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BOTF VIII: We Challenge You to Cheer
December 17, 2018
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
You go to all the games. You're cheering on your classmates the right way. You're having a blast with your friends. And you haven't seen a student section yet that can hang with you.
But are you ready for the statewide spotlight?
The MHSAA’s Student Advisory Council is ready to shine it on the top high school cheering section in Michigan with this winter's Battle of the Fans VIII.
Five schools have won at least one Battle of the Fans championship since the contest was created during the 2011-12 school year. Buchanan was named last year’s champion and presented with a banner during the MHSAA Boys Basketball Finals at Michigan State University’s Breslin Center. Sections from Boyne City and Petoskey also were finalists, with Cedar Springs, Charlotte, Munising, Negaunee, Pellston and Traverse City West’s sections making the semifinals.
This year's BOTF again will follow an expanded format created a year ago that allows for nine contenders to pursue the championship over multiple rounds of competition. Schools are invited to submit a short video, via YouTube, of their cheering sections in action at a school sporting event. Video submissions should be between 90 seconds and three minutes long and explain how that section meets the following contest criteria: positive sportsmanship, student body participation, school spirit, originality of cheers, organization of the group, student section leadership and fun.
The deadline for student-submitted video applications is noon Jan. 12. Nine semifinalists then will be chosen – three each from Class A, Class B and Class C/D – to partake in a two-week challenge where each will be required to complete 10 tasks further showing why it should be chosen as Michigan’s best student section. From those nine, three finalists then will be selected by the Student Advisory Council and visited on a home game night by MHSAA staff and Advisory Council representatives. The MHSAA will produce a video of that finalist after each visit, with the champion being selected by the Student Advisory Council based in part on support each section receives on the MHSAA’s social media sites.
This year’s Battle of the Fans VIII winner will be announced Feb. 22 and recognized March 15 at the Breslin Center.
“We’re excited to begin our second year of Battle of the Fans with this expanded format that allows us to keep more schools participating longer – and see them participating in various challenges instead of just during one visit like in the first years of the contest,” said Andy Frushour, MHSAA director of brand management and advisor to the Student Advisory Council. “Adding the challenge round last year created more excitement as more schools were competing later in the contest – and their work in those challenges provided us many more examples to share in showing students how much fun can be had cheering for their teams in a positive way.”
Rules, directions for submitting videos, plus links to coverage of finalists from the first seven years of the contest can be found on the MHSAA Website. This year’s finalist videos, plus the announcement of the 2018-19 winner, will be published on Second Half.
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.
PHOTO: Traverse City West shined plenty of bright lights when we visited as part of the 2017 BOTF finalists tour. VIDEOS: Below, check out the videos from our visits to all of the first seven BOTF champions.
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BOTF VII Finalists, Tour Dates Announced
January 29, 2018
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
Two repeat finalists and a past champion have earned the opportunity to vie for the Michigan High School Athletic Association’s “Battle of the Fans VII” title recognizing the top high school student cheering section in Michigan, as awarded by the MHSAA’s Student Advisory Council.
Boyne City, Buchanan and Petoskey 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 the MHSAA’s Second Half.
The winner will be selected by another vote by the 16-member Advisory Council, with serious consideration given to a public vote on the MHSAA’s social media sites. This year’s winner will be announced Feb. 23 and recognized March 23 at the Breslin Center.
Buchanan was named BOTF champion in 2013 and was a finalist in both 2014 and 2015. Boyne City was a finalist for the first time last year, and Petoskey also was a finalist in 2012 and 2017.
The MHSAA will visit the finalists for the following home boys basketball games
Feb. 2: Boyne City vs. Kalkaska
Feb. 2: Petoskey vs. Traverse City West
Feb. 16: Buchanan vs. Berrien Springs
Voting among the top five semifinalists was particularly close. Cedar Springs and Charlotte just missed earning spots among the top three. Munising, Negaunee, Pellston and Traverse City West also were among the semifinalists.
“Our ‘Challenge Round’ over the last two weeks added a lot of excitement to Battle of the Fans, and also gave us great insights on the finest student sections in our state,” said Andy Frushour, MHSAA director of brand management and advisor to the Student Advisory Council. “We’re excited to go back to see three sections that have shown us a ton in the past, and checking out a couple of northern neighbors is an incredible way to kick things off.
“Charlotte and Cedar Springs were very close to becoming part of this year’s finalists tour,” Frushour added. “Both have established incredible fan cultures, and we certainly plan on seeing them in this contest again next year.”
Battle of the Fans, organized by MHSAA staff and the Student Advisory Council, was revamped this year to allow for more schools to remain in title contention past the application round. As in past years, schools again 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 19 schools applied for this year’s contest – seven from Class A schools, six from Class B, four from Class C and two from Class D. Three semifinalists each were selected from the Class A, Class B and Class C/D applicants.
Click to view all applications on YouTube.
The contest is sponsored in part by the United Dairy Industry of Michigan, which promotes Michigan's locally-produced dairy products and nutrition education.
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.