Friday night lights are a staple of the high school experience but each school is a little different. Whether it be with props, snacks, signs or cheers the student sections of North County Schools all support their home teams with their unique student sections.
Each school has their own student section, filled with Eagles, Greyhounds and Bearcats alike, all supporting their varsity football teams but what makes the best student section?
TEMPLETON HIGH SCHOOL SEPT. 27, 2024
Templeton High School, home of the Eagles, host their varsity homes games at 7pm which is the main event most attenders are looking forward to. While people are enjoying the game, they are able to browse at their selling section outside the field. Available within that area is the busy snack bar and their Templeton school spirit merchandise.
After attending the Templeton home game versus Atascadero on Friday Sept 27, we learned what made a Templeton football game such a thrilling experience for students.
“The vibe here is insane. When you get into the heat of it, and it’s like the fourth quarter, everyone here is on a high (high of excitement) and there’s no one leaving. It’s just a good time,” Templeton senior Grant Hanson said.
Although Templeton lost their home game against Atascadero 7-10, the crowd still had an exciting night indulging in social hours and following along the theme, “Black-Out,” where all the students wore black clothing in support of the football team.
ATASCADERO HIGH SCHOOL SEPT. 20, 2024
The home of the Greyhounds, Atascadero High School presents an area for bleachers that is big and available for the whole school, including friends and family. Similar to Templeton and Paso Robles, they provide a snack bar that gets busier as the game goes on.
“Our ASB loves showcasing the excitement of our student sections! We’re all about hyping up the themes and getting everyone involved. We also post flyers around campus so students can easily see what the theme is for each game.”
Atascadero Melisilei Tonga
To support and encourage students and staff to attend their home football games, Templeton and Paso ASB creates posters with dates, times, and themes for their events to involve their students and keep them up to date.
“As the manager of our school’s Instagram, our ASB loves showcasing the excitement of our student sections! We’re all about hyping up the themes and getting everyone involved. We also post flyers around campus so students can easily see what the theme is for each game,” Templeton junior Melisilei Tonga said.
PASO ROBLES HIGH SCHOOL SEPT. 27, 2024
Paso Robles High School hosted Buchanan Bears on Sept. 27, 2024. The school’s Crimson Crew leadership committee picks home game themes and advertises them on social media to spread word of the upcoming home games.
“I try to participate as much as I can while I’m sitting in the student section. The whole point of sitting there is to cheer and have fun so I stand up or cheer,” Paso High senior Bella Rendon said.
When you arrive, the snack bar is open at every home game, “that is run by parents and coaches. There are also sometimes vendors selling different food or spirit items. Sometimes even other student athletes sell things to raise money for their own team!” Rendon said.
Both Atascadero and Paso Robles’s cheer programs collaborate on choreography and the half time show because of the traditional greyhound-bearcat rivalry.
After attending all three high schools home football games, the atmosphere of the student sections leave a special and positive experience with attendees. The involvement, advertisement, and engagement of students have encouraged me to be more involved in my school. From my experience at these games, I saw how well other schools promoted and advertised their student sections. I came to realize there can always be more school spirit. As Bearcats, we can do more to promote our merch, our snack bar, and our student section to increase the population of football spectators.
