Before the roar of the crowd and the clash of helmets under the bright Friday night lights, there is a quiet moment inside the Hamilton Southeastern locker room. It is a moment that belongs only to the players, one that has echoed through the years, passed from generation to generation. The locker room hums with nervous energy, the clatter of pads and the smell of turf and sweat. Then, as if on cue, everything slows. The noise softens, the players draw in close, and one voice rises above the silence: the voice of senior Graham Toner.
The words he speaks are familiar to everyone in the room. They are part of the Husker Prayer, a long-standing HSE football tradition that every player knows by heart. It is not just a ritual before the game; it is the team’s heartbeat, a reminder of who they are, what they stand for and what they play for.
“I think the pregame prayer is a great way for our team to get on the same page and get hyped up for the game,” Toner said. “It’s not just words. It’s something that brings us together. We’re all locked in, and you can feel the energy shift in the room.”
For Toner, leading the prayer is an honor that carries weight. The Husker Prayer has roots that reach deep into the history of HSE football. While no one can pinpoint the exact season it began, longtime coaches recall that it started decades ago when a group of players decided to begin each game with a shared moment of faith and focus. The prayer was not imposed by coaches or borrowed from another team; it grew naturally, born out of the players’ desire to connect before stepping onto the field. What began as a spontaneous gesture became a cornerstone of the Royals’ identity, repeated by every class of players since. Over the years, the words have remained the same, tying today’s team to every player who came before them.
“I was fortunate enough to be chosen by the team,” Toner said. “It means a lot that people recognized the passion and energy I have toward the game of football and everyone a part of this program. When I say those words, I’m not just speaking for myself. I’m speaking for every single guy who wears this jersey.”
That legacy is what makes the prayer so powerful. The same words said before every game remind the team of their shared purpose: to play for each other, to honor the program and to represent Hamilton Southeastern with pride. For the players, it is more than motivation. It is grounding. It is the moment where all the noise fades away and every player finds his focus.
Over time, the Husker Prayer has become the glue that holds the team together, a constant reminder that football at HSE is about more than touchdowns and trophies. It is about family, discipline and the bond that comes from standing shoulder to shoulder in moments that matter.
“Every time we pray, it reminds us that we’re connected by something bigger than football,” Toner said. “It’s taught us to stay grounded. We talk about being a family, and this is where that really starts.”
When the final “Amen” echoes through the locker room, the players raise their heads, their hearts steady and their minds sharp. The doors open, and the sounds of the stadium flood in: cheers, drums and the pulse of Friday night lights. The team steps out together, bound by faith, brotherhood and the words that have guided countless Royals before them.
To an outsider, it might look like a simple pregame ritual. But to those inside the HSE program, it is something far greater: the moment that transforms a group of athletes into one…the ones.
It is the Husker Prayer, and for Hamilton Southeastern football, it means everything.
