KEARNEY — DeKendrick McCray's helmet looked like an abstract painting.
The Lincoln East graduate already had a fine-looking helmet to begin with — white with a blue Spartan decal on both sides. But this week was his chance to paint his lid in different colors.
Following Shrine Bowl tradition, McCray's helmet was plastered with decals from other Nebraska high schools. He didn't know how many he had — easily more than 15 — but he was still able to rattle them off.
"Lincoln Christian … Weeping Water … Southern Valley … Hastings … Platteview …," the wide receiver/defensive back said. "I like all of them. Make sure you get all the Lincoln ones."
One of the wonderful aspects of the Shrine Bowl — played Saturday at Cope Stadium at Nebraska-Kearney, and won by the North 10-3 — is it brings together players from all classes. It mixes 11-man and eight-man players. This year's game even had a six-man competitor — Rohde Carson of S-E-M.
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Where else are you going to see a player from Doniphan-Trumbull (Ayden King) officially record a pass from a North Dakota State recruit (Cole Payton of Omaha Westside)?
Maybe nothing symbolizes the bridging of small-town and big-school players quite like the display of helmets on gameday.
"If you didn't grow up in Nebraska and you watched this game, you would never know what kids are Class A, which kids are Class D-2," said Platteview coach Mark McLaughlin, who guided the South squad. "It's awesome, and I hope that these kids peel these off before they turn their helmets into their high school and save them."
The players spent time earlier in the week decorating their headgear with helmet decals from schools represented in the Shrine Bowl. Many of them went all in, completely covering their lids in logos.
* In the fall, Lincoln East and Lincoln Southwest are rivals of Lincoln Southeast. On Saturday, Southeast wide receiver Taveon Thompson was representing the Capital City well, sporting East and Southwest helmet stickers on his lid.
* Lincoln Christian linebacker Josh Free was among those giving a nod to eight-man power Falls City Sacred Heart. He found a spot on the back of his helmet for the Irish's shamrock logo.
* The Auburn helmet decal (look up Arizona helmet logo) was in high demand on the South team.
* Tri County's Brandon Beeson used the stickers to spell out 17 and 21 on his helmet.
* Some players had a few additional decals. Others had seven or eight. Blair's Dexter Larsen was among those probably close to a record.
"I think I have close to 20," said Larsen, who scored the game's only touchdown. "As many as I can get … because everyone on here is on my team now so we can came together as a brotherhood and I want to get everybody on there."
The exchanging of helmet decals is one of McLaughlin's favorite parts. He's a high school helmet enthusiast — he has helmets from all 50 states — and he's helped put together social media polls on best-design contests.
He loves collecting helmets decals for his children.
"They have an Omaha Westside decal that has Cade Haberman and Cole Payton's signature (from this week) on it," McLaughlin said. "They have an Ashland-Greenwood decal that says 'Lane Zimmerman.' Those types of things down the road, that's a story to tell."
That story begins and ends with the relationships formed during Shrine Bowl week, and playing for a great cause. There was a winner Saturday, and a loser. But the result doesn't matter.
"We came here Sunday and it was kind awkward," said Larsen, who had a team-high five tackles. "We kind of sat around, we didn't know each other. As the week progressed we got to know each other and by the end of it we were brothers. Seemed like we knew each other forever.
"That's what it means to have all these stickers on."
Flag day at UNK
Speaking of colorful, yellow was a prominent color during the 63rd edition of the Shrine Bowl.
The South and North combined for 10 first-half penalties, and each squad had a touchdown — including a 45-yard passing play by the North — taken off the board because of flags in the first half. The final penalty tally was 12.
A great sight
The North posted for team-winning photo on the field after the game, and the players made sure no one was left of it.
Eric Lenz (Central City), who injured his left knee in the game, could barely walk, but he made his way over to the group and was held up by teammates Tyler LeClair (Bennington) and Sutton Pohlman (Stanton) as family, coaches and friends snapped photos.
Another great sight
Last year, the Shrine Bowl was played under heavy COVID-19 protocols and the crowd was limited to family members only. No one was complaining. We were just grateful to see an athletic competition taking place.
It looked much different this year. The west side of Cope Stadium was packed. More than 3,500 fans attended the game.
Quick hits
* Payton, the Nebraska Gatorade Player of the Year, broke loose for 75-yard run early in the fourth quarter. It was 1 yard short of tying the Shrine Bowl record for longest run.
* Big-man carry alert! South offensive lineman Jack Nickolisen, a Super-Stater from Millard North, got on the stat sheet with carry in the fourth quarter. It was a zero-yard attempt on a tackle reverse, but, hey, who's counting yards anyway when you're a big man?
* The winning source for the North: Watching the movie "Rudy"? That's what the players did Wednesday night and then, 'We just named a random kid Rudy," Larsen said. Rudy this week was Paxton Smith of Rock County.