Early September means a lot of things in the Sacramento Valley:  Rice harvest is getting started, Evenings are cooler, School has started and it’s high school football season.  For those with ties to Pierce High School (Arbuckle) and Williams High School, it also means it’s time for the Annual Rice Bowl Football Game between the two schools.

Friday night I attended the 89th meeting of the two schools on the football field.  It is much more than a game; it is community gathering of two towns 10 miles apart.  The stands were full on both sides of McCarl Field at Williams High School and many people brought their own chairs to set on the side line.

It’s always interesting to see individuals that went to one school rooting for the other because their nephews play for the other school or their grandchildren attend the other.

As a friend told me, “This is the type of event that takes you an hour to go to the snack bar, because you are always stopping to visit with someone”

Williams beat my alumni Pierce 20 -13, but I can easily convert to being a Williams fan as my nephews went there.  And, needless to say, it was great to see everybody Friday night under the lights.