On the back of every Fanatics shirt, an illustration of President Tom Hudnut proclaims with a grin, “We like sportz and we don’t care who knowz.”

During Homecoming, Fanatics’ time to shine, the varsity squad dropped their six-point lead halfway through the third quarter and droves of people evacuated the stands. Even before we lost the lead, students focused on their phones more than the game, concerned about rumors of a canceled after-party.

The entire Fanatics section sat rooted to their seats, and could not be convinced to get back up again. Some of the Head Fanatics were nowhere to be found. By the time the game was over, the Wolverines’ stands were near empty and quiet. The parents outnumbered students in the bleachers.

We were clear: we don’t care who knows that we’re excited about our teams. In fact, we might not even be excited at all.

People have said the Head Fanatics aren’t doing enough to rally school spirit—that Fanatic Fest was underwhelming and that some sports like cross country and field hockey have not gotten the attention they deserve.

But can we really rely on the voices of five people to hype up an entire community?

These circumstances are not entirely the fault of the Head Fanatics and frankly, this display of apathy from everybody is disappointing.

Still, as the faces of the Fanatics club, the heads have gained a reputation as the people responsible for the lackluster spirit this year.  If we are going to continue to follow their lead in years to come and if they are going to label themselves as the “heads,” responsible for promoting games, then the student body should have more investment in the program from the start of the year.

Like our prefects and salutatorians, the choice for who should lead our school spirit should be left to a democratic vote. This way, the Head Fanatics will really have the trust and respect of the school. Having old heads arbitrarily select new leaders results in a male dominated program that does not encompass the entire sports community.

Even though the spirit should ultimately come from us, as members of the Fanatic program, students know better than anyone who they want to cheer behind in the stands, proudly sporting their red shirts.

Unsigned editorials represent the majority opinion of the seniors on the Editorial Board.