‘Guardian Angels’ support senior football players

On Nov. 9 — the day of the Los Gatos game — the varsity football team served pasta, garlic bread and salad to both cheer teams in the dance room as a thank you for their support during the season through the “Guardian Angels” program.

“[Guardian Angels] is a great way for the football players and the cheerleaders to connect,” said senior wide receiver Stephen Ruff. “[The lunch] is also a great way for the football players to say thanks to the cheerleaders for cheering at every game.”

It has been a long standing tradition that the senior football players begin their season with a “guardian angel” watching over them. 

For centuries, “guardian angels” have been associated with Christianity and have a purpose of protecting and guiding a person or group of people.  In the case of the football team, the “guardian angels,” give them support and wish them luck by giving them a gift for every home game.

The program also builds a connection between the varsity cheer team and the varsity football team that otherwise may not exist.

“We’re usually so busy that the two groups don’t communicate even though they are so important to each other,” senior football player Henry Wei said.  “The Guardian Angel program gives us something in common.”

At the beginning of the season, the football players filled out a “wish list” with suggested gifts.  There is no official price range, so gifts can typically be anywhere from $5 to $25, according to senior varsity cheerleader Chelsea Miller.

“The average gift contains a Gatorade, a power bar, and usually some chips,” Miller said.

The system works like one-way secret buddy gifts.  Each cheerleader is randomly assigned a senior football player, or two, who they give gifts to.  Gifts are often exchanged during the school day and can vary from game to game.  Sometimes the cheerleaders bring homemade food to the football players.

“My favorite part is getting all the baked goods,” Wei said.

The identities of the “guardian angels” are kept secret until the end of the season.  Part of the fun for the football players is trying to find out who their “guardian angel” is before they’re revealed on senior night. 

“This year I was tricked into telling one of my guys that I had made them a pie that they were bragging about,” Miller said.

The cheer team understands how important their encouragement is to the football players and are glad they can help out.

“No one says anything negative about the gift giving process because we all know that the guys work hard so we like to give them a treat and a word of encouragement,” Miller said.