West Rowan basketball fans have made their mark

The Animal House. The Falcon Frenzy. The West Wackos.

Call ’em what you want, but there is no doubt the West Rowan fan base is the best in Rowan County. And possibly in the state.

West plays, the fans come.

When Asheboro visited the Gurley Dome in the sectionals, there was no home side and visitor’s side. It was all West.

When West was forced to play the sectional final in the 750-seat Sun Valley gym, probably 650 of those seats belonged to West Rowan blue.

In the regional finals at 2,800-seat East Burke, it looked like 2,300 of those seats were filled with blue.

You’re always asked, “How does a school out in the country deliver the goods in basketball — on the floor and in the stands — like West Rowan?”

“Salisbury hasn’t got an NFL or an NBA or a major league baseball team,” reasons boys basketball coach Mike Gurley. “We still haven’t been totally swarmed by the Charlotte commuter. You have communities who grow up playing and then cheering for their home team when they get out.”

Rick Strunk, the associate director of the North Carolina High School Athletic Association, calls West’s fan base an anomaly. There just aren’t many places that draw crowds like this one.

“Rich Strunk’s wrong. We’re not an anomaly,” Gurley quickly points out. “Rowan County’s an anomaly. If South Rowan is ballin,’ then baby, those people are there. East Rowan follows its teams. North Rowan gets behind its teams. Salisbury hasn’t the last couple of years but when Drew Mathews turns that around, they’ll be right there.

“Rowan County is a special place to coach and play and I hope it stays that way.”

Principal Henry Kluttz chuckles when he thinks back to his first school year at West — 1984-85.

He and his secretary once tried to count the students at a basketball game.

“We counted 21,” he said.

Now, the Gurley Dome is filling up by the middle of the jayvee boys game. The crowds for the Falcon girls dwarf many turnouts for the boys at other schools.

“You know it’s special at (Winston-Salem) Reynolds and you know it’s special at West Charlotte,” Gurley said.“But if they’re not winning, that’s OK. There’s other things to do.”

“One thing that makes us different, is there is no rallying point in the community,” Kluttz added. “There is no city.There is no town. You’ve got Cleveland right up the road and Mount Ulla is a mailing address. So our school has become a focus for people in Mount Ulla, Cleveland and Woodleaf.

“And we have good crowds in football and baseball too.”

But Saturday night, the focus is on West’s most popular sport, basketball. The Falcons are playing the 9 p.m. 3A championship game against Parkland in the Dean E.Smith Center.

West is 29-0. But guess what? The fans are undefeated also. No one has come close this season to matching them.

And nothing should change in the Dean Dome.

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Contact Ronnie Gallagher at 704-797-4287 or rgallagher@salisburypost.com .