The countdown is on.

After 75 years of football, Lehighton is preparing to say goodbye to its stadium on Beaver Run Road.With just two regular season games remaining, Lehighton hopes to send the stadium out with a bang.Not only will the Indians host two of their biggest rivals to close out the final season of games at the current site, but the school has come up with a plan to make it as memorable as possible.Add to that the fact that Lehighton is currently undefeated and chasing both an Anthracite Football League championship and a District 11 Class AAA playoff berth and you can see why Athletic Director Kyle Spotts is so excited.With games against Tamaqua and Jim Thorpe the next two weeks, Lehighton's last season at the stadium could be one of its best ever - both on the field and at the gate."I don't think there is any doubt that there's a real buzz throughout the school and the community about how the football season is going," said Spotts. "It's been a great season so far from both the perspective of how we played on the field and the support we've received from our fans."We've had some outstanding crowds this year. We're averaging over $2,000 a game more at the gate than we did last year - and last year was markedly better than our last few years in the Mountain Valley Conference."Spotts said the attendance and support have been "beyond expectations," adding that per-game revenues are almost double what they were in the MVC.If the regular season finale against Jim Thorpe on Nov. 6 - which at worst will be a battle for league and district honors and at best will be a matchup between a pair of unbeaten teams - isn't enough to pack the stadium, then the fact that Lehighton is honoring all football alumni who have played in the stadium over the years should do the trick.Spotts said there will be a tailgate for community members with preferred parking on the football practice field beginning at 4 p.m. There will also be a hospitality tent with light refreshments for alumni, a DJ, and a display of past trophies and memorabilia. After the game, all alumni in attendance will gather on the field for a ceremonial closing of the stadium.And if everything goes well for the football team the next two weeks, there is a chance that the "final game" won't necessarily be the final game."We're hopeful that we'll qualify for the district playoffs and maybe get a home game or two," said Spotts.If that's the case, the stadium on Beaver Run Road might have a second or even third farewell.There was some hope during the summer that the new stadium being built at the high school might be ready for the Jim Thorpe game and, if not for that, than for a possible postseason game. But that's not the case."There is no chance that the new stadium will be ready even if we do get postseason home games," said Spotts. "But I did reach out to District 11 football chairman Jason Zimmerman to make sure if we did earn a home game that our current stadium would be approved to host a game and he told me he didn't anticipate that being a problem."So while the stadium countdown is on, Lehighton is still hoping it isn't a final countdown.The Indians' football team and the Lehighton community would like to have a couple more numbers added to the countdown.**********TDS BOTH WAYS ... Rene Figueroa contributed to Panther Valley's win over Hanover last Friday by scoring a touchdown on offense and defense.The freshman reached the end zone on a 47-yard run and then returned a fumble 44 yards for a defensive score.Over the past 25 years, only four other Panther players have scored a touchdown on offense and defense in the same game. That quartet includes Richie Smith, Jake Dunn, Joel Porambo and Brad Miller.**********SCORING MACHINES ... Northwestern's Harry Hall and Lehighton's Wyatt Clements have both passed the 100-point mark this season.This year marks the third straight season each player has reached the century mark in points.Since 1970, the only other Times News area player to have three 100-point seasons was Northern Lehigh's Cody Remaley from 2008-2010.**********INDIAN INTERCEPTIONS ... Lehighton's defense intercepted four passes (two by Tanner Haydt and one each by Tyler Cann and Wyatt Clements) during last Friday's win against Shenandoah Valley.Since 1993, which covers a span of 247 games, this is just the sixth time the Indians picked off four or more passes in a game.The Tribe had five against Tamaqua on Sept. 15, 1995 and four on four other occasions.**********COMEBACK KINGS ... Pleasant Valley trailed East Stroudsburg North 13-0 at halftime of last week's game before rallying for a 21-13 Eastern Pennsylvania Conference win.Over the past 30 years, the Bears have come back from more double-digit deficits (13) than any other Times News area team.Next in line on the comeback list are Lehighton, Marian and Northwestern, who have all registered nine rallies of 10-or-more points.