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EAST LANSING — The Michigan High School Athletic Association is inviting high school sports student cheering sections from across the state to participate in its annual Battle of the Fans contest.

Three rounds of competition will recognize nine semifinalists, which will be reduced to three finalists before the champion is selected for the winter season.

North Muskegon was last year’s champion.

The Westwood student section reacts to a 3-point shot taken by Iron Mountain sophomore Marcus Johnson in the second quarter as Westwood's Blake Hewitt defends in their Class C boys basketball regional tournament semifinal game held at Marquette Senior High School in March 2018. (Photo courtesy Daryl T. Jarvinen)

Schools are invited to submit a short — 90-second to three-minute — video via YouTube of their cheering sections in action at a school sporting event, according to a news release from the MHSAA. Submissions should explain how that section meets the contest’s seven criteria — positive sportsmanship, student body participation, school spirit, originality of cheers, organization of the group, student section leadership and fun.

Deadline for student-submitted video applications is noon on Jan. 11. The nine semifinalists will consist of three each from Class A, Class B and Class C-D. Those groups then partake in a two-week challenge with each required to complete 10 tasks further showing why it should be chosen as the state’s best student section.

The three finalists, selected by the MHSAA’s Student Advisory Council, will be visited on a home game night by MHSAA staff and advisory council representatives. The MHSAA will produce a video of each finalist after visits with the champion selected by the Student Advisory Council based in part by the support each section receives on MHSAA social media sites.

The SAC is a group of high school juniors and seniors from around the state who provide feedback on issues impacting educational athletics from a student’s perspective. Nominations are made by MHSAA members schools and has included a central Upper Peninsula student several times in the past decade.

This year’s Battle of the Fans IX will be announced Feb. 21 and recognized during the MHSAA boys basketball finals at Michigan State University’s Breslin Center.

The Gwinn student fan section erupts with cheers after Modeltowners senior Austin Forbes made a 3-pointer in the third quarter of the MHSAA Division 3 district tournament championship game played against Negaunee at Lakeview Memorial Gym in Negaunee on March 1. (Photo courtesy Daryl T. Jarvinen)

Rules and links to coverage of past finalists can be found on the MHSAA website at www.mhsaa.com/BOTF.

Information compiled by Journal Sports Editor Steve Brownlee. His email address is sbrownlee@miningjournal.net.

The Westwood student fan section erupts with excitement after the Patriots' Zachary Carlson made a buzzer-beating 3-point basket at the end of the first quarter of an MHSAA Division 3 district tournament semifinal game played at Negaunee's Lakeview Memorial Gymnasium on Feb. 27. (Photo courtesy Daryl T. Jarvinen)