The cheer team, the Blue Brigade and the trainers made the just over 100-mile trip to Kerrville on Friday night to witness the football team rally in the second half to secure a 23-15 road victory over Tivy. The district’s decision not to fund buses for the support groups left the band out while the cheer team and the Blue Brigade were dependent on the football coaches to drive non-air-conditioned buses that were funded by the football program.

What the ride lacked, the game delivered, as the Knights rallied from a lackluster first half to win comfortably. We are proud to present some of our favorite images from the road-trip adventure to Kerrville as this week’s Tuesday Top 10 photo essay.

KICK UP YOUR HEELS: Blue Brigade dancers, junior Paige Massengale and senior Olivia Salo kick their feet up to relax on the long ride to from Austin to Kerrville for the Tivy game. “There was no air conditioning on the bus, so we put down all the windows to cool off,” Massengale said. For Massengale and many of the Blue Brigade and cheer members on the bus, the two-to-three-hour bus ride felt like eons. “The ride was very long, I’m pretty sure I fell asleep for most of it,” said Massengale. Photo by Dave Winter. Reporting by Lucy Marco.

TRAINER TALK: Senior athletic trainer Ceder Herring talks with junior Zaida Avila before the game on Friday as head athletic trainer Matt Johnson watches the team warm up. “I really love what I do with athletic training,” Herring said, “so just working a game is always a blast.” There are typically four student trainers at each game, and two will go with Johnson to help out with pregame preparations in the locker room, often wrapping wrists and ankles and covering up any scabs that are at risk for opening up. While the other two help get set up on the field, organizing the workstation, filling up water bottles, and setting up the taping table. Although being two hours away, the game prep was not as stressful since the team got to the field at 5:45 p.m. “This was one of the most relaxed games we’ve had,” Herring said. “However, there was a moment that I was setting up for halftime in the locker room and we didn’t have any cups of water. So, with six seconds left of the clock I sprinted to the sideline to grab the cups and then sprinted back to the locker room.” The athletic trainers, as well as the football team, will be back in action on Friday Oct. 1 at Marble Falls. Photo by Dave Winter. Caption by Anna McClellan.

CAPTAINS AT TWILIGHT: Seniors Ez Guenther, Jake Hissey, Jaxon Rosales and Johan Holmes lineup for the coin toss before their last non-district game against the Kerrville Tivy Antlers. For Hissey, it was his first game back after suffering a wrist injury before the team’s marquee matchup against the Anderson Trojans. Despite wearing a cast that prompted the opposing coaches to urge their offensive skill players to run at “the one-armed safety,” Hissey held his own, nearly making an interception to seal the victory on the play before Guenther succeeded in doing the same. The Knights went on to beat Tivy 23-15 in a game that despite Tivy’s 0-4 record, they were not favored to win. Photo by Dave Winter. Caption by Thomas Melina Raab.

WHEN THE SUN SETS, IT’S KNIGHT TIME: First Lieutenant Annabel Winter strikes a pose during the Blue Brigade’s upbeat pregame cheer to set the tone for an eventual victory. With the game over a hundred miles away, the stands didn’t have as many McCallum fans as usual, so the drill team made up for the lack of fans with a spirited performances. “It was a lot of anticipation, having a two-hour bus ride,” Winter said. “We found a way to still bring the energy and excitement.” Photo by Dave Winter. Caption by Caroline Owen. 

IMMOVABLE EZ: Senior defensive back Ez Guenther stops Tivy senior running back Ryan Mayberry in his tracks in the first quarter of the Knights’ 23-15 victory over the Antlers at Antler Stadium in Kerrville Friday night. Throughout the first half the defense forced numerous three and outs which Guenther attributed to “keeping it simple.” The defense ended up getting four, three and outs in the first half, keeping the Knights halftime deficit low at only 7-3. “All week we keyed in on our focus and made sure not to look at too much so we could play a lot faster,” said Guenther, whose best play came on an interception late in the fourth quarter that snuffed out any chance for Tivy to mount a comeback. Photo by Esme Moreno. Caption by Charlie Partheymuller.

WE’VE GOT SPIRIT: Seniors Alba Perez and Luca Snowhorn populate the small but spirited student section with friends and former Mac students Evangeline and Georgia Horton. Perez and Snowhorn were the only student fans not involved with the game who made the two-hour drive to Kerrville to support their school. “We felt for the team and everyone involved who was to attend because they wouldn’t have many students cheering them on,” Perez said. She and Snowhorn decided to take on the responsibility of becoming McCallum’s two-person student section, and they did their best to bring the heat. “It made me smile to think of cheering them on very loudly and doing my part,” Perez said. “While Kerville’s team got a whole school whoo-ing at them, me and Luca would scream as loud as we could when anything good would happen on Mac’s side. I was so happy to have gone, and when Mac won, I was even happier to have been there.” Photo by Dave Winter. Caption by Samantha Powers.

WIN WAS WORTH THE WAIT: During the game’s halftime performance the Blue Brigade officers perform their officer cadence that introduces the officers and begins their dances. The drill team left the game with spirits high after McCallum’s 23-15 victory over the Tivy Antlers. “My favorite part of the game was winning,” junior lieutenant Sophia Kramer said. “We were on a school bus ride for three hours with no AC, but it was worth it in the end. It felt good to win even though we were still far away.” Photo by Dave Winter. Reporting by Alice Scott.

LEARNING FROM THE BEST: Though far from home, McCallum’s cutest cheerleader, Camilla, was still able to flaunt her pom poms. Over the summer, Camilla participated in the Blue Brigade Kiddie Clinic where she was able to learn all the moves she put on during the game. “We are expecting another one and she is so excited to be a big sister,” head football coach Thomas Gammerdinger said. “I think it will be interesting to see if she still has the same excitement once she’s not getting all the attention though.” Photo by Esme Moreno. Caption by Carly Johnson.

INTERCEPTION RECEPTION: Ez Guenther and Tino Rodriguez celebrate Guenther’s win-sealing interception late in the fourth quarter. On the play before that, safety Jake Hissey nearly came up with the game-winning interception off a deflected pass, but he was inches out of bounds. But luckily for Hissey, Guenther came up with that win-sealing interception on the next play, and the offense was able to kneel the rest of the time out. “That’s what football’s all about, those game changing, game saving plays that you do for your teammates,” Guenther said. The Knights have a bye week next week, but face Marble Falls on the road again on Oct. 1. Photo and caption by Charlie Partheymuller.

FIRST GAME WINNING: Sophomore Marina Salaverria (front) is an exchange student from Spain, where football and cheerleading are not available pastimes. “It is very different and such a dream for me to be where I am right now.” she said. Due to COVID, Salaverria could not attend Taco Shack, where the Knights took home the trophy. “This was the first game that I had attended and won,” she said. “Although the band was not there and there weren’t many people in the crowd, I felt very happy for the team and it was worth the trip.” Photo by Charlie Partheymuller

SPONTANEOUS SING ALONG: Senior wide receiver Nate Davidson and Blue Brigade senior Ava Guererro belt out the school song song along with the football, Blue Brigade, and cheerleading teams during Friday night’s Mac victory over Tivy at Antler Stadium in Kerrville. Davidson caught the game-winning touchdown in the game, and Guerrero celebrated her 18th birthday two days later. “It was kind of an unexpected win for us and that made it even more exciting,” Guerrero said. “Even though there wasn’t a band, it was still super fun getting to sing the school song with the team. Seeing Nate and the other boys so excited is always a good feeling.” Photo by Dave Winter. Caption by Grace Vitale.