Cult Heroes: The Story Goes National...

All of America came to love the Mighty Mites as the nation needed and yearned for heroes. According to Jim Dent, "It was the same obsession the nation held for Seabiscuit. People would go to any lengths to shed the Depression blues, and the best way to forget about adversity was to believe in the underdog -- an underdog with the heart of a champion."

A national story about the team had first appeared in 1932 with the team's first run towards the Class A State Championship. Some 2,200 banks had failed in 1931 and the bad times continued with 12 million men unemployed. At a time when men felt diminished and families felt pushed to the edge, the story of the scrawny orphans beating the giants of Texas high school football inspired a nation.

While the college teams in the area might attract 1,000 fans to games, the Mason's Mighty Mites packed in 5,000 to 10,000 fans on a regular basis. The saga of the winning team would set a standard for the next decade and provide an example of courage unsurpassed since in Texas sports. Those that couldn't attend the games tuned in to the radio broadcasts, sandwiched after Lawrence Welk and before Amos 'n Andy, Guy Lombardo, and Groucho Marx.

Harold Ratliff with the Associated Press, stationed in Dallas, the "big city" just to the east of Fort Worth, started distributing the story of the grasshopper team that could not be beat on the national AP wire. National media quickly picked up the story and stayed on it. Their undefeated year in 1932 was the just the beginning of a decade-plus run. The story of the Mighty Mites was one of inspiration, imagination, success and determination much appreciated at a time when America needed good endings to very tough times.