Warren County’s student supporters establish a…
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In fact, it could be argued one would have to look all the way back into the 1970’s to find some kind of comparison to what the FRBs brought back to Pioneer pride.
For those of you which missed out on some great basketball this season, let’s try to explain who the Front Row Bro’s are. What started out to be a small group of 20-30 students that wanted to help show their support for the basketball teams turned into a group of 200 plus kids showing up at each game standing and cheering on the Pioneers.
Jonathan Hutton, a senior at WCHS, took an idea which had its foundations with last year’s “Bleacher Creatures” to the next level when he and Jonathan Myers — along with several friends — approached athletic director Andy Jacobs with a fresh idea to help boost sprit and try to get more kids involved in the support of the basketball program.
Hutton came up with the slogan “Front Row Bro’s” and Myers designed the shirt and submitted it to Jacobs for his approval of the idea.
Hutton and Myers handed out the shirts to a few of the seniors to wear to the basketball games, and the seed was planted for what turned out to be a wealth of fan-demonium.
“We started talking it up a lot in the hallways and classes, we just wanted to get some electricity going at the games,” Hutton said. “The first game we had 20 or so kids involved, and it just kind of snowballed from there.”
The Front Row Bros — along with the fast paced, run-and-gun style offense of the Pioneers — had Charlie Dalton Gym filled with electricity. The basketball team and the fans fed off each other all year long, helping put pressure not only on the opposing teams, but also on game officials.
“We wanted to make it intimidating for other teams to come in here and play,” Hutton said. “When you walked in the door we wanted other teams to know they were going to get heckled.
“We even took that spirit on the road and intimidated some teams on their own court. We tried to get to some teams more than others, like Cookeville and Blackman, and I think we even got to the refs a few times.”
“Everybody involved did a great job, and before we knew it we had 200 or more kids wanting to show their school spirit at every game,” Hutton said. “It was just so much fun for all of us and hopefully it is just the beginning of a new era in school pride at Warren County High School.”
When you see 200 kids standing the entire game shouting at the opposing team on every play, even older fans can’t help but want to be a part of it.
“I have to give Hutton all the credit,” said Jacobs. “He took on a big challenge and created something here we all want to be involved in.
“I told him I would help him in any way I could. He organized everything from having tailgate parties before the game to getting three bus loads of kids together for the regional game in Murfreesboro.”
For those of you who didn’t make the trip to Murfreesboro, 162 students traveled to support the Pioneer basketball team in the regional tournament. It was a great sight to see as the kids started to make their way down the aisles and fill the seats.
“Hutton came into my office and told me he could get 160 kids and asked if we could supply the busses to get everybody to Murfreesboro,” Jacobs said. “It was a great feeling to see that kind of support from the student body.
While the FRBs had fun all year, Jacobs also noted that they did so tastefully, never causing any incidents or displaying any overly unruly behavior.
“We never had one problem with these kids all year, and I just want to thank them all for their support and getting some enthusiasm back into the gym,” he said.
Every team has a sixth man, and there is no doubt who the sixth man was this year for the Pioneers.
“The kids kept the team pumped up through the whole game. It was great to have that kind of support from the student body, they kept me fired up all season,” said Pioneer coach Doug Kiel. “The Front Row Bros were our sixth man; they played pressure defense on the opposing teams with their intimidating chants all year. They helped us take our game up a notch when we had to.”
Word quickly spread throughout the district about the Front Row Bro’s, spreading even into cyberspace on the popular state high school sports Web site coachT.com.
By the season’s end, it seemed everybody wanted to be a part of this growing group.
“The girls knew the Front Row Bros would be there cheering them on and it made a difference in the way we played, they just kept everybody going,” said Lady Pioneer head coach Ann Eades. “Then after our season was over the girls got involved in the spirit of things. I could look up at the student section and see the girls basketball team in the mix of things with the Front Row Bro’s and it was just great to see everybody getting involved with the school sprit.”
This all started with an idea which was turned into reality. Hutton’s school sprit spread throughout the high school, and has brought the whole school closer together.
But the end of the basketball seasons will not bring the end to that spirit of support.
“We still have the spring sports and we want to carry this into baseball and softball season,” Hutton said. “I think fan support can help make a difference, especially in close games, and we are going to be there this spring.”