Photo: Justin Cleaver
BY ANDREW HALE, SPORTS EDITOR
A 1994 graduate of St. Bonaventure University, Jess Williams has become a staple of the Wolf Pack, a nickname given to the school’s student section at its men’s basketball home games. Williams throws obscure hats to fans sitting in the endzone section of the Reilly Center, hoping they grab the attention of the arena’s cameras.
“My vision is that the whole back behind the bucket would be all people dressed up,” said Williams. “It’s usually quantity over quality. It’s something that’s going to get the attention of the cameraman and anything I can get my hands on that’s reasonable.”
These hats can range from sombreros, pizzas, hot dogs, tacos, flamingos, parrots and whatever else Williams can find.
Williams said he thought of the idea while seeing a group of fans show up to games dressed as bananas.
“There were some guys that used to sit in the stands, and they wore banana suits,” said Williams. “I thought that was so cool. The bananas always ended up on the television.”
Soon after the members of the “Iron Man Five 2.0” began their freshman year in the 2018-19 season, Williams bought season tickets and started his home-game tradition.
“After I graduated, I went to games every year,” said Williams. “But when [Kyle Lofton] and [Osun Osunniyi] were freshmen, I knew we had a special group, and that’s when I bought season tickets. During their freshman year, I saw those bananas and thought the whole crowd should look like that.”
Williams’ energy and unique hat-throwing tradition has inspired members of the student body to find more unique ways to stand out at games.
Ahead of each home game, Daniel Geyer, a graduate student at Bonaventure, takes his place at the front of the student section, typically wearing Hawaiian attire. Geyer said Williams’ hats inspired him to start his own traditions.
“[Williams] is also one of the reasons I stand in the end zone,” said Geyer. “I remember the Davidson game my senior year when he threw hats into the crowd, and I got the fedora with the palm trees on it. That’s how my gimmick with the Hawaiian shirts began, too.”
William’s impact on the crowd itself has not gone unnoticed, according to Geyer.
“Jess plays a huge role in making the student section what it is,” said Geyer. “He’s one of the hearts and souls of the student section and gets us going when we’re down.”
William’s passion for Bonnies basketball has also garnered the attention of the university’s senior associate athletic director for External Operations, Seth Johnson.
“Jess is one of our most-passionate supporters of Bonaventure basketball who truly understands the importance of the student section to our home-court advantage,” said Johnson. “Over the years, Jess has embraced the Wolf Pack and in turn, the Wolf Pack has embraced him. The passion of our students and fans is what makes the Reilly Center special. When the Wolf Pack and our patrons work together as one unit, the RC is truly one of the toughest places in the country.”
While Williams said he is proud of the student section, he also said he hopes that the Wolf Pack can become more cohesive.
“I think there are kids that go to high schools all around the country that have seen really good things,” said Williams. “[The student section] needs to get all those ideas on the table and have a melting pot where people bring some of their cheers from their high schools.”
Since Bonaventure is one of the smallest NCAA Division I schools in the country, the Wolf Pack is critical for drawing attraction to the university, said Williams.
“We’re always the underdog nine times out of 10,” said Williams. “I take a lot of pride in that because the crowd could be the difference of getting a four-star recruit because we’re part of that atmosphere. Don’t judge the size of the dog in the fight, but the size of the fight in the dog. And our building has that.”
Williams has big plans to throw out new items throughout the rest of the season. But when students receive a hat, Williams said he hopes they continue to bring it back with them to future games.
“This year, I bought more than hats,” said Williams. “I actually bought some costumes. I’m going to throw out a beer-pong costume and beer cups that some guys can stand next to the keg and their cups … I plan on throwing that kind of stuff out on nationally televised games. But what makes me sad is I throw a lot of those hats out, and they don’t come back.”
halea22@bonaventure.edu
