Nicole Howell

Editors’ note: “Who is Syracuse?” is a series that runs in The Daily Orange every spring. It highlights individuals who embody the spirit of Syracuse University. Members of the SU community were encouraged to nominate people they thought fit this description. This series explores their stories.

Type “disgusted Syracuse fan” into Google Images and the first result that pops up is a GIF of Otto’s Army president Nicole Howell scowling from her seat in the Carrier Dome’s student section, wearing her signature hat — a basketball cap covered in an orange slice pattern.

The GIF went viral after Howell’s disapproving expression made an appearance on ESPN during the 2014 football game against Florida State.

The average ESPN viewer might not know that the girl with the cartoonish frown has been to every home football and men’s basketball game since her sophomore year — even attending a game when she had a 102-degree fever.

They also wouldn’t know that her apartment has a life-sized cardboard cutout of Jim Boeheim, coasters that resemble oranges and walls lined floor to ceiling with Syracuse athletics posters.

Howell’s creativity as Otto’s Army president shined through when she came up with the idea for a Dress Like Jim Boeheim night and organized the event. When she brought the idea to SU Athletics, they agreed to give away plastic Boeheim-style glasses to students.

The students with the best costumes were brought to the court at halftime to perform their Boeheim impressions, picking their noses and tearing off their jackets in dramatic impersonations.

The event was a big enough hit to receive national attention — ESPN and SportsCenter picked it up.

The SU school spirit hit the senior biology and Spanish dual major as soon as she arrived on campus as a freshman. Hailing from the small town of Maynard, Massachusetts, and coming from a high school class of 59 students, Howell said she loved the feeling of being a part of something bigger.

Soon after arriving at the university, she started attending Syracuse sports games, becoming a bigger fan as time passed.

That year, she also joined the organization University 100 to become a tour guide. She has a routine during each tour she conducts — making sure to point out the kissing bench so no prospective students will embarrass themselves down the road by sitting on it alone. She also loves making the group and their parents “Dome stomp.”

Howell’s dedication as a fan became more intense after the Syracuse-Duke game at the Carrier Dome in 2014 — she camped out for four days outside of the Dome before the game in sub-freezing temperatures.

From her sophomore year onward, Howell and her friends would get to games hours early to get the front row student section seats. During her sophomore year, they would often arrive at basketball games seven hours before the doors opened.

Otto’s Army is the official student section of Syracuse Athletics. But Howell wants to address the misconception that Otto’s Army is just the physical student section present at games — they’re an organization with an executive board that helps fans support the Orange. Technically, the members of Otto’s Army are the student body, but they have 25 to 30 active members who regularly attend meetings.

Part of what motivated Howell to step up as a leader of Otto’s Army was her good friend Brad Slavin, who graduated in 2014. To her, he represented the epitome of Syracuse spirit, holding up a white board with instructions for the fans during every game.

Howell said she wanted to be the epitome of Syracuse spirit for someone too, so last spring, she decided to run for vice president of Otto’s Army.

She was chosen as vice president of Otto’s Army for the fall 2015 semester, and became president this past semester. Now her job is holding up the white board like Slavin once did.

Her goals as vice president and president were to leave Otto’s Army better than she found it, and she hopes that’s what she’s done this year.

Some of the major steps she’s taken include attending a National Collegiate Student Section Association conference to collaborate with leaders from other schools’ student sections, working with SA to try to reduce the cost of student season tickets and planning to create a student rewards program. When Syracuse went to the Final Four, Otto’s Army helped SA and SU Athletics organize the bus trips for students to Houston and Indianapolis.

Howell didn’t get to travel to either of the Final Four games, but she was just as happy to watch the games on TV in Syracuse with her friends. She said the teams making the Final Four this year was a highlight of her four years here.

While Howell is best-known on campus for school spirit, her inner circle knows she’s also a great friend.

Her roommate Sammy Pardes, a senior information management and technology major, said when she decided to leave SU’s cheerleading team, Howell encouraged her to become an active member of Otto’s Army so she could channel her love of Syracuse athletics into a new activity.

Over the years, Howell’s made friends from Otto’s Army that might as well be her family. In her sophomore year, her friends made “big heads,” giant cardboard cutouts of her face, and ran around the student section with them during a basketball game on her birthday. She still has them propped against her fireplace.

When she reflects on her love of SU, Howell said it stems from the sense of belonging in being part of Orange Nation.

Said Howell: “I just think it’s pretty cool that so many people can care so much about one thing — about Syracuse. I think there has to be something pretty special about this place to inspire that much passion out of so many people.”

Banner photo by Bridget Williams