03-31-2015, 11:49 PM
With the slow stretch of the year in college sports rapidly approaching - not to mention Nekton Neon Night - it seems as good a time as any to throw out suggestions for improving on some of the "new traditions." It's easy to complain about them (as I've done here before) without offering up any other alternative ideas. Having said that, then, here are a couple:
My first suggestion involves borrowing a Wisconsin tradition - though probably not the one that you may think (one that doesn't involve House of Pain). I say borrowing instead of copying because it involves something we already do - or, more specifically, something our band already does: play "Hot Time." What Wisconsin, does, though, is play it right after touchdowns:
The obvious criticism may be to say we're just copying Wisconsin, to which I would respond: Fair enough - but our band has been playing "Hot Time" for as long as I can remember. I think this would be a neat way to acknowledge one of our band's long-running traditions, and I believe this could become one tradition that older alumni would be more likely to embrace. The fight song could be played after the extra point, and if P.J. wants to keep playing "Chelsea Dagger," ILLMIX could spin it before kickoff.
My second suggestion has to do with the student section RTB dance between the third and fourth quarters. As it is now, I think you'll get some students will fully embrace it and others who, no matter how successful we may become, will shy away from it just because they think it is lame. The student section RTB dance doesn't need to be eliminated - just modified in a manner that makes it more inviting and, as a result, more inclusive. The solution: crowd rowing. I've seen high school student sections do this at basketball games and have a blast with it. Unfortunately, I was unable to find any good YouTube clips from sporting events. Apologies for the concert footage - it was the best example I could find, but it gets the main point across:
Like I said, just a couple of ideas - figured it couldn't hurt to throw them out there. If you don't like them, feel free to throw them right back - or offer any other suggestions you may have.
My first suggestion involves borrowing a Wisconsin tradition - though probably not the one that you may think (one that doesn't involve House of Pain). I say borrowing instead of copying because it involves something we already do - or, more specifically, something our band already does: play "Hot Time." What Wisconsin, does, though, is play it right after touchdowns:
The obvious criticism may be to say we're just copying Wisconsin, to which I would respond: Fair enough - but our band has been playing "Hot Time" for as long as I can remember. I think this would be a neat way to acknowledge one of our band's long-running traditions, and I believe this could become one tradition that older alumni would be more likely to embrace. The fight song could be played after the extra point, and if P.J. wants to keep playing "Chelsea Dagger," ILLMIX could spin it before kickoff.
My second suggestion has to do with the student section RTB dance between the third and fourth quarters. As it is now, I think you'll get some students will fully embrace it and others who, no matter how successful we may become, will shy away from it just because they think it is lame. The student section RTB dance doesn't need to be eliminated - just modified in a manner that makes it more inviting and, as a result, more inclusive. The solution: crowd rowing. I've seen high school student sections do this at basketball games and have a blast with it. Unfortunately, I was unable to find any good YouTube clips from sporting events. Apologies for the concert footage - it was the best example I could find, but it gets the main point across:
Like I said, just a couple of ideas - figured it couldn't hurt to throw them out there. If you don't like them, feel free to throw them right back - or offer any other suggestions you may have.