Photo courtesy of Tommy Payne.
Members of the Spartan Senior Travel Squad went on a fishing trip when they went to Gulf Shores for MBHS’s opening game this football season.
Win or lose, Mountain Brook’s football and basketball teams have a group of fans they can count on being in the stands. Dressed in matching polo shirts or vests, the 12 members of the Spartan Senior Travel Squad do their best to attend every home game — and most of the away games.
“It really started in football, and then we got more and more interested in basketball, although we would go occasionally [in the past],” said squad member Tommy Payne. “Now we go if there’s a tournament somewhere.”
Some of the men, whose ages range from the mid-70s to late 80s, have grandchildren active in Mountain Brook athletics. Others choose to attend for the love of the game.
“You’ll all laugh at this, but the guidelines for getting in are, of course, you’ve got to be 70 years old; you’ve got to walk with a limp, and you’ve got to remember your name on the second try,” said member Bob Moorer, whose interest in Spartan athletics kicked off when he was president of the Spartans booster club in 1989.
“We all probably, most of us are at it or played in high school, and we just like the sports,” said member Harry Littleton, who also played football in college. “It’s a good gathering place, a good, fun thing to do.”
The Spartan Senior Travel Squad became official about seven years ago, but members had been attending the games as a group since 1989, said Bob Moorer. It also has developed over the years from a group sitting together at home games to planned trips for out-of-town tournaments. Kendall Wright, a member who allows the Spartan Senior Travel Squad to gather at his house for tailgating, food and drinks before each home game, has helped keep the group together, Moorer said.
Members of the group come from diverse backgrounds, including members who are surgeons, radiologists, contractors or commanders in the Navy, and from a range of college allegiances — which is why they stick to high school games, Payne joked.
“My feeling is we all like the game,” Moorer said, looking at why the group continues to attend. “Most of us played the game, and it’s just nothing like Friday night lights.”
“It’s just a good excuse for us to get up and keep going,” Payne added. “At our age if you slow down too much, you’ve got problems. You’ve got to keep moving.”
It’s hard to single out the best part of the group, or a favorite memory, Littleton said, as each game or trip includes fun memories.
“A couple of hours before the game, we start laughing. We don’t stop until we’re in the car on the way home,” Payne said.
Moorer jokes that the stories everyone tells are a way to relive their youth — with “most” of the stories being true — but the group is also making new memories with each season. One “infamous” trip to New Orleans stands out, Moorer said, and those escapades have been noted by the group’s secretary.
“That was our first big trip — to New Orleans together,” Payne said. “It had nothing to do with football except us wearing these things [matching shirts]. Everyone thought we were down there recruiting for Michigan State.”
The travel squad also kicked off the 2016 season with a five-day trip to Gulf Shores, where the group’s age was recognized as they got up to leave the stadium, Moorer said.
“Some guy behind us shouted, ‘Let those old men go first,’” Moorer said with a laugh. “And they did. The fans know us when we come.”
Games that stick out to the group are Mountain Brook’s 19-13 defeat of Ramsay and when the Spartans beat Spain Park 23-21 this season.
“I think the best ones are the ones we don’t think we’re going to win, and we win,” said member Vann Goodman.
“Don’t get the wrong impression,” Littleton said. “We’d still be there if they all lost.”
While the Spartans’ football season came to a close in the first round of playoffs, the Spartan Senior Travel Squad is planning for basketball season. While coaches are planning strategies, however, the travel squad is hoping for an out-of-town tournament and the chance to hit the road themselves.
“One of the nice things about the group is we don’t do anything but go to games and party, or whatever you’d call it,” Littleton said. “We’re not into raising money. We’re not into giving speeches. We’re not into being role models. We’re just doing what we do.”
