Marching Band: How to fire up Students and Football Players

[jaxmc1023]

Wrong. They have reason to come. I didn't go because of the band or the atmosphere, or the tailgating, I went to support my team, whether they were winning or losing. I'm tired of these whiny babies, "what's in it for me." That's BS.

You're basically saying it's the students' job to get out and support the team...

It's not.

They spend thousands of dollars a year at this university. Football games are one of the fun things offered to them as a reward for their money and their choice to attend UL.

Except they're not fun. College students -- believe it or not -- want to party like college students, act crazy like college students, drink beer like college students, make questionable decisions like college students. Even if -- GASP -- they aren't 21 years old yet.

UL's offering is: stand around in this dog pen to tailgate while we keep a close eye on you, come into the stadium and sit in the sun for 3 hours, listen to the band play the same song 30 times from twenty feet away, and God help you if campus police sees you sneak a sip of alcohol while doing it.

and if you stay here 4 years, we'll call you a few weeks after graduation to ask for money to help the athletic program, which the university will more than likely steal from to support something else.

[RoarMan]

The marching band director is the associate director of bands. As far as it still sounding the same, he got to UL in late June. Didn’t have much time to make changes. He will have a more disciplined group in the future, it will just take him a bit of time

I'll believe it when I see and hear it. And, exactly what do you mean by disciplined? Are you saying the band members are undisciplined?

[CajunSaint08]

You're basically saying it's the students' job to get out and support the team...

It's not.

They spend thousands of dollars a year at this university. Football games are one of the fun things offered to them as a reward for their money and their choice to attend UL.

Except they're not fun. College students -- believe it or not -- want to party like college students, act crazy like college students, drink beer like college students, make questionable decisions like college students. Even if -- GASP -- they aren't 21 years old yet.

UL's offering is: stand around in this dog pen to tailgate while we keep a close eye on you, come into the stadium and sit in the sun for 3 hours, listen to the band play the same song 30 times from twenty feet away, and God help you if campus police sees you sneak a sip of alcohol while doing it.

and if you stay here 4 years, we'll call you a few weeks after graduation to ask for money to help the athletic program, which the university will more than likely steal from to support something else.

I never said no such thing. I did say "I don't agree with the way the school administration is ostracizing the frats and the sororities". I do agree with "College students -- believe it or not -- want to party like college students, act crazy like college students, drink beer like college students, make questionable decisions like college students. Even if -- GASP -- they aren't 21 years old yet."

But did the football team as a whole or the individual players do anything to these UL students personally? NO. So why not go to the games and support the team? Show school pride! Sneak in alcohol.(I'm not condoning this)...I know I did.. Be a college kid. Have fun. Act crazy like college students. I'm not saying not to. Again, I blame the university for ostracizing the frats and the sororities. But then why are the frats and sororities taking it out on the football team?

[bbhstiger5]

What does bbhs use?

Haven’t been there in years dude, I couldn’t tell you. Last I heard they had no band at all. Let’s not copy them.

[CajunVic]

. . . sorry, but students should want to support their athletic teams . . . at least some of them . . . and UP should leave the ones who do the ____ alone . . .

[KajunKrazy]

What we do is NOT working. The band doesn't need to just entertain the crowd. It needs to engage the crowd. Watch a Michigan game or Florida State game. All you continuously hear are the bands playing Hail to the Victors and the FSU fight song that has the whole stadium doing the tomahawk. Florida has the Gator Chomp. That is the kind of thing we need at UL to get the fans engaged. Include spelling C-A-J-U-N-S at the end of each fight song that the fans can yell out. If we finally accept the Gator as our mascot, include a Gator Chomp as well. Who cares if Florida also has it. We would be the only 2 schools in the country doing that and we have tradition and history on our side. LSU, Memphis and Clemson all do the exact same thing with Hold That Tiger. Continue playing the same old songs is boring. The band needs to get creative and in a hurry.

I don’t disagree with you on all of those things you are saying. All of the schools you mentioned with the tradition and fan engagement have been doing those things for at least 50 years and even longer for some.

We do need to get the fans engaged but is copying LSU’s T I G E R S TIGERS and Florida’s chomp the way to go? If you gonna start from scratch 60 years late might as well come up with something original.

I know having half the stadium say RAGIN and the other half say CAJUN doesn’t work. I love solutions give me your original example of what you would like to see them do?

Here is my idea. Florida has the chomp, Ms state has the cowbell, Louisiana needs 30k strong with a miniature wash boards or tri angles 2 instruments very unique to cajun music. Imagine how loud it would get on 3rd down.

[CajunSaint08]

. . . sorry, but students should want to support their athletic teams . . . at least some of them . . . and UP should leave the ones who do the ____ alone . . .

Agreed

[KajunKrazy]

UL needs a classic fanfare that the crowd can participate in. I don’t think rap music is the answer if we want our band and institution to be respected as high-caliber.

We also need to retire RESPECT - that thing is old and dry, and way overdone. Time to make peace.

Not suggesting we copy TSAB, but just an example -“Hey Fightin Tigers” was based on an old Broadway tune that was sung by Lucille Ball in the 50’s. It’s melodic, upbeat, and catchy. UL could write their own or take melody from a lesser known tune and change the words.

Fight On Cajuns, Respect, and Do Watcha Wanna are the only things the band has close to history and tradition and should never go away. If you want to add the go ahead and add. But don’t erase the little bit of tradition they have. I’m 54 and those are the only thing that has been consistent since I was a kid in the 70s.

Who remembers in the 70s when the band used to play the Budweiser song often during games. I miss that too.

[Ragin9221]

New Tradtions New Beginnings!! Let’s Set it Off and Narco!!

[Big Poppa]

New Tradtions New Beginnings!! Let’s Set it Off and Narco!!

Introducing new stuff while doing the old is great. But they don’t become tradition until many years down the road of doing so. Sorta like R E S P E C T started in the 60s or 70s. Traditions don’t start today and become tradition over night.