They just don’t do sports like this in the big city.
As a native San Franciscan and lifelong sports buff, I grew up immersed in big-ticket sporting events. But it really wasn’t until this past weekend that I realized just how much I had also missed out on.
Namely, the fervor of small-town sports.
On just my second day on the job, I was introduced to the phenomenon that is ‘Baler Nation, in all its glory.
As San Benito was in the process of taking Oak Grove’s best punch before answering with its championship-winning drive on Saturday night, I had to physically turn around and face the fans to make sure I believed what I was hearing.
The sea of red and white that the ‘Balers had worked up into a frenzy was quite a sight to behold.
The tremendous passion emanating from the packed grandstand at San Jose City College that night and on the streets of Hollister this week has been as refreshing as it has been eye-opening.
And judging on the turnout at Gilroy’s Girls Basketball Mustang Classic and how Live Oak’s throng took up residence at Independence earlier in the football playoffs, Hollister’s northern neighbors share the same dedication.
You see, in places like San Francisco, prep sports get lost in the shuffle.
Even while jockeying for the No. 1 pick in the NFL Draft for the second year in a row, the Forty-Niners dominate the headlines. That or the latest of the tired Barry Bonds saga that consumes the Giants.
The City is so pro-centric in terms of sports that even Stanford and Cal are almost afterthoughts.
You can imagine where that leaves teams like the Haybalers.
Even in my last stop on the sportswriting road, which involved plenty of prep coverage in Mountain View, I never felt the energy that bounds through the South Valley. St. Francis High fields CCS title-worthy teams year in and year out, but we all know private schools enjoy advantages that take some of the fun out of local sports.
So coming to Hollister feels like a breath of fresh air.
The sports fervor in this town is palpable and what a welcome feeling that is.
A sports mad community is my type of town.
Give me the ‘Balers and their fans any day.
