Athletes with special needs compete in Highland Park's 7th annual Buddy Bowl
DALLAS — It's a game that is a "Game-Changer!" for everyone who attends.
Athletes with physical and mental disabilities will play in the 7th Annual HP Buddy Bowl this Saturday at Highlander Stadium in Highland Park.
Watch a livestream here of Highland Park's Buddy Bowl 2024 on Saturday starting at 4:00 p.m.
The players arrive to a red carpet lined with cheerleaders, fans, and high school athletes welcoming them to an entire afternoon of fun and football under the true "Friday night lights."
CBS News Texas is among many sponsors providing face painters, photo booths, and balloon makers. Each athlete goes home with a free t-shirt and a HP Buddy Bowl football. The fans are treated to free ice cream and cookies. 76-year-old musician Larry Williams play the piano and sings the National Anthem.
"The game is special because only special athletes can play," said Joel Smith, one of the 50 young athletes signed up for this year's game.
Former Highland Park students, Brayden Schager and Brielle Schager, started the event when they were in middle school.
"Each year, as the event gets bigger, it simultaneously gets harder to manage," says Brielle, now a freshman at Texas Christian University. "…However, it is never a question in my mind whether we do it or not. The feedback we receive from our athletes' parents shows what a life-changing event this is for our athletes."
"It's amazing to see the joy and excitement that these kids get doing something that my friends and I get to on a regular day basis," said Brayden, who is a senior quarterback at the University of Hawaii. "It makes their year, and it makes mine! I get more out of it than they do."
Smith might disagree. He scored the first touchdown in the HP Buddy Bowl 2023 game, and he's hoping to do that again this year.
"It brings me so much joy knowing something I'm doing is having a lasting impact on someone else," said Brielle.
Teams for this year's event have reached maximum capacity, but everyone is welcome to come cheer!
Learn more about the HP Buddy Bowl by clicking the link here.
