Student Senate members strengthened the football spirit at Eastern’s first home game of the season with “United in Blue.”

The senate members hosted “United in Blue” in order to promote more school spirit by giving out spirit items and teaching the fight song. 

To get the student body excited about the first home game of the season, the senate members decided to try something new this year and bring giant head cutouts to the games.

Student Senate Speaker Jesse Green, a senior finance and accounting major, said they got the idea of the cardboard cutout from other universities. 

In the stands, students were wearing the giant head cutouts of Coach Dino Babers, quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo, wide receiver Erik Lora, defensive back Nick Beard, linebacker Robert Haynes and defensive back Pete Houlihan.

“People are really excited about them,” Green said. “It pumps up the crowd.”

More giveaways like shakers, posters and foam fingers were also passed out for students to enjoy in the gaming experience.

With only one-week worth of preparations before the kickoff, the senate members were able to pull off “United in Blue.”

Green said all the preparation plays a really big factor to the college football experience.

“We had two victories previously so we made sure to bring giveaways for the students,” Green said.

Reginald Thedford, a junior political science major and student affairs committee chair, said he accepted the challenge and started making moves to take action to those idea and implement them right away before the game on Saturday.

“We put it together with the help of student government and without them we wouldn’t have gotten sponsorship help with giveaways,” Thedford said. 

The school spirit for the team is going to help football players when they see our support it will pump them up, Thedford said.

Phillip Love, a sophomore political science major and the diversity affairs committee chairman, said the giveaways at the games enhance the spirit and the students respond well to it. 

Morgann Woodruff, a senior English major, said the energy throughout the night was infectious with the crowd. 

Irving Coleman, a senior art major, said the game against Illinois State University was very uplifting. 

“I liked how everyone was rooting for the team it makes me want to me more cheerful,” Colman said.  

Love said this year the senate is getting help from everybody and they want to bring a fun atmosphere that is bigger and better for the students.

Student government plans to provide the “Blue Out” spirit promotion again for the basketball team and two to three more events this semester.

Stacey Catterson can be reached at 581-2812 or [email protected].