From the Lawton Constitution
I know what some of you are thinking. The other team is much bigger and faster than we are. You know what? They are. In fact, they are a better team. I know some of you wish we didn’t have to play them, that we could avoid embarrassing ourselves or possibly getting hurt. But I disagree. This is the type of game where we prove ourselves — win or lose.
I know we are small compared to them, but this is the team I want to go to battle with tonight. I would not trade any player here right now for any other player in the state. Even if we lose tonight, if we play like I know we can, then we will honor our team and our school. That is what is important.
Yet think about what happens if we win. Think about the glory we earn by playing with this team. Not a team of superstars, but a team of guys with big hearts. I do not want to share that glory with anyone else.
Boys, I am not ashamed to say that I want this win. I want this glory, and if that is a sin, then I’m guilty of it more than anyone alive. I don’t want any other players, because if we had more, then we would have to share our victory with them.
In fact, I will go a step further. Even though we are small in number, I only want to take the field with players who want this, who believe we can win. If you are scared of that team, I would prefer that you not even suit up. If you don’t want to play, then don’t. There will be no punishment from me. I only want those who aren’t afraid to sacrifice for the honor of this team.
Most of you don’t know this, but in older times, today was known as the Feast of Saint Crispin. You may have heard of it before, but I promise you that every player who makes it through this game tonight, win or lose, and walks off this field will remember this day for the rest of his life. Every year, when St. Crispin’s Day comes around again, you will feel the pride of this day.
When you grow older, one day you will tell your family about this game. You will roll up your sleeve, point to your scars, and say, “I got this one playing on Crispin’s Day.”
In the future, you may forget many things about your high school days, but you will never forget this day. In fact, you’ll remember it even better than it happened. You’ll tell the stories of the tackles, the passes, the yards we gained, and the moments when we refused to quit.
And our names will be as familiar to you as the names of your own family. When you sit around the table with your family and raise a glass, you’ll tell them about the teammates who fought alongside you.
This game will never be forgotten. From this day until the end of our lives, we’ll remember what we did here. And whenever the story is told, we’ll be part of it.
We few, we happy few, we band of brothers.
Because whoever bleeds alongside you on that field today will be your brother. It doesn’t matter who he is, how much money his family makes, or how popular he is. When he stands beside us on this field and gives everything he has, he earns something that no one can take away.
And years from now, when people talk about this game, those who didn’t play with us will wish they had.
Your classmates who are sitting in the stands right now, or at home in their comfortable bed, will think themselves accursed for not playing with us. And they will hold their manhood cheap every time one of you talks about this game on St. Crispin’s Day.
Now, let’s go and give them hell!
As today is St. Crispin’s Day, I felt it was worth sharing my own version of what I have always considered the greatest speech in Shakespeare. The original text, which I recommend reading, comes from the play “Henry V,” written around 1599. In the play, King Henry delivers the speech to his outnumbered English army on Oct. 25, 1415, the morning of the Battle of Agincourt during the Hundred Years’ War. Rather than asking for reinforcements, Henry argues that having fewer men makes their potential victory even more honorable. He promises that those who fight together will share a bond that lasts a lifetime, famously declaring, “We few, we happy few, we band of brothers.”
The speech has become one of the most celebrated in English literature because it captures the power of shared sacrifice, loyalty, courage, and belonging to something greater than oneself. Its message continues to resonate in military units, sports teams, and other groups facing difficult challenges together. It even inspired the title of Stephen E. Ambrose’s 1992 book, “Band of Brothers: E Company, 506th Regiment, 101st Airborne from Normandy to Hitler’s Eagle’s Nest,” which was later made into the excellent 2001 HBO series “Band of Brothers.” The book tells the story of Easy Company, 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment, of the 101st Airborne Division during World War II, highlighting the extraordinary bonds forged through combat and shared sacrifice.
Shakespeare’s words still inspire us. While they were written 400 years ago he understood back then that things like loyalty, honor and friendship were important, just as they are today.
James Finck is a professor of American history at the University of Science and Arts of Oklahoma. He can be reached at james.finck@swoknews.com.
