The life of a Super Fan

BHS junior becomes one-man cheering section for girls soccer games It’s an early season girls’ soccer game at Bruce Allender Field. No one is in the stands. Well, besides Evan Maupin. The “Super Fan,” the girls call him. “I love that kid,” Bearden junior wing Kelly Riemer said. “He is one of the nicest guys you’ll ever meet.” Maupin is the prize jewel of Bearden’s girls’ soccer student section. Even if it was an automatic Bearden win that required a 30-minute drive, if it was a Lady Soccer Dogs game this season, the Super Fan was probably there. “He comes to all of our games and he’s always painted up,” junior forward Cassidy Smith said. “You at least know someone is cheering you on, even if you are not doing too well.” Maupin, a junior, is enjoying his first year as a Bulldog. “I used to go to West High School, and sophomore year at West I went to see one of my friends play,” Maupin said. “I realized that no one went to girls’ soccer games. So I got a horn and tried to start a student section.” When Maupin came over to Bearden, he wished to do the same. “Soccer is an underrated sport,” Maupin said. “I knew people came out to the football games and baseball games; I felt compelled to go to the soccer games.” Maupin knows people go to football and baseball games because he plays in them. He is a wide receiver and linebacker on Friday nights, but on Tuesdays and Thursdays, he is a Super Fan. “He’s doing football and baseball and I know he’s in really hard classes at school, and he still finds time to come to the girls’ soccer games,” Riemer said. This dedication is rare for a fan of any sport, much less a guy coming to girls’ soccer games who doesn’t even have a close connection to anyone on the team. "He’s a model fan," senior fan Ben Ramsey said. Ramsey is part of the student section which Maupin leads and tries to get involved. “I take suggestions from the student section,” Maupin said. “If they tell me to yell something, I’ll yell it.” When Maupin yells, everyone around hears him. “It’s a lot of motivation hearing his voice,” Riemer said. “Him blowing his horn gets us pumped up; he makes it so much more fun to play.” Maupin, though not allowed to play it at some away games, is proud to blow his vuvuzela in an attempt to distract any Bulldog opponent. Painting up is also a given. “About every week I’ve had someone ask me to paint up and put their number on my chest,” Maupin said. “They’ve asked me to do a halftime show and play some songs on my vuvuzela.” The Super Fan even feels as if he is part of the team – kind of. “I asked all the girls on the soccer team if I could get a ride on the bus to the away games,” Maupin said. “They said no.” While it may seem ridiculous to think of a painted up fan with his vuvuzela sitting on the players’ bus, Maupin is a part of the team in the sense that great fans can have an impact on what happens on the field of play. “We play better when we have more support there,” Smith said. “When no one is there, it is kind of like a letdown.” Maupin’s enthusiasm in the stands certainly does not disappoint. "He’s a great guy," senior fan Drew Standifer said. "He’s just got great spirit for the girls’ soccer team." This he does, which is interesting considering that Maupin has not always had a great spirit for the game of soccer. “I used to think watching soccer was really boring, then I kept going to the games and now I watch other soccer games,” Maupin said. The Super Fan has grown in his soccer knowledge throughout the season; sadly, he may not have many more games to exhibit it or his passion for the Lady Soccer Dogs. The girls play at Science Hill on Saturday for a chance to go to the state tournament. Every game from here on out is a win or go home. The state tournament starts Wednesday, with the semifinals following on Thursday and the state championship game Nov. 5. “I’m kind of disappointed the season is almost over,” Maupin said. While the season has been a fantastic one for the Lady Soccer Dogs, many Bearden fans will remember it as the season of Super Fan.