Cross state tradition: A trip to the farm before some hoops

Before taking to the hardwood, the Osseo-Fairchild basketball teams gave their opponents a little peek at life in the country--a good 'ol fashioned trip to the farm. It’s become an annual tradition between Osseo and Milwaukee.

The sights and smells of life on a farm can be a bit jarring at first. But before long, the covered noses generally give way to laughs, smiles, and of course the occasional scream when getting licked by a calf.

“I was actually kind of a little scared, like timid," says Marican Owens from HOPE High School in Milwaukee. “It's good to explore new things. We're used to the city. We don't see things like this all the time.

For the fourth year, the Osseo-Fairchild boys and girls basketball teams prepared to take on the kids from the HOPE High School in Milwaukee.

“There's just a lot of different things that we can learn about each other and different cultures,” says Colton Chase from Osseo-Fairchild High School.

The schools swap home courts every year. Last year, when the Osseo kids traveled south, the trip included taking in a Bucks game.

“I think any time you're combining schools and working together toward something, I think that's a really positive thing,” says Lance Meyer, HOPE School boys basketball coach.

It's a positive thing both coaches say is appropriatly on Martin Luther King Jr. Day.

“Kids are the same no matter where they're from and I think that's probably the main reason that we do it,” says Matt Korger, Osseo-Fairchild boys basketball coach.  [That's my cousin.  He's the first Matt so I'm usually called Matthew Jerome in the family.  A good guy and a good coach, buuut we definitely are on opposite ends of the political spectrum.]

So be it the country kids or the city kids who get the win, everyone agrees the moments on the farm are worthy of the season highlight reel as well.

“We came together as a family and they helped us and they keep us smiling,” says Emma Rayford of HOPE High School.

To see who won the basketball games, go to our sports page and check the local scores.

Video at WEAU 13

The video's pretty good, worth watching.  I think this is a great idea.  I hope other schools follow suit.