General McLane High School, of Edinboro, Pa., plays Pottsville tonight for the state AAA football championship. State championship games are held everywhere at this time of year, and it might not be a big deal at schools that routinely compete for such impressive titles.

But at General McLane, a school named for a Civil War hero, this is a new experience. The school has had strong athletic teams in practically all sports for years, but a trip to the finals in Hershey, Pa., is a new experience.

Everyone in Edinboro seems excited about the team's success. I'm kind of reminded of the movie "Hoosiers," in which a tiny school coached by a character played by Gene Hackman overcomes great adversity to advance all the way to Indiana's state basketball championship game.

McLane is not "Hoosiers." Edinboro, with its scenic lake, a lovely golf course, and Edinboro University, which boasts an enrollment of more than 8,000 students, is not some quaint little village. It is a very nice town, with a fairly upscale population.

That said, a state championship would matter greatly to the citizens of the town as well as the students at the high school. I repeat, everyone seems to have jumped aboard the GM bandwagon.

The Erie Times-News has devoted tens of thousands of words this week to describing the buildup to tonight's game. The newspaper has published features on Head Coach Jim Wells, his assistants, the players, cheerleaders, fans -- you name it. Almost every aspect of the drive to Hershey has been chronicled this week. Erie's newspaper has even been swapping stories with the Pottsville newspaper -- so fans can get the flavor of what the media there is saying about the McLane team.

Now, what does this matter in the great scheme of things for the Times-News? Well, I'd say it's a pretty big deal, because for the past three days I've been hearing from residents of the Edinboro area, who say they're impressed by the newspaper's coverage of the team.

In fact, they're pleased as punch about all they've read. In fact, one reader wanted to know "who swung the two-by-four that finally knocked some sense into you newspaper folks up in Erie." I laughed and went on to have a long, productive conversation with the phone caller.

I've occasionally detected negative vibes from Edinboro callers who feel that their teams -- or even their schools -- never got their just due in the Erie newspaper. Some folks even seemed a little bitter about it. But that was then. Today, thanks to the success of General McLane's team, and the dozens of stories that have appeared in the newspaper this week, everyone seems like old friends again.

That's good. It's something I was afraid I wouldn't see for a long time. But now McLane needs to close the deal. A win tonight would earn another day or two of big, bold headlines, and we could all bask in the glow of GM's accomplishments.

Even if the team falls short, though, I think we all understand each other a little better. Any team that advances to the state football title game is a great one, deserving of a place in local sports history. We all would agree on that. I just hope we can continue this new friendship, because it feels mighty good from where I'm sitting.

-- Kevin Cuneo