Not Your Average Bell Week
A mere 350 spectators were allowed in the 15,000-capacity Dutch Clark Stadium Friday night to watch this year’s Bell Game.
“Only 26 senior students are allowed to be present,” said Rhonda Thatcher, mother of Centennial senior lineman Josh Thatcher. They are allowing the marching band this week. Cheer and dance are there but they are not allowed to stand down front.”
Dubbed “the oldest rivalry West of the Mississippi,” the 128-year-old football rivalry between Pueblo’s Centennial and Central high schools is steeped in tradition. The week of the game is typically characterized by pep rallies, team dinners, and other celebrations. However, the COVID-19 pandemic greatly limited what either school was allowed to do during “Bell Week.”
“There is nothing that we would normally go through with the kids that’s happening: the noise and the chaos and the craziness of the whole week at school,” Rhonda said. “The hallways are empty. There’s no Bell Bash. There’s no shirt sales that are going on in the hallway, fundraisers or anything getting people fired up for the game; a lot of changes for everybody.”
On top of event cancellations and limited fans, Centennial and Central were closed and doing classes online during the week. This led to both schools finding creative ways to showcase their school spirit and get ready for the big game.
Central staff decorated the interior of their school with full-body cardboard cutouts of starters and senior players. The cutouts were joined by an array of blue decorations hanging from the ceiling and of course, the coveted Bell, which has been the prize kept by the winners of each year’s contest since 1950. Additional cutouts lined the front lawn of the school.
“They did a great job,” said Kelli Sheehan, mother of Central senior fullback Keegan Clay. “Even though their students couldn’t enter the school, they videoed it and they put it on the school’s Facebook page. I copied it and put it on the football page.”
On Thursday night, 1129 Spirits & Eatery partnered with Central to deliver box dinners to players. A group of team moms also left gift baskets on the front steps of senior players' houses before the players went to their morning warm-ups Friday. Sheehan said she was up at 7 a.m. delivering baskets.
“We put Starbursts in there and we put Kit-Kats and we just wrote them a note like ‘go out there and be the star that you are,” Sheehan said. “We put gloves in there and little footballs just to kind of give something special just to the seniors.”
At Centennial, staying motivated throughout the week was a matter of shared experience. Rhonda said the Centennial cheer and dance team also went “above and beyond” to raise spirits during Bell Week.
“I feel like the kids are all in it together,” Rhonda said. “They are having to fight this one on their own and they know it. I just think it’s the energy they have been able to pull together in the last week and you know, in these practices they have really tried to stay connected.”
Rhonda’s son Josh is the youngest of three. His other brothers Zane and Zach both played football for Centennial.
“I think for me it’s been hard because I knew how things work,” Rhonda said. “I think it is hard because Josh knew what to expect and waited his whole life having watched his brothers go through it and then not getting that opportunity, I think that has been hard just kind of knowing that was a little bit of a heartbreaker for him.”
“It’s just been almost surreal,” Rhonda said. “It’s just so far different from where we’ve ever been with Bell Game traditions and stuff. It’s been hard because the schools have not been allowed to be involved and so it feels a little isolating honestly for these kids I think because they just don’t feel that there is as much support as they are normally getting.”
Sheehan has two sons playing football for Central this year. Keegan is a senior and Kaden is a freshman. Keegan transferred to Central in January of his sophomore year. Sheehan said Keegan wanted to attend Central specifically to be a part of a rich tradition and play in the Bell Game.
“Being that I graduated from Central and I have come to like every Bell Game, it is very different having your child play in it,” Sheehan said. “Your emotion is very heightened and it’s very cool.”
“I think we are considering the Bell Game but like what is the rest of the year going to look like?” Sheehan said. “These kids that are seniors this year were part of the pandemic issue last year, junior year, and didn’t get to go to prom. If they don’t have a prom this year, they will have never gone to a high school prom which is disappointing.”