SoCal Student Section of the Week for Week 4: Tesoro Titan Army

Off Student Section Buzz,

I doubt anyone knows this, but I began the student section trail in 2015.

At the time the Orange County Register, who I currently work for as a freelance writer, had Student Section Rankings for basketball only. 

I had just joined OC Sidelines as a weekly columnist and decided to join in on the Student Section craze, which wasn’t that big at the time.

We got the basketball student section rankings in and when football season came around later in the year, I came with the idea for Student Section of the Week.

OC Sidelines, now called SoCal Sidelines, gave me the ok and we named the Tesoro Titan Army the 2015 Week Zero Student Section of the Week.

This led on to four years of student section madness, which including the beginning of this website and now yours truly is in charge of everything student section in Orange County.

And it all started with the Tesoro Titan Army.

We’ll get back to the Titan Army in a bit, but let’s meet the SoCal Student Section of the week finalist for Week 4;

The Chaparral Fanatics of Temecula had been wondering when they would get the final voting poll. Well, wait no more!

The Pumas hosted Santiago of Corona in what might be their toughest non-league opponent.

The Fanatics always show up for their Pumas, but more so this week as Chaparral took the 38-24 victory.

The Fanatics just keeping rocking in a sea of green!

For the first time this season, a student section repped their region for a second time.

After finishing in third place last week, the Carlsbad Loud Crown came back to rep for San Diego after they watched their Lancers defeated San Marcos 28-7 in a big Avocado League matchup.

The Loud Crowd did their usual, rocking the purple and going crazy with the streamers and more so after the game.

Another tough third place finish, but the Loud Crowd looks like favorite to repeat as San Diego Football Student Section of the year.

I should also point out that the last year SoCal Sidelines did the student section rankings, the Loud Crowd won as well, so technically, they’re looking for a three-peat.

Meanwhile in Los Angeles, Valencia hosted Loyola of Los Angeles and maybe the Vikings needed a power move to get themselves a boost.

Perhaps their student section, Vikings Nation would deliver that for them…in Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos.

Yeah, this student section stuff is officially a craze.

Bezo took the time to say hello to Vikings Nation and take a photo with key members of the Nation.

Don’t let that fool you. Vikings Nation earned the finalist spot by showing up and rocking the stands despite a tough 29-14 defeat to the Cubs.

If they can show off that student section every week, they may battle for the LA title in December.

And Vikings Nation came very close to taking the SoCal Weekly title, but by just three percent of the votes which were close to 2000 votes this week, they fell short to an Army.

The Titan Army of Rancho Santa Margarita arrived for “The Battle of the Bell” as the Titans took on rival San Juan Hills of San Juan Capistrano. 

Not only did they show up for the big game, but they also showed up in support of Tesoro coach Matt Poston, who is on medical leave and at home resting after open heart surgery.

Poston must have been proud of his team and of that student section as not only did the Titan Army rocked the stands, but Tesoro took the Bell in a 20-3 victory over the Stallions.

And after the votes came in, the Tesoro Titan Army came away with a close one to take the SoCal Student Section of the Week for Week 4.

Ring that bell one more time Army!

We spoke with ASB Spirit Commissioner and Tesoro student Clayton Beach, and Tesoro Titan Army members Savannah Looft, and Matthew Berry on what it took to be the best of the best for Week 4.

You guys are the Week Three So Cal Student Section of the week, beating out Valencia Vikings Nation, Carlsbad Loud Crowd and Chaparral Fanatics. What did it take to stand out as one of the best in Southern California?

Beach: Honestly, it took a lot to reach this goal of ours to be a ranked student section in Southern California. As spirit commissioner I take pride in what I do for my school and our ASB would do anything for our Student Body to be happy. We have incorporated music and Co2 cannons in our mix for football games and the combination of the two are a huge hit. Our school has really come together to help our football team win. I am proud of the Titan Army!

Looft: Our players were hyped for the game, so we knew that we had to beat San Juan on the field and in the stands.  Our ASB played music throughout the game, which had all students engaged and wanting to cheer louder to help our football team take home the win.

Berry: It took a lot. A ton of people were in the parking lot tailgating and waiting for the gates to open at 4:15 p.m. when I got there. When the game started, we had to take the energy through the roof, and we did just that.

 

What is your most memorable game you have ever attended as a member of the student section?

Beach: My most memorable game has 100% been this past week against San Juan. It took many meetings and sacrifices to do what our asb did at that football game. We had to really push for Co2 and speakers and after a long rivalry week it was amazing to take home the win. There was so much hype building up to Friday night’s game and we are so glad the Titans brought home the bell.

Looft: My most memorable game has been this past week against San Juan Hills. The rivalry between the two schools and the atmosphere at the game made me feel like we came together as one school for one goal, to win. To top it off, we got to take home the bell! 

Berry: I have to say this last Friday against San Juan Hills. They were favored in both the student section and the actual game, and we showed them up in both. The Titan Army went absolutely nuts and it was super super fun to be apart of.

 

Favorite theme?

Beach: My first favorite theme is American out, because everyone dresses up for American out. It is an easy theme to bring everyone together and it looks so sick when there’s a sea of american flags in the student section. My second favorite theme is camo out against San Clemente because that’s our Socks for Heros night and we get to support our troops while having a blast.

Looft: My favorite theme was the red out.  Our student section matched our team with wearing all red. It was awesome to see people putting red color in their hair, red paint on their faces, and red outfits head to toe. Our school came together as one. 

Berry: Red out or Black out. These are easy to do and it looks so cool. America outs are fun too, however the red out is always awesome because we’ve done it against San Juan the last two years. The San Juan games are some of our biggest and most exciting games to attend. America outs are always a blast because who doesn’t love showing support for our troops and country? Our school colors are also red, white, and blue and it fits in with our image nicely. 

Favorite chant?

Beach: Favorite chant is T-H-E… T-E-S… T-E-S.. ORO.. Lets go *clap,clap* Tesoro. Everyone in the student section knows and loves that chant and it is our loudest chant. This is a chant we lose when we’ve been a little quiet and we want to involve the whole section for a quick cheer. Its short but extremely effective.

Looft: My Favorite chant is the “I believe that we will win” because everyone knows it, and everyone says it. It gives a positive vibe and support for our players. We always get loud after the chant and it gives more energy to the stands. 

Berry: My favorite chant is the I believe that we will win chant. Everyone knows it and can scream it at the top of their lungs. Its super easy and I even see parents get into it every week. It also looks intimidating from the other sideline and stands.

 

What’s your least favorite chant that you hear from the other side of the stadium/gym?

Beach: My least favorite chant the other schools do is “we can’t hear you” because it’s very embarrassing especially when you are playing a home game and the visiting team is chanting that towards us. This used to occur last year and it always embarrassed us.

Looft: The worst chant to hear at home is when the visitors say, “This is our house” because we take pride in our school and team, and no one else will ever have what we have. Another type of cheer that isn’t fun to hear is when it’s directed towards one of our players on the field. We think that is disrespectful and uncalled for. 

Berry: The “this is our house” chant just puts you down more when you’re losing. I remember Mission Viejo chanting that my freshman year and how bummed it made me.

 

Outside of you guys, is there one student section that you have seen or heard about where you think, “Man, that is a good student section?”

Beach: Honestly we have the best student sections in Socal, it is insane how much hype each school brings every single Friday night. I would say my favorite is Dana Hills because they travel deep and they travel loud. Dana is always having a good time no matter where they are. San Clemente and San Juan also have great student sections with awesome music, Co2 cannons, and a great group of ASB leaders hyping up the crowd!

Looft: One student section that I admire is Capo Valley. Last year when we played them, I was impressed with the amount of students who showed up. They are extremely loud and excited at every game. Their ASB president, Lauren Illano, has created an atmosphere that many schools are envious of. 

Berry: The Los Alamitos student section. They go crazy every game and its super cool to see how many people they fit into their stadium. We played them last year on homecoming, and they packed our visitor bleachers with students even though we live 45 minutes to an hour away. Capo Valley and San Juan have great student sections as well.