Dejecting blow to the Robinson Pep-Rally

Walking outside by the clocktower after school, I looked at one of the nearby brick benches; there sat the senior men's drill team. It wasn't a drill team full of spirit, innuendos or bringing light into a rather cold, hostile, environment of the haughty and egocentric (known as high school)...nope. Not at all.

It was a collective expression of long faces: dejection, frustration, aggravation, etc. could be only a handful of the adjectives to describe it. If the Homecoming spirits had not already been sunk due to ACT's, fire hazard locker bay decorations, or a couple painfully unfunny Pep-Rally events attempting to be hysterical, it had to have been this. It's the reason why people are dubbing this Homecoming as "the worst Pep-Rally [and or] Homecoming ever."


And it's not all that ignorant to say either, but if one's complaining that the seniors deserve to win everything, then that's a different story. It's the sorrowful attempt to purge the pep-rally into a squeaky clean, rated "PG"(to poorly appeal to teenagers), function of the pep-rally due to fear of "minor offenses". By 'minor', that would most certainly mean that one lone parent who was remarkably appalled.

One may thank the Class of 2009 for destroying the tradition of the senior men's drill team, or so it's been rumored. Since then, the students have had to cope with a pep rally that seems very subordinate to its proceeders. Most recently, the Class of 2011 senior men's drill team was given the option to perform at the 2010 Powder Puff Championship as the "halftime show". From what I saw, it was, by far, the least explicit or risque drill team performance ever. In fact, the coordination and craftiness of the performance overshadowed any remote innuendos to be observed.

Agreements are made, and rules are set; but I could understand some lobbying for the event to be at Homecoming, especially given a 'cleaner' performance. Sadly, it didn't work out, but it wasn't to say the drill team made no impact on the event...they did.

The signs stating they were the "Senior Men's ULTRA VARSITY drill team" was comical and grasped attention. But what was incredible was the fact the drill team was able to singlehandedly make the Smith Field House mutually chant "Let us dance!" Part of it could be expected given the fact the senior class started the chant, and every grade (except the juniors) look up to the seniors in that type of aspect.

The chants though would not fade off until the the senior-class principal, Mrs. Duncan urged the drill team to stop, and principal, Mr. Dan Meier had to order them to stop by saying "enough" strictly in their faces. They eyeballed Mr. Hazard, and he began trying to get the arena psyched up for...not the drill team...BUT...the human waffle! Ouch, right? Immediately he was met with some of the most menacing jeers and hisses, creating the quintessential booing seen on TV.

Felt bad, but I think Mr. Hazard handled it well.

Subsequently, the drill team left out, but not without cheers and praise from the students, football players, security, SGA, homecoming court, not the teachers, and the fall athletes. I felt though the spirit faded off during then, but whose to blame. A shamefully awful pep rally...as anticipated, expected and one that happened. It was just as I predicted; dejecting.