THE MUSTANG BAND

[DiamondM]

WreckEm(and others),

First, WreckEm, thanks for visiting our fan board. I have enjoyed your contributions and hope that they continue despite the exchanges in this thread. I just have a couple of points to add to the discussion. To put them in context, you should know, if you do not already, that I am a Mustang Band alum, and was also in the Duke Band while attending law school. I have also sat in with the KU band (grew up in Kansas) and have seen many, many bands both at football and basketball games in the last 15 or so years. I am also married to a Red Raider, so I am much less likely to think or say "Tech Sucks" than other SMU fans might be. That said:

1. Personally, the whole "you represent the university while in uniform, so do not cuss, do not say 'sucks' do not put down your opponent or the refs" seems a little high school to me. If the Tech Band really is held to those standards, then your director has more control over 400 18-22 year old college students than I've ever seen (with the possible exception of the (ick) Aggie Corps and the Military Academies). But if that is what works in the Tech Band, then that is its personality. Each band has a different one. And the lily white, do-not ever-ever-put-down-your-opponent-school one is a rare personality in my experience. The Mustang Band's personality is rowdier and more crass than some, but not as crass as others. To say that you have never, ever, ever heard a member of an opposing band say your university sucks most likely means that you have not been listening very much. I've seen it happen many times (and I don't mean by just Mustang Band or Duke Band members). The Stanford Band "represents" their univeristy a whole lot differently than the BYU band. And their fans appreciate them for that, even if opposing fans do not always.

2. Plus I doubt the entire Tech Band (which I enjoy by the way) is really, truly wearing halos and acting like good little boys and girls (or else being kicked out of games) all the time. Do you want me to bring a tape recorder to the UT and A&M games and sit near the band to test this theory? I doubt it.

3. Having said that, now that I am a little older and less likely to scream "At least we don't have to go back to Lubbock" or less kind quips at a quiet point in a game when we are getting our butts kicked, I do sometimes cringe at what the Mustang Band is yelling in their zealous support of SMU. I will agree with you that although the Band is loud, it is often not very witty. The ubiquitous "Bullsh*t" in response to a bad call and "XYZ Sucks" don't so much offend the moral sensiblities as they make me slightly embarrassed at the lack of creativity. This comes in part from my time as a Cameron Crazy, I suspect. So I implore the Mustang Band to be more creative in their taunts -- no need to stop taunting altogether.

4. Finally, I had several people sitting near me and my husband in section 118 specifically compliment the Mustang Band. I think the disapproval was localized within earshot.

[This message has been edited by DiamondM (edited 09-05-2003).]

[WreckEm16]

Diamond - Thanks for your comments. If I've given the impression that the Goin' Band is made up of a bunch of choir boys, I greatly apologize. The 400+ members are as rowdy a group of Tech students as you could ask for. They're just held to a very strict code when in public, ESPECIALLY when they visit other teams' stadiums. This certainly doesn't mean they don't enjoy singing "Texas Bites" whenever UT accidentally gets into the endzone or swaying along to "I want my mommy" when the Forest Rangers from ATM come to town.

Look, my one and only point was that the SMU band wouldn't have been harrassed if they hadn't gone out of their way to taunt the Tech student section. That's all. No condonement for any Tech fan's actions, and no disrespect intended to a very fine band. I'm glad people were complimenting you; you certainly earned it.

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"Having said that, now that I am a little older and less likely to scream "At least we don't have to go back to Lubbock""
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Oh, how I wish. I'm in Ft. Worth this semester on an internship - you wouldn't believe me if I told you how homesick I was.

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And when I die
You can bury me
In Lubbock, Texas,
In my jeans.

-Mac Davis

[abezontar]

I too am a former memeber of the band......Wreckem.....I don't know that there was a single away game I went to, be it football or b-ball tournaments where there wasn't someone from the opposing team taunting the band or its individual members, to say that any band or fan deserves to be harassed, or deserves to have anything retaliatory done to them makes at least one of the parties out to be innocent. I'm sorry but no one is innocent in this situation, and nothing can really be said to defend either party other than to say college students will be college students, and drunkards will be drunkards.