In June, many Menlo students received a follow request from @menlooceanofblue on Instagram. Most had never heard of Ocean of Blue, but were intrigued by the idea of a new school spirit group.
In the fall of 2019, a group of senior boys started OOB to bring more spirit to Menlo. One of those seniors was Henry Wernikoff (‘20), older brother to senior James Wernikoff. According to James Wernikoff, Menlo’s beloved Sea of Gold wasn’t as big a presence then, so SOG and OOB coexisted. However, OOB faded out once the founding class graduated. While some students tried to revive the group, their efforts were fruitless since the OOB Instagram login was lost.
As a student passionate about school spirit but not chosen to be a SOG captain, Wernikoff had the idea to bring back OOB. Wernikoff took it upon himself to create a new Instagram account. He then recruited seniors David Mhatre, Jack Enright, Tyler Fernandez and Benjamin Salama to help him run the group. Similar to Wernikoff, Mhatre was happy to help out since his older brother Brian Mhatre (‘19) was also a part of OOB.
According to Wernikoff, the goal of OOB is to increase spirit and attendance at sporting events. “We can create friendly competition between Ocean of Blue and Sea of Gold,” he said. One idea of his is that students choose to wear blue or gold at certain sporting events depending on what spirit group they align with. Because Menlo students will still be cheering for the same team, Wernikoff believes friendly competition would bring more students and spirit to games.
However, since OOB doesn’t have school recognition or funding like SOG, it has struggled to make a name for itself. Wernikoff is worried people who are unfamiliar with the group won’t take OOB seriously. “It’s a real thing, it’s not just a made-up fan group,” Wernikoff said.
On the other hand, since SOG is a school organization, the administration can limit its content. “Ocean of Blue being not affiliated [with Menlo], we can kind of go to more lengths and post funny things on our Instagram,” Mhatre said. Mhatre believes this funny content can bring more people out to games.
Wernikoff has been disappointed by the turnout at games this fall. He took photos of the lackluster attendance at two football games and posted them on the OOB Instagram to encourage more students to attend sporting events.
There are mixed feelings about OOB amongst the SOG captains. Senior and SOG captain Tate Cohen believes OOB could increase spirit at Menlo. However, he believes SOG has been doing a good job of getting students to attend sporting events. “It’s still early in the year and I think we’re doing a great job so far, especially bringing attention to all the sports,” Cohen said. “We’ve been working really hard.”
Fellow senior and SOG captain Scarlett Bundy doesn’t think OOB has had a significant impact on spirit at Menlo. “They haven’t been active at all,” Bundy said. “They don’t do much.” Bundy also believes SOG has fulfilled its role in increasing spirit by spotlighting all the sports, creating new cheers and updating its Instagram. “We’re just looking forward to being the best and loudest SOG this year,” Bundy said.
Wernikoff also wants to make this year his most spirited yet. “I really enjoy seeing a spirited school that values their sports teams, and I think the progression hasn’t been amazing,” he said.
Mhatre believes that OOB will allow every student to feel connected to a spirit group since anyone can join. “People don’t feel connected to Sea of Gold,” he said. “People could feel more connected to Ocean of Blue by being able to express themselves and being closer to the student body.”
