March 29, 2024

Hanging in ‘The Nest’ with the ‘Horsemen’ of NHS

Last Friday, I accomplished something I have wanted to do ever since I went to my first Cardinal football game, I hung out in “The Nest.”

The Nest is the student section of H.A. Lynn Stadium and once I saw how energetic they were, I wanted to experience that. I love seeing kids doing positive things and I was more than happy to take part and help support “The Pink Out.”

Although, I got to experience why The Nest is the best seat in the house for myself, I asked NHS senior Haleigh Lamb, who is also one of the “Horsewomen,” to elaborate on this.

“Cause were the ‘Horsemen’ and the ‘Horsewomen,’ that’s why it’s the best section,” Haleigh yelled over the cheers of her excited classmates.

The Horsemen and Horsewomen are the leaders of the students section and essentially act as cheerleaders for The Nest. These kids are awesome! They do pushups for however many points the Cardinals’ have, they are usually adorned with red and black paint (Friday they were painted pink), and they lead a series of unique cheers.

“Each year we make up new ones (cheers), because they have to work out with last names,” Haleigh said. “A lot of them are handed down, it depends on if we like them or not.”

She also gave an example of some of the cheers they’ve developed for the players.

“Caught that Easley,” is the cheer for Nick Easley.  “We’ve got Wood” is the cheer for Tyler Wood, Tristian Peters’ cheer is “We like Peters” and Deonne Harris’ cheer is “Throwing Up the Deuces,” because his jersey number is 22.

Haleigh also explained the history of The Nest to me.

“The Nest just started this year, but this has always been the student’s section. This is where everybody sits,” Haleigh said.

I hung out in The Nest for a few series and tried to learn a few of the synchronized dances with the kids (which I failed at miserably). I also saw the traditional “Kissing of The Leg.” The Leg is an old manikin leg, that is painted red and has a white ‘N’ on it.

Legend has it a group of Horsemen stole the leg from an actual manikin a long, long time ago.

Hanging out with those kids was pretty refreshing. Here it is a Friday night, and they could be out doing a million other things, most of them not good mind you, but instead they were out supporting their school and classmates.

Moments like that are what Red Pride is all about.

I asked Haleigh if she thought they had the best student section in the state and she gave me a kind of cocky smile before she answered.

“Pretty close, we are up there,” she said. “Even last week, there was like 10 people in the crowd, but we still had fun.”

I agree with Haleigh and the fact Newton dominated ADM 45-28, made my foray into The Nest even better.

Saydel better get ready Friday, for not only the Cardinals, but the best student section in the state led by the Horsemen and Horsewomen.