Patty Loew:
It wouldn't be Thanksgiving without a little football. Former Packers football coach Vince Lombardi once said, “A school without football is in danger of deteriorating into a medieval study hall.” This week, the story of the little church school that embraced that idea in a big way in Cross Plains.

Patty Loew:
At the end of Church Street in the quiet village of Cross Plains, you'll find a house of prayer. Where on certain days in Autumn, the spirit emerges. Hail Mary takes on new meaning. Where the whole point is to trespass against others. This is St. Francis Oriole football. Proof that big things do come in small packages. The school has fewer than 200 students and an equal number of football players. There are just five boys in one fifth grade class but 34 football players. So many, in fact, the school has two fifth grade teams.

Tom Young:
We have kids from outside of the Middleton/Cross Plains area that want to play football for St. Francis. They come from Madison, Mt. Horeb. Nothing against any other programs but because of buddies they have, possibly playing on other teams but also knowing that St. Francis Xavier, not because of the cool new field we have but because of the program we have, people want to be a part of it.

Patty Loew:
What's the most fun thing about football?

Jack Stormer:
Hit people. You don't get to hit people at home.

Tom Murphy:
The highest total we have, we had about 240 kids one season and that was a real challenge for all of us to find practice space, game times, all of that was a real challenge. Since then it's leveled off to 160 to 190 kids per year.

Patty Loew:
The program began in 1968. Since then it has become one of the state's premier youth sports organizations, among its alums, numerous all state high school players, Badger recruits, even one who made it to the big time.

Jay Wilson:
There have been some great players. One guy made it all the way to the NFL out of St. Francis, Casey Cramer, and he's certainly been a name and a person that a lot of these kids still look up to, even though they may not know who he is. They know that somebody can be in the football field in Cross Plains and make their way to the NFL. That's cool.

Patty Loew:
The St. Francis summer football camp looks like an NFL combine. More than 250 boys and girls spent two weeks high stepping, shuffling and blocking their way to the season.

Stephanie Ballweg:
I think they've got it down to a science now. They have their stations set up and horn blowing and they have an eighth grader in every group that shows the younger kids want to do and it's organized.

Patty Loew:
The Orioles are powered by parents. Dads as coaches, and even a mom or two. 15 minutes learning to catch a pass. Then it's off to the ropes and leg strengthening. 15 minutes later, it's three-point stance land. The goal here, learn to do unto others before they do unto you.

Man:
Come up like this, just like this and you're hitting the guy right in the number.

Patty Loew:
With apologies to Vince Lombardi who once said “winning is the only thing,” success in the St. Francis program is not measured in wins and losses. It's about building character as well as muscles. It's about gaining confidence along with yardage. In this program, nobody sits. Everybody plays.

Cole Connolly:
You get to play a lot and you can do what you like.

Brett Wipfli:
They have a lot of good coaches and I just -- I played this last year so I thought -- I wanted to do it again.

Randy Lowenberg:
Nobody sits. Nope. They all will play. Our philosophy is to be safe also. They will play in a safe position but they always play. They'll always play somewhere.

Patty Loew:
And as the Oriole black team goes to work on the Vikings from Mt. Horeb, their parents also go to work.

Terra Hollfelder:
There's jobs for parent to do and it's all volunteer work. We come to the game and usually a parent will pick up the scoreboard, pick up the markers and chain gang.

Steve Schunk:
Doing the time clock and store and chain gang, all that stuff. I wouldn't call it roped in, those are some of the best spots, and that's the best way to keep plugged into the organization.

Patty Loew:
Many of these 10-year-olds will go on to play for Middleton High School. The wings they test as Orioles will help them fly as Middleton Cardinals, a perennial football power house.

Jay Wilson:
It's certainly one of the premier high school football teams in the state. They made it to the semi finals last year. They're always in the playoffs and they're always contending, if not winning at the big a conference championship and you know, it all starts here.

Tom Young:
Why would this program in this small community thrive as it does in football, is because of relationships, good coaches, good men and women teaching these kids and the fundamentals of football that they learn, but the fundamentals of being good teammates and being a sportsman-like athletes, good work discipline that pays off in the classroom and life. Employers say, you played football as a youth? You know what it means to work hard.

Patty Loew:
As for this game, well, St. Francis needed a miracle and it never materialized. But if you ask the folks here, football in the biggest little program in southern Wisconsin, win or lose, is still a blessing.

Patty Loew:
St. Francis Xavier in Cross Plains has a lot of community support. It has a new football field and it's looking to add bleachers and lights for night games.