To many, football games are fun and relaxing, but the number of people who spend hours to make it happen often go unnoticed. Two groups who work hard together at games are the marching band and color guard. On top of everything else, the students in these groups spend over six hours a week practicing, and that does not include the hours spent at football games Friday nights. 

“It is lots of hours on top of AP classes, and essays to be written and all the extra things high schoolers have to take care of a week,” Stephen Long, the marching band director, said. 

Members not only spend hours in the afternoon, but they devote time during their summer breaks. In early July, they begin weeks of practice. 

“The summer band practices were very hot and tiring, but very needed. It was how we got the foundation of our music and our drill,” Byron Harris, sophomore, said. 

Practice consists of color guard and marching band working together to memorize the music, choreography and each spot on the field that every person stands on. The band director compares it to a coordinate plane. He describes each member standing in their spot in the imaginary X and Y axis to make different shapes. Everyone must work together as a whole. 

“It is pretty athletic. It takes a lot of concentration,” Long said. 

To many students, the practice is important. Some even think there is not enough. 

“I feel that it is necessary because we need to be able to improve, and we need to be able to have enough time to learn all the things that we need,” Seth Gallman, freshman, said.  

Despite the hard work, many members of both marching band and color guard love the outcome and are happy to be at practice. 

“At times, it can be very stressful because it takes up so much time, and you have to have stuff memorized, but the thing is, you have a whole band family here for you to support you and help you through it. I love playing music and the atmosphere. The rush you get when you finally finish the show and you get to see the crowd cheering is amazing,” Kaitlyn Gower, freshman, said. 

Long selected the theme, “Dream,” for this year because it would give band the opportunity to use popular music, including selections from Willy Wonka and Sleeping Beauty. 

“We try and come up with a theme the students will enjoy and one that will do well in our competition format. Dreams came about because it allows us to explore both exciting and scary moods through our music,” Long said. 

The band uses a bed prop, made by parents, to explore the theme more. 

“It is used to help convey the dream theme and is used to highlight soloists and important impact moments throughout the program,” Long said. 

The long hours of practice combined with friendships forged in the process factor into the great show we see on the field.