Mishawaka High School wasn't turning on its stadium lights Friday night as the team travels to Northridge. But for future games, the school is excited to be a finalist in a national contest for a $1 million stadium upgrade.
Mishawaka High School’s Steele Stadium is already beloved by fans and alumni but the school is aiming higher.
In July they entered T-Mobile’s Friday Night 5G Lights contest, which awards the winner $1 million toward stadium upgrades. On Friday the school announced they’re one of 25 finalists out of over 2,100 schools.
Former NFL great Rob Gronkowski, a T-mobile spokesman, gave the Cavemen a shout-out in a video the school shared on its social media.
“Shout out to Mishawaka High School! Congratulations on being a Top 25 finalist in T-Mobile’s Friday Night 5G Lights. Your school spirit stood out big time. Let’s go!”
The school has already won $25,000 as a finalist. Athletic Director Evan Fras says they’d have no trouble spending a million dollars on a stadium that’s turning 100 this year.
"What would it be, 1925-1926 was the first time that Mishawaka played on that field, and I know prior to that they were playing South Bend Central over at Notre Dame Stadium, so it’s an old field," Fras says. "There’s a lot of updates that need taken care of. Handicapped accessibility. I know our concessions need redone at some point, the locker rooms need redone. Storage is an issue I think with every school unless you're building a brand new school these days, and anything kind of in between.”
You can vote for Mishawaka once a day until Oct. 24, and they’ll announce the winner Oct. 30.
