‘MVP of fans’ has cheered on St. Pius through 22 years of ups and downs
St. Pius’ sellout home crowd overflowed from the bleachers to the corners of the hardwood at Mark Kelly Gymnasium for one of the biggest games in program history.
The student section swayed as Archie Eversole’s “We Ready” blared. Energy pulsed through the building as anticipation built for the No. 1 Golden Lions’ playoff game against No. 2 North Oconee, the reigning state champion, on March 4.
Hundreds of fans combined to create a sea of suspense, but one fan was making waves above the rest.
Martin Scott ran up and down the sideline in front of the student section. He was waving towels, dancing to pregame music and high-fiving players and fans.
“That student section, that’s where I get my energy from,” Scott said. “When I get down there, I feel like a superstar or something like that. They come to me and say hi, take pictures with me and love me, man.”
Scott is the face of a passionate Pius fan base — the same fan base that took over Akins Ford Arena on Saturday to watch the Golden Lions move to 32-0 with a 79-63 win over Jonesboro. Pius advanced to the Class 4A state championship, where it will play No. 3 Pace Academy on Thursday at the Macon Coliseum.
Pius has never won a basketball title.
Scott has had plenty of reasons to bring positive energy this season, but Pius coach Will Cloyd said Scott has brought the same attitude regardless of success for the past 22 years.
Cloyd saw it firsthand when he was a senior starter for the Golden Lions in 2008.
“He knew everybody’s name and had just incredible enthusiasm, and we were bad,” Cloyd said. “We were, like, 3-21, but he came to every home game and just had incredible energy.”
Cloyd was a freshman in 2004 when Scott came to his first Pius basketball game. Scott was lured by his daughter, who performed at halftime as a freshman on the school’s dance team.
“Just sitting there watching the games, what really impressed me was the way the guys at Pius played basketball,” Scott said. “That grittiness, they played with all their heart and soul and maximum effort, so that really had a lot of effect on me.
“I said, ‘I’ve got to come and cheer for these guys.’”
Scott’s path to super fan started by sitting in the stands with everyone else, but it wasn’t long before his passion pulled him to the floor.
“I used to stand up in the stands, but after awhile, I came down to the sidelines and started jumping up and down, so it kind of developed over time,” Scott said.
Scott’s pregame antics have evolved over time. After starters are introduced and do handshakes with their teammates, they trot to the far end of the court to give Scott a fist bump.
One of Scott’s main running jokes involves his play money. He’ll throw fake cash at players when they make a clutch shot or a game-changing play.
Scott’s passion has spilled onto the court a couple of times. He remembers one instance in the 2020 state playoffs when a Pius player scored a clutch basket late in an eventual overtime win over Sumter County.
Scott doesn’t remember the player’s full name, but he remembers running on the court — before the game had finished — to celebrate the player.
“I ran up to the guy ... I picked him up, and said, ‘Let’s go, Trey,’” Scott said. “Police came running in and said, ‘Hey, man, if you do that again, I’ll throw you out of the building.’
“So that was fun.”
Scott said most of the student section enjoys his energy — except for his two daughters, who both graduated from Pius.
“Both of my daughters stayed far away from me. Far, far away,” Scott said. “They wouldn’t talk to me during the game, and after the game we’d meet outside, and sometimes, they’d even say, ‘Dad, you’re embarrassing me.’
“I’m like, ‘I don’t care. I’m having fun.’”
Scott expanded his attendance beyond basketball. He brought the same energy to the sidelines of football fields, volleyball courts, cross-country courses, soccer pitches and baseball diamonds.
“He’s there at all hours for any sort of JV game,” Cloyd said. “(For a) 4:30 JV tipoff, he’ll be there in the back gym, and he’ll stay there all the way through until 10 p.m. at night, whenever we get done.
“He’s on the sideline, and he’s jumping around, and it’s just incredible fandom that you will rarely see.”
When his youngest daughter graduated over a decade ago, Scott never considered leaving his fandom behind. He likened the Pius community to his family, so the lack of actual kin didn’t stop him from attending games.
“Just the kids who played basketball, watching them grow from freshmen to sophomores to juniors and seniors, I enjoy watching how the kids grow and develop themselves,” Scott said.
The school expressed its appreciation for Scott last season when it honored him with its annual volunteer award before a basketball game.
“It was a little outside the box, because usually, it goes to someone who helps in the concessions stand or helps with tickets, but we decided to give it to Mr. Scott,” Pius president Aaron Parr said. “It was really cool to see the crowd give him a standing ovation.”
The weight of the award wasn’t lost on Scott.
“It made me feel real special because I keep coming back, and the people down there appreciate me,” Scott said. “When I talk about it, it kind of makes me cry. It’s family, man. Family.”
The part-time certified public accountant isn’t working as much during the day as he used to, but he has no plans to let off the gas in his second job. Scott plans to keep roaming Pius’ sidelines as long as he’s physically able, and maybe a little while after that, too.
“A wheelchair will have to drag me there,” Scott said.
Scott admitted he is nervous entering Thursday’s championship game. The Golden Lions are 7-0 against Class 4A top-10 teams thus far, but he knows none of that will matter when Pius tips off against a Pace program with five state championships in the past decade.
What he does know is he’ll be ready to erupt on the sideline every time his team makes a “money” play.
“He’s very content to just be a fan, and he has just owned it,” Cloyd said. “He’s an all-star. He’s the MVP of fans.”
About the Author
Jack Leo is a sports writer and reporter for the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Jack worked for the AJC throughout his four years studying journalism and sports media at Georgia State University and the University of Georgia. He's now focused on telling stories in the grassroots: bringing comprehensive coverage of high school sports for AJC Varsity.
More Stories
Featured
