Carlmont football players work hard to improve their skills and use the energy from the crowd as motivation, despite facing criticism from students on campus during the season.
The football games get really loud, and the students enthusiastically cheer from the stands. Hundreds of supporters in the student section dress according to the theme of the game, cheering for their team. However, the team also faces judgment, students occasionally talk about them and their season negatively at school.
“As an athlete, it’s kind of hard to take criticism from somebody who doesn’t play the sport,” said Zander Navarrete, a sophomore on the varsity football team.
Students pay ten dollars to watch the Carlmont football games, which, according to Navarrete, puts pressure on the team, but it is a pressure that they enjoy and that drives them to play well.
There are also other performing groups at the games, and different themes and events promote the social aspect of the football games and encourage support for the team. The Carlmont pep band plays through three-quarters of the game, and whenever the team scores, they play the Carlmont Fight Song. The cheer squad, the dance team, and the drumline also perform at halftime and throughout the game, and it elevates the energy of the supporters.
According to JV player and Carlmont sophomore Jacob Ma, the team is not affected too much by the amount of people in the stands. They are more focused on the game, and they support and cheer each other on, but the team has been judged by others on campus.
Carlos Mejia, a junior on the varsity team, thinks the negative comments directed toward the football players don’t help them much because it’s negative overall and doesn’t give the players a place to start.
“It motivates us and demotivates us. We want people to tell us what we did wrong instead of just saying we played poorly,” Mejia said.
The team has had a rough start to their season, and it has started changing students’ views on the game and their expectations.
“If they already expect low from us, and we produce low, it’s not a surprise. But when we do well, it’s much more of a surprise than if they were expecting us to do well,” said Derek Chang, a JV football player and Carlmont sophomore.
According to Chang, Carlmont students have developed views on the football team because of the team’s previous seasons.
“In the past years, JV football and varsity football haven’t done the best, and people always assume that Carlmont football is not a good team. Students always think that we suck,” Chang said.
According to Navarrete, the football team continues to work hard at practice, and they are trying to get as close to perfection as possible. They are like a family, and they try to pick each other up and support each other to continue working towards their goals.
“The support means everything. If you don’t have anybody there to support you, the only person you’re playing for is yourself, but if you have someone behind you, it creates a sense of reliance where you’re doing this for your school,” Navarrete said.
