As I hear, “Ugh, I wish we had more school spirit. This school is so unfun,” coming from the same girl that left last Friday’s football game at halftime, rage boils up inside me. I’m sick of it.
As soon as that clock strikes the second quarter, like Cinderella, everyone flurries out of the bleachers to leave. I agree, this school has a serious school spirit problem, but the solution is to STOP COMPLAINING ABOUT IT AND ACTUALLY HAVE MORE SPIRIT!
If you want the school to have spirit, or fun or whatever, you actually have to contribute to the energy. The situation may be bleak–trust, I know from countless games trying to get people to cheer–but if none of us make the effort to change, then nothing ever will.
Complaining never fixed anything. So, here are some of my notes for all of you on your Wrecker pride.
Showing up and standing there is not enough; you have to bring energy. At a critical football playoff game, people were standing on the bleachers silent and shivering. Do not just sit silently on the bleachers because that is not support. You’re a fan, not a spectator. You should be cheering, not idling with the parents.
That being said, show up. Our school has about 2,000 people in it and besides the first Friday night lights of the year, we barely ever fill up that tiny student section.
Second, don’t shame the senior girls; in fact, embrace them. I applaud the senior girls for their spirit. They go all out: boas, pajamas, pink and pictures. In my experience, people, including teachers, have expressed a particular distaste for their traditions. People roll their eyes, thinking it’s cringe or obnoxious. But seriously, it is not harming anyone; it is just a bit of fun and expression of Wrecker pride that gets hate for no good reason. We should all take spirit week as seriously as they do.
Finally, we need a rival. You know what they say: nothing brings a team together like a common enemy. Now, each individual sport has rivals. Girls’ soccer has St. Joseph, boys’ lacrosse has Darien, etc. But we, as a school, do not collectively hate anyone. I guess our closest rival is Ridgefield, but really we need to come together and decide on one. While I propose Greenwich for personal reasons, it doesn’t really matter who; just pick one to direct our energy at.
I will say at the basketball games we have had pretty big crowds, but I honestly think it’s just because it is inside that it looks like we have more people. I just find it funny that the same kids who are going to Big Ten schools are scrolling through Instagram reels sitting down on the bleachers. Why wait till college to have pride in your school? Our school can be fun, but not if I’m the only one cheering.
