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Battle of the Fans: Blue Crew Legacy

February 18, 2012

PETOSKEY -- Directly across the gym from the Petoskey student cheering section Friday, a toddler played on the first row of bleachers.

He wasn’t paying much attention to the Northmen’s boys basketball game against West Branch Ogemaw Heights. But he was wearing a blue T-shirt that read “Future Blue Crew” -- guaranteeing he will be soon enough. 

At Petoskey High, a Class A school in a town where families have lived for generations, kids grow up aspiring not just to be the athletes playing for championships -- but also the Blue Crew members cheering them on.

While the other cheering section finalists in this season’s MHSAA “Battle of the Fans” contest were officially organized, for the most part, over the last year or two, Petoskey’s Blue Crew is nearing a decade as a constant at its school’s athletic events -- and a source of community pride. 

“It’s such a legacy. Eighth grade, you’re looking forward to to being even involved in the Blue Crew, ... and now that we’re all seniors, everyone is listening to us, and we just want our teams to do well,” Petoskey senior Hayley Fettig said. “That’s a big part of it. We’re here to support our teams and cheer for our teams, and be a team ourselves.”

Petoskey was the fifth and final stop on the Battle of the Fans tour to find Michigan’s top student cheering section. Over the last five weeks, MHSAA staff and members of its Student Advisory Council also visited Frankenmuth, Reese, Grand Rapids Christian and Rockford. MHSAA-produced videos of all five finalists have been posted on the MHSAAsports YouTube page. Online voting will take place Monday-Thursday on the MHSAA Facebook page (you must “like” our page to vote). The winner will be announced Friday.

 

For most of its basketball history, Petoskey played in its old Central Gymnasium, an arena straight from the movie “Hoosiers” which seats about 1,500 fans and turned into a giant tunnel of cheers and shouts for every home game. But late in the fall of 2002, the newly-built high school opened a much larger gym that not only holds more fans, but also is more cavernous.

 

A bigger room meant a need for bigger spirit. And that sparked the Blue Crew, the brain child of members of the student council, some of whose names are still thrown around the halls to this day -- although the current seniors were in elementary school when it all began. 

About 140 students piled into a “whited out” Blue Crew on Friday, plus 60 more in the jazz band that plays every home game and easily could be confused for one at the college level. To the left of the Crew sat about 50 more students not yet in high school. All sub-high school students are known as “Future Blue Crew,” while teachers are “Old-School Blue Crew.” 

The Blue Crew often stands larger than it did Friday -- but on this night, the junior varsity and freshman basketball teams were playing simultaneously at other sites, and the hockey team was on the road. Petoskey’s Big North Conference foes are spread throughout the northern third of the Lower Peninsula, but the Blue Crew is known for making hours-long trips and constant support. 

Members of the student council still play a big part. Those 12 students, plus 10 more take a one-hour leadership class taught by former girls varsity coach Matt Tamm. His classroom is a hall of memories itself, with photos of teams going back decades. Taking up center spot on a main wall is the original Blue Crew banner including its mission and three directives for generations to come.

“When I was younger, the older kids always told us, ‘You have to watch how we do this so when you’re older, you can do it how we did it,’ senior Brad Berkau said.

“You begin to learn when you’re younger what we do and how to go about cheering the right away. Not just boasting about our team, but not putting down the other ones too,” senior Nick Godfrey added.  

That “right way” includes refusing to cheer negatively. Petoskey athletic director Gary Hice said it’s been four or five years since he’s had to tell the Crew that one of its cheers was crossing the line. Counselor Karen Starkey, who helps by coordinating parents to cheer with the students, said she hasn’t seen the Blue Crew respond to an opposing cheering section’s negative chant in at least two years.

Instead, the Crew pours its energy into more memorable ventures.

Starkey was diagnosed with breast cancer in January 2011, and her first chemotherapy treatment was on a game night. 

She showed up in white, anticipating a white out. Instead, she found the entire Blue Crew in pink -- before receiving a group hug from the 200 or so students there supporting her as well. 

“Those are the things these guys just jump out and do,” Starkey said. “It’s so not necessary, but it was just so cool.”

PHOTOS courtesy of Larry Tracy and CMA Action Photography.

Winter Finals TV Announced

February 11, 2015

By John Johnson
MHSAA communications director

Five weekends of coverage of MHSAA Winter Championships will be featured beginning next week on the MHSAA.tv website.

The schedule begins Feb. 20-21 in Marquette with live video streaming from the Upper Peninsula Swimming and Diving Championships, and concludes on March 28 with live coverage of postgame awards and press conferences plus on-court halftime activities at the Boys Basketball Finals.  

Here’s the complete schedule:

  • Feb. 20-21 – Upper Peninsula Swimming & Diving Finals - Marquette
  • Feb. 27-28 – Team Dual Wrestling Quarterfinals, Semifinals and Finals – Battle Creek
  • March 5-7 – Individual Wrestling Finals – Auburn Hills
  • March 6-7 – Girls Competitive Cheer Finals – Grand Rapids
  • March 12-14 – Ice Hockey Semifinals and Finals – Plymouth
  • March 13-14 – Girls Gymnastics Finals – Rockford
  • March 14 – Lower Peninsula Boys Swimming & Diving Finals – Holland, Rochester, Ypsilanti
  • March 19-20 – Girls Basketball Semifinals and Postgame Press Conferences – East Lansing
  • March 20 – Postgame Awards and Press Conferences; Halftime Shooter’s Challenges; Women In Sports Leadership Award and Miss Basketball Award presentations at Girls Basketball Finals – East Lansing
  • March 26-27 – Boys Basketball Semifinals and Postgame Press Conferences – East Lansing
  • March 28 – Postgame Awards and Press Conferences; Halftime Shooter’s Challenges; Scholar-Athlete Award, Charles E. Forsythe Award and Mr. Basketball Award presentations at Boys Basketball Finals – East Lansing

All game coverage is live on MHSAA.tv on a subscription basis. All events become available for free On-Demand viewing 72 hours after the conclusion of each game. All of the awards, press conferences and on-court presentations at the Basketball Finals will be live and available at no charge. Video subscriptions run $9.95 for a Day Pass and $14.95 for a Month Pass. The purchase of a Month Pass during the Team Wrestling Finals, for example, would allow viewing through the Boys Basketball Semifinals.

It’s also another busy week for School Broadcast Program members, which will have cameras at more than 40 sporting events.

The School Broadcast Program gives members an opportunity to showcase excellence in their schools by creating video programming of athletic and non-athletic events, with students gaining skills in announcing, camera operation, directing/producing and graphics. The program also gives schools the opportunity to raise money through advertising and viewing subscriptions.

Here’s the schedule of School Broadcast Program members planning to cover varsity competition over the next week for broadcast at MHSAA.tv. The following events will have live streaming video unless otherwise indicated:

Wednesday, February 11
Boys Basketball – Central Lake at Onaway, 7 p.m.
Wrestling – Division 2 District Semifinal, Wayland vs. Plainwell, 6 p.m.
Wrestling – Division 2 District Final, Wayland/Plainwell vs. Byron Center, 7 p.m.

Thursday, February 12
Girls Basketball – Atlanta at AuGres-Sims, 6 p.m.
Girls Basketball – Lincoln Alcona at Hillman, 7 p.m.
Boys Basketball – Dryden at Montrose, 7 p.m.
Girls Basketball – Whittemore-Prescott at Rogers City, 7 p.m. (VOD)

Friday, February 13
Ice Hockey – Green Bay (WI) Notre Dame vs. Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook-Kingswood @ MIHL Showcase, 6 p.m.
Boys Basketball – Belding at Comstock Park, 6 p.m.
Girls Basketball – Flint Southwestern at Davison, 6 p.m.
Boys Basketball – Holt at East Lansing, 6 p.m. (VOD)
Boys Basketball – DeWitt at Haslett, 6 p.m. (HD)
Boys Basketball – Engadine at Newberry, 6 p.m.
Girls Basketball – Three Rivers at Plainwell, 6 p.m.
Boys Basketball – Edwardsburg at Dowagiac, 7 p.m.
Girls Basketball – Rogers City at Posen, 7 p.m.
Boys Basketball – Three Rivers at Plainwell, 7:15 p.m.
Girls Basketball – Belding at Comstock Park, 7:30 p.m.
Boys Basketball – Flint Southwestern at Davison, 7:30 p.m.
Girls Basketball – Holt at East Lansing, 7:30 p.m. (VOD)
Girls Basketball – DeWitt at Haslett, 7:30 p.m. (HD)

Saturday, February 14
Ice Hockey – Rochester vs. Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook-Kingswood @ MIHL Showcase, 4:40 p.m.

Monday, February 16
Girls Basketball – Houghton at Calumet, 7 p.m.
Girls Basketball – AuGres-Sims at Posen, 7 p.m.

Tuesday, February 17
Boys Basketball – L’Anse at Calumet, 7 p.m.
Ice Hockey – Houghton at Calumet, 7 p.m.
Boys Basketball – Grand Rapids Covenant Christian at Comstock Park, 7 p.m.
Girls Basketball – Ann Arbor Huron at Haslett, 7 p.m. (HD)
Boys Basketball – Mio at Rogers City, 7 p.m. (VOD)
Boys Basketball – Posen at AuGres-Sims, 7:15 p.m.
Girls Basketball – Coloma at Plainwell, 7:15 p.m.

Live stats of select basketball games also are available on MHSAA.tv. Check out the MHSAA.tv website on game night to see which schools are streaming live stats, or stop by to view stats following games on an On-Demand basis. A Day Pass to view live stats is $1.95.

All sporting events – live or delayed – are available on MHSAA.tv on a subscription basis for their first 72 hours online. A portion of each subscription is returned to the school originating the broadcast. Video subscriptions run $9.95 for a Day Pass and $14.95 for a Month Pass. Some schools also are offering Annual Passes at a discounted rate. All sporting events become available for free On-Demand viewing three days after they have been posted. 

To view all of the recent School Broadcast Program productions, go to MHSAA.tv, click On-Demand on the nav bar of the left side of the page, and on the Filters tab at the top of next page, click on All States and then select Michigan. 

Also available below is an SBP highlights package from the past week, including a 53-50 victory by Plainwell over Mattawan in a boys basketball contest, plus a 53-36 win for Calumet vs. Hancock in girls basketball.

Schools interested in becoming a part of the School Broadcast Program should contact John Johnson at the MHSAA Office.