Morse football participates in the annual Midnight Madness tradition on Monday, Aug. 19, 2024. Cooper Sullivan / The Times Record

BATH — If the sound of whistles, cheers and tackling dummies smacking the turf didn’t disrupt the normally peaceful midnight air, an energetic football coach’s simple question did.

“Are you jacked up or what?” Morse coach Jason Darling yelled as he lept from his feet into a huddle of players at McMann Field. He didn’t need a response, he already knew the answer, but it got the loudest response of the night, er, morning.

On Monday at 12:01 a.m., Morse kicked off its 2024 campaign with a midnight madness practice, taking advantage of the first opportunity the Maine Principals’ Association allows for fall sports to practice. For Darling and the Morse football program, it’s a tradition like no other.

“My wife asked me (Monday) how many years we’ve been doing this and I couldn’t remember if it was nine or 10,” Darling said about the tradition. “I really don’t remember, but my former defensive coordinator (Wayne Richards) brought it down with him from Bucksport. When he first told me about it I said ‘That’s crazy.’ We’re going to get the kids out at midnight and the parents are going to have me fired the next day. He said ‘You just wait.'”

As the McMann Field scoreboard counted down, a crowd of more than 50 stood along the fence in anticipation of the official beginning of football season. The cheerleading team went over new chants on the track. When the Morse football team emerged from the locker room, they were accompanied with a thick shroud of fog, which added drama to the evening.

Practice only lasted 34 minutes, including stretches, partner tackling drills, ring tackling drills, defensive pursuit and a two-minute offense, but the night isn’t about perfecting form or getting reps. It’s about establishing the tone for the rest of the preseason.

“We always bill it as to be the first on the field (and) the first to go to work,” Darling said. “We want our kids to embrace ethic and hard work and being first. There’s not a lot of football stuff that goes on with it; it’s mostly about team building and that’s the goal. The kids do well with it.”

When sophomore defensive end/tight end Alan Mitchell wasn’t thrilled when he learned about Midnight Madness as a freshman.

“I was upset at first, because I didn’t want to go to practice so late, but it turned out to be not so bad.”

Alexander Soto, a freshman lineman said this was at the top of his most memorable practice list.

According to Darling, the “I’m tired” excuse will hold no weight the rest of the week. Instead of morning/afternoon double practice sessions, Morse opts for afternoon/evening sessions, from 3 p.m. to 9 p.m. with an extended break and a provided meal from team parents.

Darling, too, would love to get as much sleep as possible before he is awoken by his three kids at 5 a.m., but the experience is one that outweighs one restless night.

“The parents got on board and the kids have a lot of fun with it,” Darling said. “So we are going to keep doing it until we can’t.”