Spirit Raising – Maximizing Your Student Section

No matter the size or strength of your athletic programs, at the heart of every school community lies the student body. Students have the potential to make or break a season. With the help and support of spiritleaders like you, the student body can inspire your team to victory. Looking for ways to ignite your student section? Look no further. Here are some tips to get your students at the game, on their feet, and in the spirit!

Create Designated Seating Areas

Kick off the football season by encouraging students to sit together in a designated area in the home stands. In order to distinguish this section, come up with a clever name like “Lancer Zone” or “Blue Crew” and decorate the area with festive posters and streamers.

Show Student Solidarity

Plan on wearing one color during the game to show solidarity for your team. Spread the word during the week through school announcements and school social media outlets.  You can also encourage spirit by planning a pre-game face painting party during your tailgate or doing a pre-game performance with your band or drumline just for the students. Create hype each week by taking a picture of the most spirited or crazy outfit and posting it on your school’s social media accounts (if your administration allows for that.)

Stand with the Students

If the student section is not near the area that your spiritleaders normally cheer, be sure to spend a portion of the game cheering specifically towards the student section to get them really excited. Be sure to do this at the same time each week (for example, the third quarter) so the students are ready to cheer with you! Getting the drum line to join you for a short time will add even more excitement! Choose simple or fun chants students will enjoy and, of course, your traditional school cheers that everyone knows. To get them even more pumped up, throw candy (with permission) or beach balls into the crowd!

The rest of the fans will love the energy and feed off of the student section. Motivate a victory by getting the entire crowd cheering and boost some competitive spirit on the visitor’s side too! And guess what? The players will notice! Not only will the home team notice, but the visitors will as well, creating the ultimate home team advantage!