A Texas high school football team was sent off in style on their way to a playoff game last week. The moment went viral.
DALLAS — You might be more likely to find a cowboy than a football player in Henrietta, Texas, a small town about an hour and a half northwest of Fort Worth.
And on some days, you’ll find both. Last Friday was one of those days.
The Henrietta Bearcats football team was leaving town for Coppell for a second-round playoff matchup against Callisburg when their team bus pulled onto Highway 287. There on the side of the road, to send the Bearcats on their way, was a group of cowboys on their horses, holding Henrietta and U.S. flags.
As the team’s bus headed down 287, the cowboys got their horses in a sprint, waving their flags as the football players cheered along. The moment, captured on video, went viral on TikTok and Instagram.
“They said there was going to be something,” Henrietta coach Jay Jones said, “but I didn’t know what it was going to be. It was pretty cool.”
Jones said a few parents on the team had the idea. A lot of the Henrietta players, Jones explained, grew up around horses, ranching and rodeo. While the viral video seemed to embody a very “Texas” moment, it was a snapshot of everyday life in Henrietta — and what makes the small town special, Jones said.
“This just shows what our community is about, embracing that cowboy side of things,” Jones said.
The sendoff seemed to work, too. Henrietta beat Callisburg 48-21 in the second round of the Class 3A Division II playoffs. The Bearcats were led by four touchdowns and 108 rushing yards from Cruse Coleman, who’s top 10 in the state in rushing yards this season, according to MaxPreps. Cooper Coleman is Henrietta’s leading receiver, and quarterback Chaden Clark has 14 passing touchdowns on the year.
Henrietta didn’t make the playoffs last year, Jones’ first season at the helm. Now they’re playing the week of Thanksgiving, with a meeting against Gunter scheduled for Friday.
Jones said his players’ toughness has put the program on the rise — and last week’s sendoff was just a celebration of that.
“You get kids that are already tough-nosed, because they’ve had to work hard for it,” Jones said. “We’ve got a couple kids, their dad is in professional bull riding. They’re cowboys. Being tough — that’s something that our kids are bought into. Embracing hard.”