Editor’s Note: Photos will be added to the story later in the week.

The Golden Eagles’ opening game on Aug. 24 against Alief Taylor was met with unpredictability and disappointment as heat and lightning delays pushed the start time back to 8:30 p.m. and canceled senior night. 

“You usually stay focused but with the game getting pushed back and back, you tend to be more tense,” senior Carson Johnson said. “You just have a lot of energy built up and you just don’t want to sit down but I think we handle the delays pretty well.”  

After a half-hour heat delay and an hour lightning delay, the Golden Eagles ran onto the field around 8:30 p.m. to take on the Lions to officially kick off the first game of the 2023 season. 

“It was magical, you know,” senior Joseph Ajayi said. “Sad to know it’s the last one [game] but it’s like the last one ever.”

Klein Forest started the game off with a strong lead and maintained it throughout the entire game. Both the offense and the defense displayed big plays throughout including many rushing touchdowns and interceptions.

“It just felt great,” Ajayi said of his interception on a third down. “The interception I made was really big and it led to the offense scoring so it made a big impact on the team.” 

The team pushed through all the circumstances with a fierce 24-16 victory over the Lions to give the season an exceptional start.

“Honestly, we can do a lot this year,” Johnson said. “If we stay disciplined and do our job and play hard until the fourth quarter reaches 00:00, we should come out with a lot of wins moving forward this season.” 

The Klein Forest Golden Eagles are set to take on the Clear Springs Lightning in a road game on Friday, Sept. 8 after an early season loss (43-16) to the Humble Wildcats on Sept. 1.