TOUCHDOWN, LIONS! – the announcer’s exuberant voice rings out across the field.
The bleachers, filled with fans jumping with excitement and singing out with joy.
The away fans, silenced by the dagger.
The band, blasting away on their instruments in a hearty touchdown song.
But something’s missing.
The guys running on the track in crisp, clean Texan glory.
Their paces down the sideline, their massive flags spelling out LIONS, their iconic cowboy hats, boots and jeans.
Though silent, everything about them displays school spirit and pride.
In 2022, the Spurs left the sidelines for the first time in years.
And now, they’re back. And this time, they’re here to stay. At least, that’s what new Spurs sponsor Michele Santosuosso has planned for.
“I changed [the program] a little bit – now it’s open to all sophomores, juniors and seniors with the hope that it stays alive,” Santosuosso said. “Also, there’s 10 of them, where there’s normally five or six, which I think is awesome.”
Additionally, the Spurs will show up at games for multiple sports this year – deviating from the traditional football-only schedule that they were on before.
“I want [the Spurs] to be a year-round thing, and not just a football thing,” Santosuosso said. “They’ll go to soccer games, they’ll go to lacrosse games, they’ll show up at a volleyball game. It’s almost part of the student council or Superfanmen – show up and support your friends.”
The program had ceased to exist last year after the former sponsor could no longer run it due to other responsibilities. So, the burden fell on Santosuosso and the administration to revive the tradition.
“We had talked about it last year, and it was never really organized,” Santosuosso said. “So in the spring, I met with [Head of Upper School John] Ashton and expressed interest in bringing them back and pulling them under the student council.”
The announcement of the program’s return was met with jubilation.
“At the end of last year, there was this aura in the air about the Spurs coming back that got everyone super excited,” senior Spur Jordan Feldman said. “Everyone was really hyped to see them come back. I’d see them in my sophomore year and I’d think ‘God, that would be so cool’.”
While Feldman’s interest was sparked more recently, fellow senior Ryland Ellis has been interested in the program for much longer – ever since he was a Lower School Marksman. “As a little kid in first grade, I’d always see games with the Spurs,” Ellis said. “It’s always been something I wanted to be a part of.”
Ellis was also encouraged to join the program by one of his close friends and classmates, which he says adds to the experience and excitement of being a Spur.
“My friend [senior] Zack Goforth mostly coerced me into doing it with him, because he said it was a good way to get energy back into school spirit,” Ellis said. “When you do something like this with close friends, you get to have a lot more fun with it.”
For Ellis, contributing to the community is a recurrent theme in his high school career – so joining the Spurs felt like a natural fit rather than a burden on his senior year.
“I’m doing Spurs and student council this year, and I did McDonald’s Week last year,” Ellis said. “Just pick a way to give back to the school that’s important to you. None of those things really felt like jobs to me – they were just things I wanted to do to help make the school a better place.”
Similarly, Feldman found a lack of school pride to be one of the main reasons he joined the program, citing his desire to return some support to the sports teams.
“I didn’t have a large sense of spirit for the school, and I didn’t contribute a lot to that side of school life,” Feldman said. “I really wanted to give back to the people who’ve been so supportive to the sports guys, and I wanted to be one of those people who’s always there, supporting them side by side.”
Even though being a Spur is a time commitment with practices and early pre-game preparation, Feldman doesn’t see it as a burden.
“I’ll be at sports games anyways, so why not be one of the loudest people there?” Feldman said. “I consider myself an extrovert, so I love having the opportunity to be out there, be loud and support my team and waive those flags.”
For Feldman, becoming a Spur and leading school pride at games was his way to leave a lasting legacy. He encourages all Marksmen to find what makes the school special for them and support that.
“Take it on,” Feldman said. “Continue the legacy, and make it louder and prouder. For someone who might not know their place, I’d say continue to find that place because there is a corner for everyone in St. Mark’s, no matter what they want to do.”
