ANDERSON CO., Ky. (LEX 18) — The Anderson County Bearcats start their football season on the road tonight, but new athletic director Corey Sayre can’t wait for the home opener.
“Our first home game is always super emotional,” Sayre said. “Friday Night Lights is one of my favorite things. The kids are into it, the school is into it. Friday night lights is such a great thing, and I want to make sure that it’s protected for everybody, that families feel safe and communities feel proud.”
To keep up this atmosphere, Anderson County Athletics introduced a new policy for its home high school football games.
“If you’re an elementary school student or a middle school student, we just ask that you come with an adult so there’s an adult that can be responsible for you and you’ll have here to be safe,” Sayre explained. “It’s just, we want to make sure our school grounds are kept orderly. We want to make sure that it’s safe for families and the community, and so safety is a big priority.”
While this policy is new to Anderson County, Sayre shared it follows similar policies to other 8th region schools and surrounding county schools.
“Many other schools have done this for years,” added Sayre. “We want to make sure that our safety officers and administrators are able to focus on the game, focus on the communities here helping them, and spend less time worried about students that are unaccompanied.”
Sayre hopes the updated policy will put the focus on football for everyone at the field on Friday nights, allowing students and families to make lasting memories.
“It’s important that those experiences we had as kids when we were in high school are passed down. The Friday night lights, the Saturday ballgames, going with your family, going with your friends, that’s an important part of Kentucky, and I don’t want to jeopardize that by having an area or a game that maybe, there’s less control than we should have.”
The policy will take effect next Friday, August 30, at the Bearcats’ home opener and hall of fame game against East Jessamine High School.
