POMONA, Calif. - Since the creation of The Herd in the fall quarter of 2011, the Cal Poly Pomona campus community has seen an increase in Bronco spirit and university pride.

In the 2011-12 academic year, 230 students signed up to join The Herd. Sports fans around the world saw many of those students storm the Kellogg Gym court on Feb. 24 when the Broncos' men's basketball team topped Cal State Dominguez Hills in double overtime, after Mitchel Anderson sank a three-quarter court buzzer beater that earned the No. 1 spot on ESPN Sportscenter's Top Plays.

Now in 2012-13, new memorable moments await and the excitement surrounding The Herd is palpable all across campus.

While The Herd continues to bring the most passionate Bronco fans together, this year is a bit different as it is now an official club on campus. With Johnathan Jianu serving as president of The Herd alongside a dedicated leadership team of fellow students, the club has already passed the 200-member mark with less than one month of signups completed.

Kelly Bonja, a member of Jianu's leadership team and also a captain on the Broncos' volleyball team, was featured last month in the Inland Valley Daily Bulletin for her work both on the court and with The Herd.

"The Herd is pumped up for another exciting year," Jianu said. "Now that we're an official club on campus, we've been able to expand quickly and it'll also allow us to put on more members-only events throughout the year."

The club has already been very active at many athletic and campus events:

- At last week's BroncoFusion event, The Herd's student leadership team greeted new students and talked about the many benefits of joining The Herd. To view pictures of The Herd's busy table at BroncoFusion, click here.

- Last Thursday, Kellogg Gym was packed with students wearing the "Fear The Herd" shirts in support of the Broncos' volleyball team as CPP challenged UC San Diego in the squad's conference home opener. To view pictures of parts of the crowd, click here.

- During yesterday's Hot Dog Caper, members of The Herd were invited to a photo session that promoted the unity and passion of the club. To view pictures from the photo shoot, click here.

In the first week of school, members of The Herd got 50 cent concession drinks at all of the athletic events on campus. There will be plenty of concession deals throughout the school year for The Herd and members will also earn a point for each game they attend. Prizes will be awarded to members as they reach different point totals through 2012-13.

This week, members of The Herd will participate in the "Pack the Course" event to be held Saturday in Claremont in support of the Broncos' men's and women's cross country teams. For more info, visit www.broncoathletics.com/packthecourse.

"As a student fan club for athletics, The Herd is composed of the most passionate and dedicated Broncos on campus," said Ivan Alber, the staff advisor for the club and the Broncos' sports information director. "From our newest first-year members to our leadership, everyone wants to get involved and promote Bronco spirit across campus."