The start of school is here and scouts are excited for the fall sports to be back in action. The scout community has been patiently awaiting the return of Friday night lights.   

Scout supporters have all bought coupons from the football players and put the 7 o’clock games in our calendars. 

What about the other 11 fall sports, do you know their schedule? Have you put their games into your calendars too?

 I am sure we have all seen what’s going on in the world of Lake Forest Varsity Football but it’s time to give other sports some attention too. 

The students, parents, and teachers in the Lake Forest community are notified through emails and social media posts about all sports games; yet the student support at football games in comparison to some other varsity sports, like tennis, golf, soccer, field hockey, and cross country is still too wide. It’s time for us scouts to show our appreciation for all of these athletes.

We all love football games for obvious reasons as it’s America’s most popular sport. The football games call for crowds with encouraging chants, themes, and energy. 

The football team is the biggest team there is at the high school. That being said, many students have friends on the field and are eager to pack the stands. 

“Having people at the games makes me feel like there is a huge sense of school pride and it gives butterflies not the kind that make you nervous, but encourages you,” said Senior and varsity football captain Matt Durburg. “It’s so cool seeing everyone while we run onto the field and I feel like every sport should be able to have that same feeling.”

This reaction is awesome and I would have to agree with Matt, all the sports should have that feeling!

Regardless of the excitement football games bring us, all athletes are working incredibly hard to represent our school their very best. Every sport practices every day for hours, athletes meet with their coaches to discuss game plans, and make sacrifices for their sport. “We practice everyday and our practices can be super demanding, so when we can pull out a win as a team in front of supporters it’s really an awesome feeling for everyone,” said Senior and varsity tennis captain Lainey O’neil. 

 These athletes are putting their all into their sport and they don’t get to experience the energy and support of hundreds of people in their community.

 I am sure these athletes would love having fans to showcase their talents to.

 “I would definitely love for more people to come to tennis matches because I think all the players get a special energy when there are spectators,” said O’neil. “When people show up it makes matches a lot more fun.”

If hundreds of students can show up for these football players, I believe we can get more Scouts to come out and cheer on our other Lake Forest High School athletic teams and get a stronger fan base for their games. 

Fall is such an important time for school spirit. Students come together, new and old, for the first time in months.  Sporting events are a great way to meet new people and get involved in the school and our community, especially for the whole new wave of freshman and other new students. 

“I think sports games are a great experience for kids to go to and meet new people, especially for the underclassmen.” said Senior and Scout Nation leader Henrik Goldsberry. 

During freshman year, my favorite way to get to know more people was coming to sports games and being a part of sports myself. 

“I like how you get to meet new people and get out of the house while getting to support your team. I didn’t go to a lot of games when I was a freshman and regret it because I felt like I was missing out and now I think going to them is great,” said Goldsberry.

The days are becoming shorter and getting back to the academic grind wears all of us down. For myself, getting outside and enjoying the sunshine keeps my energy up. Fall sports are a great opportunity to do this. Let’s take advantage of the energy and bring it to the sports games! 

So, how are we going to do it?

I have a few ideas. 

The first being to have themes for games other than football. Another is to have the concession stands running during all home games. The concessions don’t need to be elaborate, but have basic afterschool snacks available; popcorn, chips, nachos, candy, cookies, drinks, etc.  Also, maybe there can be a prize each game for spirit and for the student that comes to the most sports games! 

Finally, I know that for varsity football and basketball, the two sports that get the most attention, there are volunteer opportunities for students to film, work the concession stands, sell tickets, etc. If students are able to support their peers while getting hours for volunteering, I can’t see why more students wouldn’t come.

When asking Senior and Scout Nation social media chair Rylan Stark about the lack of support for other sports games she said,  “Last year Alexa Cote and I submitted a grant and presented in front of the boosters to get posters and put-in cups to put outside of the tennis courts, baseball fields, and pool,” said Stark. “Also, being really present on social media and finding as big of an audience as we can to post about when games help get people to come to them. I think having themes and free food are a great way to bring more students to come; last year we got food catered to a wrestling match which brought 50 people.”

It’s time to bring all sports under the spotlight!