The Daily Citizen, Dalton, GA

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  • Matt Hamilton/The Daily Citizen Southeast High School student Eric Santos, 17, participates in an accuracy competition during a pep rally in the school gym Thursday.

    Falcons at SEHS 1 mlh.jpg

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March 11, 2010

Falcons roost at Southeast

Jamie Jones Dalton Daily Citizen

DALTON — Footballs flew through the air at Southeast Whitfield High School on Thursday.

Two cheerleaders from the NFL’s Atlanta Falcons fired up an already raucous student body.

Freddie the Falcon hammed it up with the crowd.

The Raider pep band made talking to the person next to you a vocal challenge.

Sure, it’s only March. Baseball and basketball are on the minds of most sports fans.

But at Southeast, football ruled the day during an afternoon pep rally as the school celebrated as victors in the Atlanta Falcons “Win-Win Challenge” presented by Under Armour and Hibbett Sports. Southeast received a prize package of $5,000 in Under Armour apparel and $5,000 in cash, which will be spent on new dumbbells for the weight room and upgrades to the physical education program.

After each Falcons win last season — the team had nine — shoppers could register the school of their choice for the giveaway at one of 80 Hibbett stores in Georgia. Southeast had 750 registration forms turned in, while the closest school had 250 forms.

“Their spirit was way out there,” said Joy McCord, vice president of marketing for Hibbett Sports. “It will happen again this fall, so I would imagine the rest of Georgia is going to have to work pretty hard because I imagine these people are going to register even more.”

The extra money comes at an opportune time and each athlete at the school will receive an Under Armour shirt, athletics director Scott Ramsey said.

“It was great for the school, great for the community,” Ramsey said. “We had a lot of people from the community in the stands watching, our kids were obviously very excited. There was a lot to it. Obviously, the financial part helps out a lot, especially now.”

The school was abuzz with enthusiasm. Signs hung throughout the building welcomed the Falcons to Southeast. Giant inflatables of the Falcons and the Under Armour logos filled the gym. Several students wore jerseys of their favorite Atlanta players (although one student was spotted with a Drew Brees T-shirt of the rival New Orleans Saints). Many students waited impatiently for photos with the Falcons cheerleaders.

“It was pretty exciting,” said 17-year-old student Eduardo Murillo, who was wearing a Falcons T-shirt. “I was hoping the players would be here, but it was still pretty fun.”

Murillo participated in a football throwing contest among other students and teachers. They were challenged to toss the pigskin through a small hole, reminiscent of a game at the local fair. He blamed his errant throw on nerves from being in front of the student body.

The winner was sophomore Rayna Cruz, one of the few females in the competition. She took home a replica Falcons helmet.

“I haven’t thrown a football in a couple of months,” said Cruz, 15. “It’s kind of sad that they got beat by a girl.”

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Education