MERIDIAN TOWNSHIP - For High School sports in Michigan, the MHSAA is the governing body. But when it comes to bullying, the association has little authority.

Even though the MHSAA can't enforce rules on bullying, they've done their best to increase awareness across the state of Michigan.

Awareness is always great with a subject like this, because it's a subject that disgusts anybody.

The MHSAA's Media and content coordinator, Geoff Kimmerly, explains that bullying is often thought of as an individual, or a group of individuals harassing another, but that is not the only way a person, or player can be bullied.

"There are different types of bullying," Kimmerly said. "Obviously, there are people who can bully within their own team. I would even say that crowds can bully opposing players. That's the one area at the MHSAA that we can do something about. We just announced it yesterday, we're in our third year of our battle of the fans contest, which is promoting positive, sportsman-like student sections. We award the top cheering section in the state."

With events like these, Kimmerly and the MHSAA hope that sportsmanship and positivity can spread to teams and players themselves.

"That's one way that we can promote, at-least from a crowd bullying standpoint, that it's not really cool," he said. "By the same token, the more that people find out that these issues have been out there, and things like this have gone on, the more awareness there is that there are certain ways to treat your teammates, and just to act towards people. Hopefully that improves that situation."