Pep band keeps fans enthusiastic during games

By Kathleen Grohman

Can you imagine how lackluster a basketball game would be if the time-outs and breaks were filled with the empty rumbling of a bored crowd? Thanks to the crew of red-and-white striped polos swaying back and forth, slightly out of sync, as they blast the "Ruff Ryders' Anthem," fans have a reason to get on their feet and keep up high energy.

Students often complain that school spirit can be low, but the pep band at Santa Clara allows students to don their Ruff Rider shirts and stomp their feet with pride as they sing, "Remember the right and might of red and white!"

Santa Clara has not always been fortunate enough to have a pep band. Seniors Taylor Thorn and Andrew Willingham started the band in their sophomore year after they were disappointed with the enthusiasm at basketball games.

"Walking into the stadium and hearing the band playing some classic rock tune completely enhances the game-day atmosphere," Thorn said.

Thorn, a music and business management major, plays the string bass. In the pep band, he took on the role of conductor.

Directing the pep band during a game presents some organizational challenges. Thorn said the most difficult part is coordinating with the announcers.

"I get a sheet about what everyone else is doing during the time-outs. Sometimes I'll get yelled at if we play over someone talking because the sponsors want to make sure things get heard," Thorn said.

The pep band includes brass instruments like trumpets, trombones and French horns; woodwinds, like the saxophone; and percussion. The drum line, though, is its own entity because they can play time-outs when the whole band doesn't want to, Thorn said.

As a big sports fan, it was tough at first for Thorn to not focus on watching the game, but now he has gotten the hang of multi-tasking.

"Fifty percent of the time I'm watching, and the other 50 I'm figuring out what to play next," he said.

Being in the band has also given Thorn some perks, like free admission, access to alumni events and great seats at every game.

"I get to stand on the court," he said.

In order to be a good pep band, Thorn and his crew try to live up to their name and pep up the crowd, but this is not always easy.

Thorn said, "During my three years here, we haven't had a great basketball team, so it's hard to keep people motivated."

Thorn said that he sometimes feels people are singing along, especially during songs like "Santa Clara Fight Song," "Ruff Ryders' Anthem" and "The Hey Song."

" 'Ruff Ryders' Anthem,' originally performed by DMX, seems to be a crowd favorite," Thorn said.

This year the pep band began performing in the fall at women's volleyball games. The drum line plays at soccer games, and the band continues to play at events throughout the year for "pretty much anything that goes on inside Leavey," said Thorn.

Thorn and Willingham started the band with 15 members and have added about 15 members a year.

This year there are 40 members, and Thorn projects between 50 and 55 members next year.

Santa Clara had a pep band about five or 10 years before Thorn and Willingham, but Thorn said that it never lasted because the original people who started it graduated.

Thorn is optimistic about the future of this band. "We have a good core of kids, a lot of people that show some leadership ability and really enjoy it," Thorn said.

The pep band is not all work and no play. They often host tailgate parties before big games. The next tailgate, catered by Andy's Bar-B-Que, will be before the Gonzaga game on Feb. 2.

Tickets are $20 for all-you-can-eat. The last day to buy a ticket is Friday at the pep band table in Benson or the information desk.

"For the past three years, Gonzaga has always been the big one," Thorn said.

Contact Kathleen Grohman at (408) 551-1918 or kgrohman@scu.edu.