Welcome Back to 'The Woods'

January 17, 2014

By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor

Buchanan, here we come.

The MHSAA and its Student Advisory Council will kick off "Battle of the Fans III" tonight with a return trip to Buchanan, last season's BOTF champion.

Buchanan, tucked into the southwest corner of the Lower Peninsula, is a Class B school of 465 students hailing from a community of roughly 4,400. The Bucks earned voters' hearts in 2013 as most of that student body and community filled the home gym – fittingly referred to as "The Woods" – for the MHSAA's BOTF visit.

The MHSAA will visit finalists Beaverton, Bridgman, Frankfort and Traverse City West later this month and during the first two weeks of February before crowning a champion on Feb. 21 and inviting representatives from the winning section to a banner presentation during the Boys Basketball Semifinals on March 21 at Michigan State's Breslin Center.

Remember, follow the Battle of the Fans on the MHSAA's Facebook, Twitter and Instagram social media sites by clicking hashtag #BOTF. The MHSAA-produced story and video from tonight's trip will be published Tuesday on Second Half.

Here's Buchanan's application video for this winter's contest.

PHOTO is courtesy of Buchanan High School. Battle of the Fans III is sponsored in part by the United Dairy Industry of Michigan.

Battle of the Fans IV: Vote Now

February 16, 2015

By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor

We watched and enjoyed what hopefuls sent us from all over the state, then criss-crossed Michigan to see this season's best for ourselves.

And now it's your turn to vote for your favorite student cheering section of this season's Battle of the Fans IV.

Vote today through 4 p.m. Thursday on your favorite of these five (enrollments in parentheses) – Beaverton (422), Buchanan (462), Dowagiac (606), St. Johns (1,088) and Yale (716) – by liking, sharing and re-tweeting on the MHSAA’s Facebook, Twitter and Instagram sites

But before you do, take a few minutes to watch all five videos and read the stories behind the sections by clicking the links below.

The contest is sponsored by the MHSAA Student Advisory Council, which will have the final vote on the champion. SAC members will use all resources available to make their decision – including giving significant weight to the public social media vote. Votes will be valued proportionate to the size of the school receiving them (for example, one vote for Class C Beaverton will mean more than one vote for much larger Class A St. Johns).

The champion will be announced Friday on Second Half. Video of all five finalists will be compiled and shown on the main scoreboard during the Girls and Boys Basketball Finals in March at Michigan State's Breslin Student Events Center. The winner will be invited to Breslin on March 27 for the Class B Boys Basketball Semifinals and presented a championship banner at center court.

And now, the finalists, in alphabetical order:

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Beaverton

Buchanan

Dowagiac

St. Johns

Yale