Anthony Calhoun with WISH-TV awards the AC Zone Banner to the best students section in Central Indiana. Many students hope that it will find a new home in the jungle with North Central’s Panthers this fall.
Calhoun started this competition in fall of 2015. Since then, it has continued to raise the intensity and spirits of student sections throughout Central Indiana.
Student sections have always been one of the best places for students to socialize. This competition brings more participation and another level of school spirit to each school.
“The student section knows they have to show up and show out and they’ve done nothing short of that. They know every chant and roar counts,” student section leader Landon Campbell said.
Each week, Calhoun goes to a few schools and makes “AC’s Top 8” list of students sections. At the end of the season, two finalists get chosen and then one winner that gets to claim the banner.
Previously, our student section has struggled with showing spirit and gaining awareness from Calhoun. In the 2023 season, we didn’t make it in AC’s Top 8 at all. Last year, we made it to that list three different times. So far this year we’ve made it to AC’s Top 8 three times in six weeks.
This year you can really see the school spirit and energy of all the students come together. This season kicked off with the first win since Oct. 6, 2021 and we placed in AC’s Top 8 for the first week.
The following week, Calhoun made a visit to our school for a tailgate. This tailgate was planned in just a few days and the turnout was tremendous.
“You think they’ve got a great student section? You better believe it,” Calhoun said.
“When Channel 8 came, the overwhelming support gave us a better shot at winning the banner,” student section leader Charlie Barker said.
As the season has continued, the energy of our students has persisted through wins and losses. To continue the fight for the banner panthers must be present and be proud.
“freshmen could do a better job of being as loud as the rest of the student section,” Campbell said.
“To really increase our chances at winning, we need better attendance at away games,” Barker said.
Seniors have been especially excited and truly bringing the energy to this year’s student section. Many of them have gone through their time at North Central without ever believing they would see a win.
“Seniors have shown loyalty and faith for our team even in our toughest games. It has felt great to break through the narrative and to bring more attention to our school’s spirit. We are working hard to keep our deserved placement on the leaderboard,” Koschnick said.
“It’s a really cool thing to see our school’s spirit being recognized,” Barker said.
