Battle of the Fans VIII: Meet the Finalists
January 28, 2019
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
The reigning champion and two first-time finalists have earned the opportunity to vie for the MHSAA's “Battle of the Fans VIII” championship recognizing the top high school student cheering section in Michigan, as awarded by the Student Advisory Council.
Buchanan, North Muskegon and Saginaw Heritage were selected as finalists by the Advisory Council from a group of nine semifinalists that took part in a series of social media challenges highlighting their sections over the last two weeks.
Members of the MHSAA staff will visit all three finalists over the next three weeks, producing articles about each section and videos of those sections in action, all to be published on Second Half.
The winner will be selected by another vote by the 16-member Advisory Council, with consideration given to a public vote on the MHSAA’s social media sites. This year’s winner will be announced Feb. 22 and recognized March 15 at the Breslin Center.
Buchanan is seeking its second straight BOTF championship and also won in 2013 and was a finalist in both 2014 and 2015. North Muskegon and Heritage are both first-time finalists; this was the second time North Muskegon applied for BOTF, and the third time Heritage had applied.
The MHSAA will visit the finalists for the following home basketball games:
Feb. 1: Midland Dow at Saginaw Heritage (girls)
Feb. 8: Parchment at Buchanan (boys)
Feb. 12: Montague at North Muskegon (boys)
Petoskey and Wayland just missed claiming the third finalist spot. Ann Arbor Father Gabriel Richard, Carson City-Crystal, Petersburg-Summerfield and Traverse City West also were semifinalists.
“With Heritage from Class A, Buchanan from Class B and North Muskegon from Class C, we’re thrilled to have finalists representing such a wide range of school sizes – and we’re excited to see our three finalists up close and in person,” said Andy Frushour, MHSAA director of brand management and advisor to the Student Advisory Council.
“Buchanan is a perennial power and has become the gold standard for high school student sections. Heritage was very involved during the fall Sportsmanship Summits, and that momentum carried over to this winter as the section has supported its top-ranked girls basketball team. North Muskegon has come out of nowhere – but is proof of how just a little bit of organization can lead to major student section changes over only a few months.”
Let's meet the finalists:
BUCHANAN -
Follow on Twitter, Instagram and Snapchat (theherd_bhs)
Tip #3 - THE CHAIN EFFECT - Maya S. pic.twitter.com/gOpvtNBCUd
— The Herd (@TheHerd_BHS) January 25, 2019
NORTH MUSKEGON - NORSE NATION
Follow on Twitter and Instagram
SAGINAW HERITAGE - HAWK NEST
Follow on Twitter, Instagram and Snapchat (hhshawknest)
#16 CONGRATS #BOTF pic.twitter.com/QKDvbdYe5I
— HHS Student Section (@HHShawknest) January 19, 2019
Battle of the Fans is organized by MHSAA staff and the Student Advisory Council. For the second year under a revamped format, schools were invited throughout the fall to submit short videos, via YouTube, of their cheering sections in action. The Advisory Council then selected nine semifinalists to accomplish a list of tasks showing off their sections over a 12-day span.
Semifinalists were required to complete 10 challenges via their social media channels. Five mandatory challenges focused on contest criteria: positive sportsmanship, student body participation, school spirit, originality of cheers, organization of the group, student section leadership and overall fun. Semifinalists then selected five elective challenges (taken from a list of 15 opportunities). Descriptions of all 20 challenges are available on the MHSAA Website.
A total of 20 schools applied for this year’s contest – including six first-time applicants. Three semifinalists each were selected from the Class A, Class B and Class C/D applicants. See below for a play list of all 20 applicants.
The Student Advisory Council is made up of eight seniors and eight juniors who each serve two-year terms. The Council acts as the voice of Michigan's student-athletes; it serves as a student sounding board for the MHSAA's Representative Council, assists in planning Sportsmanship Summits, Captains Clinics and other student leadership events; participates in a yearly focus group about the state of high school sports for Michigan State University's Institute for the Study of Youth Sports and assists with medal ceremonies at MHSAA championship events.
Bedford's Gandee Honored for 'Spirit'
March 13, 2017
By John Gillis
Special from NFHS
Hunter Gandee, a student-athlete at Temperance Bedford High School, has been selected as the 2017 Section 4 recipient of the “National High School Spirit of Sport Award” by the National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS).
The National High School Spirit of Sport Award was created by the NFHS to recognize those individuals who exemplify the ideals of the spirit of sport that represent the core mission of education-based athletics.
The mark of a “good big brother” is often to what lengths he might go to assist his younger siblings.
That sense of familial assistance has perhaps never been taken to the extremes that Hunter Gandee has repeatedly done for his younger brother Braden.
A standout student, Hunter is a junior with a 3.92 grade-point average and a member of the National Honor Society.
On the sports side, Hunter is in his third season on the varsity wrestling team, and participates in Greco-Roman and freestyle wrestling during the offseason. He's also a member of the MHSAA Student Advisory Council.
While those accomplishments are unquestionably outstanding, they might pale in comparison to what he has done for Braden.
Born with cerebral palsy, Braden has limited use of his legs. Nonetheless, Hunter has taken it upon himself to help Braden know what it feels like to walk long distances – and he’s done it three times. Organized for the purpose of raising awareness of cerebral palsy, Hunter literally carries Braden on his back for long walks known as “CP Swaggers.”
In 2014, Hunter carried Braden 40 miles from the Bedford Junior High School wrestling room to the University of Michigan’s Bahna Wrestling Center. The following year, they upped the trek’s mileage to 57 miles.
However, that couldn’t foreshadow what was to follow in April 2016 when Hunter carried Braden on his back an amazing 111 miles – some 14 miles more than the first two walks combined.
About the Award: The NFHS divides the nation into eight geographical sections. The states in Section 4 are Michigan, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa and Wisconsin.
Nominations for this award were generated through NFHS member state associations and reviewed by the NFHS Spirit of Sport Award Selection Committee composed of state association staff members.
While the national winner will be recognized June 29 at the NFHS Summer Meeting in Providence, Rhode Island, the section winners will be recognized within their respective states and will receive awards before the end of the current school year.
PHOTO: Hunter Gandee, second from right, carries his brother Braden as part of their effort to bring awareness to cerebral palsy. (Photo courtesy of The Cerebral Palsy Swagger.)