In Texas, high school football is a religion. Get behind the wheel of the entirely new 2018 Ford Expedition and experience the passion firsthand on a road trip worthy of a dozen highlight reels. We teamed up with Ford to bring you this one-of-a-kind expedition.
From the Panhandle to Big Bend, nothing unites the Lone Star State quite like high school football. A curious traveler could spend a lifetime exploring how gridiron mania shapes Texans’ culture and identity. But you don’t have to be a Friday Night Lights obsessive to get on board. If it’s the end of the school week, it’s guaranteed that the lights will be on, the bands will be playing, and a deep pass will be flying toward the end zone. Follow this two-day road trip for an unforgettable taste of Texas high school football—as well as a few winning bites.
Allen, Texas, might be a small city, but it plays big. The Allen Eagle Stadium has the capacity to hold 18,000 spectators, 800 band members and cheerleaders, and a cutting-edge scoreboard. (“The palace,” as it’s referred to, had a reported construction cost of $60 million.) Looking at the mammoth brick facade, it’s easy to forget that this is a high school football stadium. And how did the team show its gratitude in the stadium’s inaugural year? With a state title, of course.
From Allen, it’s a quick 15-mile ride down the interstate, past the verdant Oak Point Park and Nature Preserve, to Garland for lunch. Babe’s Chicken Dinner House, the second outpost of the beloved Dallas-area institution, brines its birds before frying them in order to achieve remarkable moistness and flavor. Roughly 30 miles south is one of the few structures that can rival the Eagles’ nest: Memorial Stadium in Mesquite, among the most hallowed of all high school football temples, where 20,000 people can take in a game.
Explore the upper cogs of the entirely new 2018 Ford Expedition’s 10-speed SelectShift® automatic transmission on a smooth, arrow-straight, 130-mile cruise down to the Texas Sports Hall of Fame. Amid the rare memorabilia and fascinating exhibitions highlighting legendary Texas athletes, visitors can walk a replica of the legendary Cotton Bowl field. Then get a restorative night’s sleep at the sleek Hotel Indigo near the Baylor University campus.
Running due west from the Hall of Fame is Highway 190, a tarmac ribbon draped over wildflower-strewn hill country. Fortifying and authentic Tex-Mex cuisine awaits at the Eagle Café, a hole-in-the-wall spot in the West Texas town of Eldorado. From there, it’s a quick jaunt north on rural two-lane roads to Odessa, home of one of the country’s great sports rivalries—high school or otherwise.
When the Odessa Bronchos meet the Permian Panthers, life in this prosperous energy hub stops. So buy brisket for the gang from Johnny’s BBQ ahead of kickoff. Then open the Expedition’s available hands-free, foot-activated liftgate, pull out the lawn chairs you’ve stowed in the cargo area, and—ticket or no—start a tailgate for the ages, taking in the spectacle that inspired the original chronicle of Texas high school football. You’ll be sure to experience a sporting event unlike any other on earth.
