We continuously see more changes made to the athletics department to enhance the collegiate atmosphere here at Bakersfield College, and the idea to implement the Renegade Lair is no different.
The big idea with the Renegade Lair is creating a student cheering section and also get more students involved because not too many students go to games and support the student athletes, and those that do go to those games won’t be confused with the Cameron Crazies from Duke University.
According to SGA president Danitza Romo, who is the driving force for the Renegade Lair, they want to create more student involvement at games and to create a sense of community.
“If you go to football games, I’ve noticed that there are people there but most of them aren’t students,” said Romo. “Athletic director Ryan Beckwith came to SGA and told us that this is something really great that we should do, and I really believe in this project. I really believe that we need to build a sense of community and that we need to get students out there to support their fellow student athletes.
“I think by doing this, it gives students the opportunity to belong to something that is part of athletics because you do have students that maybe taking too many classes, too busy to be on a team, or for whatever the reason they can’t join a sport. This gives them the chance to be a part of athletics.”
At first when I heard about it, I was skeptical because I still wasn’t sure how many students would be into it, but the more I thought about it the more I thought it would be a really good idea.
When you think about the difference student sections make in college sports, you think about Duke University in college basketball or Tiger Stadium, also known as “Death Valley” at LSU.
I’m not saying that with this all of the BC sports will go undefeated but they will make a difference. We have a gym that was refurbished early this year and new bleachers that were put early this year, so why not take advantage of this? Make it known that playing at BC isn’t an easy task. This will not only irritate opposing teams but can also be beneficiary to BC athletes. Making sure the Renegade Lair works out can only turn out to be a good thing for BC. It was originally thought that the sports pass to be on the Renegade Lair would be $30, but according to Romo, it was changed to students only having to show up to the games and show some school spirit. They have not ruled out the pass yet, and they might consider it when the Renegade Lair grows in members, but for the moment you won’t have to pay to be a part of it.
“I see the Lair going in the right direction,” she said. “I’m really excited about this because it’s something I really believe in and I think it’s something that’s going to help the college.”
If the Renegade Lair can continuously grow, then that means BC’s collegiate atmosphere will grow as well, so then all we’ll need is a mascot at sporting events.