William Tennent’s students have all but turned fanning into an extracurricular sport.
By Mary Jane Souder
Five minutes before game time, they arrive, announcing their presence with chants of ‘Let’s go Tennent. Let’s go Tennent.’
It’s a Friday night in late September, and William Tennent is playing Council Rock South on the road. The Panther fans – going with a ‘white out’ theme on this night – travel with their team.
“In our minds, we’re the best fans in Suburban One,” senior Ryan DeLong said. “We come to every game.”
Fanning has become a sport of its own at Tennent this season, and what began as the brainchild of Nick Mackall has grown into something quite remarkable.
“He made people administrators of the group who he knew would take it seriously,” said junior Pat Kilkenny, one of the group’s administrators. “We took it to a completely other level.
“When I saw the group, I was like, ‘Yeah, it will be cool,’ but it blew up. We have kids that don’t even go to our school that are part of the group. They know we have an amazing fan section, and they just want to be part of it.”
It’s easy to understand why. This group has taken fanning to the next level, and everyone is invited to be part of the fun.
“We’re not going to turn you down,” DeLong said. “We’re open to everyone, and it’s an easy way to stay out of trouble. It’s just a great experience. It’s why I enjoy high school.
“If I could give any advice to anyone, it would be – come to sports events.”
“Some kids can’t wait for Friday night to get all drunk,” Kilkenny added. “We can’t wait to go to the game.
“We tell everyone, ‘Go to the game tonight, go to the game tonight.’ Our home games are the place to be. I’m getting chills just thinking about it. I don’t play a sport at Tennent. This is my sport.”
Each week, the fans go with a different theme. Their recent homecoming game against Bensalem was pink night for breast cancer awareness. The fans celebrated Christmas in September at their Upper Merion game, dressing in red and green and wearing Santa hats.
“I had a cast on my ankle and put a stocking on top of my cast,” said Kilkenny, who actually tore ligaments during a pregame tailgate. “It’s just a fun time. It gives you something to do.
“It’s not only that we’re fanning for our teams. It gives kids something to do so they’re not bored at home. We get everyone involved.”
Preparation for games begins early, and the theme for the week is posted on their Facebook home page – yes, these Panther fans take fanning so seriously they have their own Facebook page. They prepare for Friday night football by attending games during the week. They had ‘Suits Night’ at a recent volleyball game.
“I get excited for this on Monday,” DeLong said. “The field hockey games and all the other sports are just practice for this.”
The Panther fans had their most memorable night when – on Neon Night – Tennent upset Neshaminy on the gridiron.
“Honestly, I’m not going to lie – it was probably top three best nights of my high school career,” DeLong said. “Everyone just went nuts.
“The atmosphere is just awesome. It’s insane. We appreciate it so much. We don’t do it because we’re bored, we do it because we love it. It’s like a passion.”
Fanning is about more than just cheering on the Panthers. It’s about making new friends.
“I came into this year thinking, ‘I have a girlfriend, and I have a couple of friends,’” Kilkenny said. “As soon as I saw this fan group start, I knew I wanted to be a big part of it.
“I have an ample amount of friends now. All the freshmen who are a little nervous about getting involved with things – we tell them, ‘Come out to the games.’”
The fans tailgate in the lower parking lot prior to home football games.
“We have kids bring stuff like grillers, burgers, anything to help out,” Kilkenny said. “We just have a good time.”
“We don’t just tailgate before football games,” DeLong said. “We’ll tailgate after a field hockey game.”
DeLong and Kilkenny gave a shout out to several fans, including Ally Fenner and Dillon Cooper. Fenner is dating Tennent standout Jeff Ledford.
“Ally is probably one of our top five biggest fans, boys and girls,” DeLong said. “She comes to everything. I think even if Jeff wasn’t on the team, she’d still be here.
“Dillon is our cheer starter.”
Fanning, however, isn’t about individuals, it’s about the group and supporting their team, their cheerleaders, their marching band.
“It’s fun because the football players are getting pumped, and we can get pumped too,” DeLong said. “A football player last week mentioned, ‘There’s going to be a game on the field and a game in the stands.’”
“A couple of our starters say that our motivation towards them gets them going,” Kilkenny added. “It helps them not put their heads down, not get out of the game.
“It makes them want to win, and that’s what we’re here to do and have fun.”
According to athletic director Lou Pacchioli, Tennent’s fans are at the top of the class.
“As long as they’re good,” he said with a smile. “Man, I love it. I love it. We have the best kids around, beyond a doubt.”
The 'best kids' who have taken fanning to the next level.
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