The Dexter Regional High School Tigers didn’t end up winning the $1 million national prize as part of T-Mobile’s Friday Night 5G Lights contest. But they aren’t leaving that competition empty-handed.
Far from it.
By finishing third in the national tally with more than 500,000 votes, Dexter has added another $50,000 to its total haul from the competition that already included $25,000 for being one of 25 national finalists.
That brings the Tigers up to $75,000 as part of the effort.
The Dexter community and people across Maine rallied behind the Tiger football team in recent weeks, looking to help them win that million dollars for field renovations that could finally allow for home games under the lights.
That impressive push fell just short, but not before bringing the community together and drawing support from around the Pine Tree State. The more than 2 million votes received by Dierks High School in Arkansas proved too much to match, but the process brought a Maine community together and helped make a significant dent in the push to improve Dexter’s athletic facilities.
“We are incredibly thankful to T-Mobile for giving us the opportunity to put a spotlight on our amazing community,” Dexter athletic director and assistant principal Adam Gudroe said in Thursday press release from T-Mobile. “We also want to thank our community for rallying behind our school and supporting our students. Our goal from the start was to add lights to our football field, and with the $75,000 we have been awarded through this competition, we are even closer to making that goal a reality.”
Gudroe previously explained to the Bangor Daily News the challenges of maintaining the current grass field given the realities of Maine weather, along with other factors. Despite having a strong football program, that team has never been able to host a Friday night home game under the lights.
T-Mobile was already in Dexter for a Saturday afternoon home football game on Oct. 18, and now that Dexter had notched a top-three national finish, the company will be back in town on Nov. 14 for another celebration.
“While the Tigers didn’t take home the $1 million grand prize, their creativity, community pride, and all-out hustle elevated this year’s competition to new heights,” T-Mobile said in its press release.
