With every sports star comes certain pre-game rituals. Some might play NBA 2K, have a special meal or wear a special pair of socks. However, a tradition that will pump up any player or team is a pump up playlist. While making every playlist for the high school, there must  be a very cautious approach. The steps to making a clean playlist are long and rigorous. With many adults and children listening in the stands, our high school takes a very intense look at every lyric and the meaning behind each song that could be added to the playlist.

There was a time when players could make there own playlist and edit them. Activities Director Ryan Swanson said, “In the past years, we have let coaches and captains edit those playlists, and what usually ended up happening was it would fall through”. The coaches ended up not having enough time to go through the whole playlist. They typically would just be too busy with the rest of the events that come with each season.

Another great way to get around the rules is to have one of the top pep bands in the state come and play during the game.  The OHS Pep Band brings a whole different type of music to the game that everyone loves and is clean and easy to sing along to. Songs like “Sweet Caroline”, and “Seven Nation Army”, these are fan favorites that excite the crowd and the players.  But with the pep band not being able to make it to every single sporting event at our high school this is the only solution to keep the fans happy. As crowd listens to the clean pre-game playlist, they can feel that the OHS cares for the well being of the fans watching.  Having this element and consideration to the opinions of the fans shows how great our community really cares for one another and the uprising of the next generation.

The process behind making a clean playlist consists of printing out the lyrics on paper and listening to each song, making sure of no swearing, racial slurs, derogatory remarks or sexual references or drug and alcohol references. “While making up our hockey playlist, it took a while, it was a long process,” said Margo Achterkirch

Although the rules seem  tough to deal with, there are ways around it. Teams that hold their events off of school grounds can have more options for music.  An example would be baseball. Parent John Havelka is in charge of the music and announcing for the Huskies varsity baseball team. Since the games are held at Dartt’s Park, he is able to have more songs on the playlist. Being able to have these songs creates an atmosphere for the games. Being more enthusiastic for the game plays an important role in performance. It helps the atmosphere of the arena or park to be more fun and entertaining for everyone involved, the bench, the student section, the fans and most importantly, the starting players. Some sports teams might say this is an unfair rule, that because of the fact the team is off sight the rules do not apply to following  a clean playlist.

Swanson and the administration know that the rules are tough. “I’d like to be more lenient,” said Swanson. Because of past incidents, they cannot change the rules. “We had a couple of negative situations that happened and that’s why we had to crack down,” Swanson commented. They know the players are not fans of the rules, but along with that they have no plans on changing the rules in the near future. While it may seem like a tedious process, the audience appreciates having a family friendly atmosphere at every game.