BALDWIN COUNTY, Ala. — Four Baldwin County high schools are $5,000 richer this week after being named among the first 300 winners nationwide in T-Mobile’s Friday Night 5G Lights competition, a program built around celebrating small-town high school football and rewarding the communities that support it.
Baldwin County High School in Bay Minette, Daphne High School, Elberta High School and Robertsdale High School are among 19 Alabama schools included in the first wave of 300 winners of T-Mobile’s $5K Fridays sweepstakes. Each school will receive $5,000 that can go toward athletic needs such as helmets, weight room equipment, uniforms or travel expenses, according to a news release from T-Mobile.
The awards mark just the first step in a national competition that will ultimately distribute more than $8.4 million to small-town high schools across the country. The program’s biggest prize, a $1 million football field upgrade, will go to a single overall winner chosen later in the season — and all four Baldwin County schools will have additional chances to advance as the competition continues.
“This program celebrates the passion, pride and sense of community that makes high school football so special,” three-time Super Bowl MVP Patrick Mahomes said in the release. “I am excited to recognize the players, fans and hometowns that bring that energy every Friday night.”
How the Competition Works From Here
This year’s Friday Night 5G Lights competition moves into a new divisional bracket featuring 40 finalists split among West, East, Midwest and South divisions. Ten schools from each division will be chosen by a panel of judges based on community impact, need, creativity, school pride, social media participation and overall community engagement.
Public voting will run Oct. 8-25, with anyone nationwide allowed to vote once per day through the Friday Night 5G Lights website or the T-Life app. Finalists can also pick up bonus votes through social media “Spirit Week” challenges posted on the competition’s website.
The four schools that collect the most votes in each division will be crowned division champions, earning $250,000, a Gronk Fitness gym valued at $90,000, and a $5,000 “Big Deal” student leadership award. All 40 finalists will receive $25,000 and a T-Mobile-hosted Home Game Celebration, and one finalist will also be singled out as the “Fan Favorite” through a vote among T-Mobile employees, earning an additional $25,000.
Final-four voting is set for Oct. 29-Nov. 8, with T-Mobile announcing the grand prize winner on Nov. 12.
Alabama Schools Have Made Deep Runs Before
The Baldwin County schools join a state that has already made a name for itself in the competition. Springwood High School in Lanett cracked the national Top 25 last year, while Saks High School in Anniston advanced to the Top 16 finalists in 2024.
More than 750 schools have earned prizes through the program since it launched, and it has produced two $1 million football field transformations in its first two years. Inola High School in Inola, Oklahoma — a town of about 1,900 people — became the program’s inaugural champion in 2024 after rallying fans nationwide. In 2025, Dierks High School in Dierks, Arkansas, a community of roughly 900 people, pulled in nearly 2 million votes with help from its community and celebrity supporters to secure the $1 million upgrade.
Mahomes and Gronkowski Return to Help Rally Support
Mahomes is back for his second season with Friday Night 5G Lights, joined this year by four-time Super Bowl champion Rob “Gronk” Gronkowski, along with college athletes Dante Moore, Ashlea Klam, CJ Carr, Rocco Becht and Kewan Lacy, all working to rally fans behind participating schools.
“Every year, Friday Night 5G Lights reminds me why high school football means so much to small towns,” Gronkowski said. “The energy, the traditions and the school spirit are unlike anything else. Every season these schools raise the bar, and with more schools winning than ever before, I can’t wait to see who brings the biggest spirit this year.”
T-Mobile Chief Operating Officer Jon Freier said the program has grown well beyond football itself. “Over the past two years, we’ve seen firsthand what happens when communities come together to support their hometown schools, and it’s been absolutely inspiring,” Freier said. “Friday Night 5G Lights has become about so much more than football — it’s about celebrating the pride, traditions and connections that make small towns special. This season, we’re going even bigger and opening the door for more schools than ever to win because every community deserves its moment in the spotlight.”
How Other Schools Can Still Get Involved
Eligible high schools — those located in U.S. towns with populations under 150,000 — can still apply through Sept. 18, with applications submitted by authorized school officials such as teachers, coaches or administrators. Applications must include a short story or essay explaining why the school deserves a football field transformation.
The first 1,500 schools to apply receive a rally kit, and every eligible applicant is automatically entered into T-Mobile’s $5K Fridays sweepstakes. Supporters can also help their schools by posting on X or Instagram using the tags FN5GL and Entry while tagging T-Mobile and the school, which counts as an additional sweepstakes entry, or by taking part in a new AR Gronk selfie experience. Public voting for the finalist bracket begins Oct. 8, with more information available on the competition’s website.