tackle Mike McGlinchey was also present to witness the amazing anamole that is the Pit. Mike played football at Notre Dame with St. X grad Luke Massa and got in touch with him when him and the team got into town. He wanted to see what Cincinnati football was all about, so he asked Luke to take him to a game. Luke didn’t take him to his alma mater, but instead brought him to his rival’s home field. He brought him to the Pit.

The Pit’s reputation has spread further than I would have thought. Everyone at Elder knows that the Pit is the best place to watch a football game in not only the city, but also the state, and now outsiders are saying it is one of the best places in the nation, and that it is worth travelling across the country just to watch a high school football game.