It doesn’t matter if the team is winning or losing, San Benito
County’s dedicated football fans never miss an opportunity to see
the Haybalers perform on Friday nights under the bright lights of
Andy Hardin Field.
Hollister – It doesn’t matter if the team is winning or losing, San Benito County’s dedicated football fans never miss an opportunity to see the Haybalers perform on Friday nights under the bright lights of Andy Hardin Field.
Haybaler football is a way of life for many SBC residents.
“I’ll always be a Haybaler and my kids will always be Haybalers,” former ‘Balers football coach Mike Robustelli said Friday. Robustelli coached the team from 1970 to 1979, and to this day he makes every game he possibly can.
“Even when we travel, our crowd is bigger than the home team’s,” he said.
For fans, Friday games are a celebration of Hollister’s traditions.
“There’s a real sense of history,” said San Benito County Sheriff Curtis Hill, a long-time ‘Baler fan. “I like the fact that they’ve kept the name ‘Haybalers,’ especially since Gilroy dropped its (traditional) name.”
Formerly known as the Prunepickers, the Gilroy Mustangs can’t compete with the Haybalers when it comes to fans or mascots, Hill said.
One reason Friday night games attract so many Haybaler football fans is because nearly everyone in Hollister has a link to San Benito High School, said Randy Logue, who coaches the freshman and junior varsity squads and is also chairman of the Physical Education Department.
“We’re not in Texas, but it’s the biggest show in town on a Friday night,” Logue said. “There are so many people who live in Hollister who graduated from San Benito and feel that sense of connection, that sense of community.”
Most ‘Baler football fans are content to sit, watch and cheer on their team from the stands. But only a select few are given the honor of being a part of the Haybaler chain gang.
For newcomers to football, the chain gang is composed of three people: two hold opposite ends of the 10-yard first down markers, while a third marks the line of scrimmage. These coveted posts are so important to ‘Baler fans that Logue said he wouldn’t be surprised if they were passed down through the generations via people’s dying testaments or wills.
Long ago, when Logue first came to San Benito High, he attempted to start a chain gang of his own for a scrimmage game, but was quickly reprimanded by Bob Mattson, the head football coach at the time.
“Mattson came up to me and said ‘somebody’s got to die before they get on the chain gang here,'” Logue said. “I think he was half joking, but half serious at the same time.”
Although ‘Baler fans focus their attention on the field, the games are also a social event.
“You’re not only a fan, you’re friends and family,” said Kraig Klauer, father of Haybaler quarterback Karson Klauer. “No matter who they play, you have to root for the ‘Balers.”
Brett Rowland covers education for the Free Lance. He can be reached at 831-637-5566 ext. 330 or br******@fr***********.com
