by Bethany Tubman (’25)
The sports marketing club failed to recharter, and the leaderless Den (the affectionate name for the student sections) grew silent at games.
“It was the summer before my junior year,” Tymber Wynn, a senior on the women’s basketball team, remembered. “Selah and I were just texting, saying we are tired of people never coming to games, and we just want to make it fun.”
Wynn and Selah Kurtz (a 2024 Houghton University graduate) made an Instagram account in the summer of 2023 that cultivated a community of spirited Houghton students who would support the Houghton athletic community on and off the field. When asked how the name “Lander Nation” was chosen, Wynn enthusiastically said, “We literally did a poll on Instagram asking what people wanted it to be called! The name Lander Nation came from Carlee Miller, and people voted on that!”
In the Fall semester of 2023, Lander Nation made its presence felt by the Houghton athletic community as they planned, hosted and promoted events like tailgates before games and themed spirit nights during games. The Instagram account caught the eye of the Head Men’s Basketball Coach, Jeremy Bialek.
“We as coaches can try to get students excited about what we are doing or our teams, but when students are excited, it’s contagious, and that is what I saw from Lander Nation. It was very contagious,” he attested.
Tricia Carmer, a sophomore on the women’s basketball team, said playing in the basketball games as a freshman and seeing the support of students taking part in their themed game nights inspired her. For Carmer, Lander Nation ignites campus spirit in and out of games. Carmer joined Wynn as Lander Nation continues pursuing the unique aim of reigniting Houghton school spirit and communal student support of athletic ventures.
Lander Nation faced challenges as they worked in the Spring 2024 semester to become a university-recognized club in the upcoming Fall 2024 semester. Kurtz graduated in 2024, and Wynn and Carmer lacked knowledge about club development. According to Wynn, they turned to Coach Bialek and Director of Student Engagement Jana Newberry for guidance. Their support was instrumental in Lander Nation’s journey, she said.
Coach Bialek suggested that he and Newberry helped Wynn and Carmer find a way to adopt the structure of the Sports Marketing Club into Lander Nation. This provided a new flair to sports marketing on campus.
Carmer said this year, the club will focus on Basketball season because she and Wynn (both basketball players) are the only ones in the club. However, she hopes that if students enjoy the basketball season events, they will be interested in expanding the club’s reach.
When asked what they were most looking forward to for the 2024-2025 school year, Coach Bialek, Wynn and Carmer shared excitement for the Lander Nation shirts they are designing.
Coach Bialek attested he was excited about the growth that the Den will see as Lander Nation provides more student Leadership through Den Days (these will be days students will be encouraged to go to games of the sport Lander Nation is trying to highlight at that time) and themed basketball game nights.
“I just encourage students to try it out. Go to a game. See what being part of the student section is like and maybe get some free shirts out of it,” said Coach Bialek. ★
