Participate in a citywide competition to win bragging rights against James Clemens and earn some cash for the school by buying milkshakes from Chick-Fil-A! To partake in this event, purchase any milkshake from the Madison location and state which high school for credit to be valid. At the big football game, the champion will be announced by the cow mascot.

Before the contest began, a couple of weeks ago, a Chick-Fil-A representative contacted the school about a “milkshake mania” between Bob Jones and James Clemens. The restaurant decided to switch to spirit days, instead of a spirit day, to involve more teachers, students, and parents. However, according to the marketing director of the chain, Amanda Stanley, the idea to spice up rivalries between two high schools isn’t new. Years ago, the Madison location of Chick-Fil-A hosted a similar competition between Bob Jones and Sparkman seniors.

Amanda says, “It creates excitement and buzz for the student bodies, our Team Members, and the community.” Though there are employees from Bob Jones and James Clemens, there are also kids from Sparkman and Westminister Christian Academy. “The rivalries end as soon as their shifts start,” and they “treat each other like family.”

Mrs. Zoe Williams, a Bob Jones math teacher, said that when Chick-Fil-A contacted her she wasn’t sure if they could pull it off. But with the help of social media, they finalized the plans this past Thursday. “We really have moved quickly on this.”

Originally, the restaurant was going to do several activities besides milkshake mania such as a meet-and-greet with the high schools’ football teams, a drum line competition, and more. Because of the lack of time, the school and Chick-Fil-A decided to use milkshakes as an incentive. They also decided to use catering trays as a part of the contest, but only on Friday for tailgating. The restaurant chain will in return donate a large portion of the profits from the competition to both athletic departments in the schools, the winning one receiving the most money.

To further promote the spirit week, some of the cheerleaders from both high schools decorated the windows of the restaurant, so the director of other stores can judge it. The windows are divided so that half of them are for the Bob Jones Patriots and the other is painted by the James Clemens Jets. On Sunday, the Patriot cheerleaders and some of their parents spent three hours on five windows.

Though the high schools are close rivalries, both will benefit from it. Mrs. Williams states, “This really is a win-win for both schools.”