A month before the football game against BYU, members of the U’s marching band grow out their beards and some girls refuse to shave their legs.
“Most of (the guys) have beards for the BYU game,” said Megan Ashby, a junior in chemistry who plays clarinet. “It’s just this contest we have in the band.”
Through rain, hail and snow, the U’s marching band goes to all home football games to lend support to the team and boost the morale of the fans.
With practices five days a week for two hours each day, marching band students have to keep time to the music, do the correct steps and still follow their director.
“It takes more time than I expected, but it’s also a lot of fun,” said Zaz McDonald, a freshman in music education.
Brian Sproul, director of the marching band, said the band puts in about two hours of practice for every minute in the football game half-time show.
The band plays a lot in all home and in-state games, and will be sending a small pep band Nov. 15 for the football game against San Diego State.
About 120 band members sit through every game memorizing cheers and game songs.
“Last year, we played in the snowy games,” Ashby said. “(We just) wear layers and hats. Playing is kind of hard in the cold because your fingers are cold and it’s hard to hit the right notes.”
“It can ruin instruments, but we play anyway,” she said. “That’s what we have to do.”
As the football season nears its end, the marching band gets ready to go up against the BYU football team and band rivals in what promises to be one of the biggest games of the season. The game against BYU is one of the performances the band looks forward to and is one of the highlights of the year, Sproul said.
Even though no extra effort goes into the game against BYU, it is a chance for the band to compete against the other band and show off its hard work and dedication.
“There is not only rivalry between the teams but also between the bands,” said C.J. Leoncini, a junior studying music at the U who plays the drums.
The band consists of marching and pep bands, which switch members between seasons depending on who wants to stay on all year. Band members receive a free uniform they wear to every game as well as a $700 scholarship per semester to defray tuition costs.
Ashby said members have to audition for different positions in the band which include a range of instruments such as: clarinet, piccolo, saxophone, trumpet, trombone, drums and a mellophone8212;a brass instrument that sounds like a French horn.
“We get together for band camp the last week before school starts for eight hours a day,” Ashby said. “We practice marching, the school fight song and the halftime shows.”
The band is not all practice and sacrifice8212;it is also a place to meet friends and learn more about working as a team, Sproul said. Band members don’t have to be music majors, they just need to play at a proficient level.
“My six years here have been a life-changing experience,” Leoncini said.
With members coming and going every year, the team aims to have 250 members at one time.
“We are really pushing for support and growth of the team,” Sproul said.
The marching band’s season ends with a couple of practices in December for bowl games. They start practice back up in August.
Lana Groves contributed to this article.
Lucas IsleyThe Utah marching band practices two hours a day five days a week to prepare for their performances at the football games. Like the football team the band looks forward to playing against BYU each year.