The varsity football boys were not the only sports team excited to be back on our football field. Our Varsity and JV cheer teams were thrilled when they got the news they were allowed back on the field for the first time since 2019. I got the opportunity to speak with the two out of the three Varsity cheer captains Isabella Bergmann and Kendyl McCain (HHS Seniors) in an interview about this new season for cheer and what it means to them and the team. In addition, Elizabeth Walters (HHS Junior Cheerleader) who helped start the idea of Hawk Nests with our TouchDown Club (Group of Football Moms). The Hawk Nests have a purpose of creating a family dynamic between the spirit and the football teams. 

Last year, cheer’s contact with boys was very limited and the girls were hardly allowed to go to any of the games due to the rules and regulations of social distancing. This year, we have both cheer and poms teams on our fields supporting the boys and getting the crowd ready for the game. I asked the cheer captains their feelings on this new beginning and Kendyl stated, “It feels amazing, there are only 6 of us girls until now who have been to a normal football game with a crowd, and we are so happy that everyone gets to share the experience with us!” At our second game, the cheerleaders showed up to the game matching the theme (neon) with face paint and feather boas. Even if some of these girls have never experienced the true intensity of a home football game, they showed up with the right attitude. 

Not only has cheer been excited to get back on the field, we have a new tradition going on between the teams. Elizabeth (Liz) Walters, an HHS Junior on varsity cheer, created the idea of a Hawk Nest. The Hawk Nests are small groups that contain Cheerleaders, Poms and Football players from all levels. Their sole purpose is to create a strong connection between the spirit teams and the players. In an interview with Liz I asked what made her want to start the Hawk Nests and she stated, “I wanted to start the Hawk Nests, because there was never really a connection between the spirit teams and the football players. In addition, over the summer seeing other schools having a connection between the teams it made me feel like we were not supporting the football team to the fullest of our potential.” Personally,  I think that this is a super important dynamic for any team to have, in hopes that it continues for many years to come. 

Furthermore, before every football game there is an organized gift from the spirit squads to the boys as a form of good luck. These include positive notes and a bus ride snack. Not only this, but these girls have worked hard to decorate our school athletic hallways with decor not only for the football boys but for every fall sport so far like volleyball. This decor includes, cut out paper helmets for the football teams with their name and jersey number on the paper. These got posted in the athletic hallway on the way to the boy’s locker room.  A strong bond within a team is super important, the fact that these teams are willing to create a stronger bond together makes Horizon have a better community for everyone.