North Central College Cardinals to compete in third straight Division III championship game
NAPERVILLE, Ill. (CBS) -- The big game isn't until tomorrow night, but the pep rally is already underway this morning in Naperville.
That's because the North Central College Cardinals are playing in their third straight division three championship game.
CBS 2's Marissa Perlman is live inside Merner Fieldhouse where the marching band and cheerleaders gearing up to get on the road to Annapolis.
The football team is already in Maryland but close behind is this huge support system - dance team, cheer team, marching band, flag team, and of course the fans.
Now their spirit crew will be heading out east hoping this will make all the difference
They've made it to three straight final fours but came up short as repeat national champs last year – but this community is hoping this year is different.
Band director Sean Kelley says everyone is pumped after such a dominant season.
"We're really hoping for a really strong finish, and we're going to do everything we can to help them get to where they want to be."
He says the spirit team practices for hours, sometimes as much as eight to ten hours, and two to three times a week during the season as well as before game days.
60 band members and 32 no and members- including fans are heading to the buses Thursday morning.
Kick-off for the game is slated for 6 p.m. Friday night.