Best Legion ever?

On Friday, October 6th, the McClatchy football team defeated the Kennedy Cougars for the first time in since 2013. The Lions didn’t hand their rivals a gentle defeat -- it was a good ol’ fashioned smackdown, 27-6.

Last year, McClatchy lost 38-0. What changed?

There are many possible football-related answers to that question. Better pass defense? Less turnovers? Better ground game? Could be, could be.

Only one thing is for sure: Legion absolutely brought it.

“For my first three years at McClatchy, we had an OK Hell Bowl crowd, and we lost every time,” said ASB President and Legion leader Zachary Neff (‘18). “But this was the fattest crowd yet.”

Three years of OK legion and zero wins, one year of electrifying legion and a thunderous W. The causal relationship is certainly established. But what made this year’s Legion into McClatchy football’s special sauce?

“We decided to bring some speakers,” answered Izzie Pfeffer (‘18), the second of our three Legion leaders.

Michael Ross (‘18), the Legion leader who actually brought the speakers, concurred, linking the speakers to the football team’s high-octane performance.

“I really liked when we started playing ‘Feeling myself’ on the speakers,” he said. “Not only were the people in Legion pumped, but we got the football team to get pretty pumped as well. I'd like to think Legion affects the motivation of the players. ”

The Legion leaders tried other new things as well.

“We brought back the flag,” said Zachary, in reference to the big red “M” flag not seen at McClatchy sporting events in years. “I saw Tweets from Kennedy kids, videos of just the flag saying ‘I haven’t seen this b**** in four years.’

“And I was like, ‘Yeah, I bet you haven’t!’”’

Legion leaders also orchestrated a “Splitting of the Red Sea,” an ambitious cheering section maneuver in which the crowd moves side to side, then splits down the middle to make room for a running hypeman to scale the bleachers. The hype man splits the crowd of red-clad students just as Moses did with the red-named Sea all those years ago in the Middle East.

“The splitting of the Red Sea was magical to see happen,” commented Zachary.

Legion tried a couple other things, namely a baby-powder toss that isn’t exactly new and also wasn’t exactly a success.

“I ate so much of it!” exclaimed Izzie in reference to the baby powder, which truthfully did get everywhere. The objective of a baby powder toss is to create a cool-looking white cloud that hangs above the cheering section as they perform a chant.

In Legion’s case, that chant was the classic “I believe” chant, which, unlike the baby powder itself, was a big hit.

“Definitely my favorite moment was when we all started singing the ‘I believe’ chant together,” said Michael.

Gimmicks aside, the objectively most-impressive feature of Legion was its size.

“I was not expecting such a big crowd,” said Zachary. “I was expecting the average, football-game-sized crowd that we usually get.”

“Truly,” he continued, “it was breathtaking to walk in and see the fattest, loudest group … They weren’t even chanting yet and it was so loud.”

Zachary’s reaction to that sight? “Yes. This was what the ‘Clatch needed.”

The impressiveness of Legion on that Friday night did not go unnoticed around campus.

“I’ve had multiple administration members and teachers come up to me and say, ‘Zachary Neff, that was the best football game I’ve ever seen at McClatchy. You should be proud of yourself,’” said Zachary. “And I’m like, ‘No, I’m proud of the people.’”