Thirty-six games. Thirty-six games without a win.
Thomas Jefferson High School's football team lost 36 games in a row before its 19-16 win against the Diamond Hill Jarvis Eagles.
"They've got heart," said Cynthia Cole, a teacher at Thomas Jefferson. "They play their hardest, and they do their best. That's all we can ask for."
Before Friday night, the T.J. Patriots last won a football game in 2007. Former President George W. Bush still had another full year left in the White House.
"We don't talk about the streak because every game that we play, we expect to do good, and we expect to win," coach David Haynes said.
With a few loyal fans in the bleachers for homecoming, the Patriots took the field Friday night after a long rain delay.
The Eagles were trying to break their own 10-game losing streak. In fact, the last time the Eagles won was one year ago -- against the T.J. Patriots.
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But some things count for much more for both teams than the game's final score.
"Never ever give up. Never surrender," T.J. principal Eddie Conger said. "We never, ever quit. It's a Marine Corps theme, and it's a theme here at T.J. The students don't quit, the coaches don't quit; we'll never stop."
"Winning is fun, but you've got to take those steps to ensure you're going to win," Haynes said. "You've got to practice every day, you've got to try to get better every day, and if you do those things, eventually it's going to happen."
