TAMPA, Fla. - Senior Night,  a tradition unlike few others.

 A culmination of practices, games and hundreds of hours spent on the football field comes down to a very meaningful walk.

“You’re really working up to this one point,” Sickles senior offensive lineman Nohl Settlemire said. “And it’s like wow, it’s finally coming to an end.”

Except this is a beginning. A tradition that normally takes place at the end of a season unfolded all over the Bay area at the start.

If the Coronavirus has taught us anything, it’s that nothing is guaranteed. So football teams weren’t taking any chances with their Senior Nights.

“These guys have been with us for four years,” Sickles head coach Patrick Murphy said. “Blood, sweat and tears they poured into this program, we want to honor these guys and we want to make sure it’s a special night for them.”

It’s been 20 years since Coach Murphy played a down of high school football. But he can recall with great detail his Senior Night. That’s how special it is.

“I’ll never forget it,” Murphy said. “It was pouring down rain in Franklin, Tennessee against Riverdale High School. We took a butt whooping, but it was a special night.”

When the pandemic swept the country earlier this year and shut down nearly everything, spring sports suffered a big blow. They weren’t able to finish their seasons. Weren’t able to compete for championships. And they weren’t able to celebrate Senior Nights.

That’s why fall sports didn’t wait until the end of the season.

“You want that chance for those guys who have dedicated themselves to this high school to have that chance just to walk out with their parents,” Robinson head coach Craig Everhart said.

It’s a walk of celebration. A walk of pride. A walk that symbolizes the closing of one chapter and the opening of another. A little different in 2020 because there’s still a lot of the chapter to be told. But for these student-athletes, that chapter will include one special night.

“I’m so happy we’re out here. It’s really a blessing,” Settlemire said. “I mean, even with all the safety precautions it’s worth it.

“As long as I get to play the game that I love more than really anything else, then I’m happy.”