-
1 of 10
-
2 of 10
-
3 of 10
-
4 of 10
-
5 of 10
-
6 of 10
-
7 of 10
-
8 of 10
-
9 of 10
-
10 of 10
Man in the stands: I’m with the band
Archive
Comments
Story
Every game day when I enter Bronco Stadium I feel a rush of sensory overload. The sight of waves of blue and orange clad fans entering every corner of the stadium, the smell of sweet roasting nuts and cheap hotdogs, the uncomfortable feeling of a radio headset in my ear and the brush of other fans rushing to find the best seat in the house.
But perhaps the most overwhelming sensation of all is the sounds. From the roar of the crowd after a great play to the “Boise State chant,” to the stadium announcer’s “And that’s another Bronco … ” to Paul J. Snyder and Jeff Caves radio call telling me what’s happening in a game – I can see perfectly fine
for myself.
However, there is one sound that drowns out all other sounds combined. That sound is the band, also known as The Keith Stein Blue Thunder Marching Band, under the direction of David A. Wells.
Perhaps the rush comes because the band is so large, with more than 100 members blowing in horns and banging on drums.
These guys and gals are as much a part of game day as the team themselves. And they are growing.
Wells, just like football coaches, has to hit the road to convince talented musicians to come to Boise and play in the band.
The band does more than just play music. Band members dance, jump, jiggle, shout, wave, mock and chant. Even though I can’t always make out the words to these chants I can tell they are having fun.
I tried to get some of the members to let me in on the chants but they insist they are not organized chants, they grow organically from within and are different every time.
As much prodding as I did, they would only let me in on The Beer Chant. One member screams “Beer” and the rest of them shout back “Glorious Beer.”
I also couldn’t get them to tell me any stories from that one time at band camp.
Troy Sawyer
Business Manager