Let’s dance: MSU pep bands travel to NCAA Tournament this weekend to support the Dawgs
Contact: Bethany Shipp
STARKVILLE, Miss.—Mississippi State’s basketball teams are not the only groups from MSU heading to the NCAA Tournament. As the Dawgs are dancing in Raleigh, North Carolina, and Los Angeles this week, so are MSU’s pep bands.
The university’s basketball pep bands are ensembles of the Famous Maroon Band with members representing a variety of majors at MSU. The men’s pep band is supporting the men’s basketball team as they face Baylor in Raleigh on Friday [March 21], and the women’s pep band is heading to the City of Angels as the Lady Bulldogs take on California this Saturday, [March 22].
Alexander Nowell, a senior music education major from Tuscaloosa, Alabama, expressed his excitement about the opportunity.
“I am a third-year member of the pep bands, and this is one of my favorite avenues for supporting MSU,” Nowell said. “I am looking forward to seeing what this team can do in Los Angeles and am so excited to be there to support them.”
Twenty-nine students are performing in each band during the tournament, per NCAA regulations. The men’s band is directed by FMB Associate Director Craig Aarhus, while the women’s band is directed by FMB Associate Director Cliff Taylor. In addition to supporting the basketball teams, the students will have the chance to explore the local areas.
“Being part of this group has provided me with a ton of great opportunities and memories that will last a lifetime,” said Megan Campbell, a junior elementary education major from Clinton and third-year member of the men’s band. “This is such a special team, and I am so grateful to have the chance to travel and cheer them on for this tournament.”
In recent years, MSU pep bands have traveled from California to North Carolina and Ohio, as well as Texas, Indiana and Oregon. While on campus, the bands perform at all men’s and women’s home basketball games.
“The directors and student members of our basketball pep bands spend numerous hours throughout the season cheering on the Bulldogs, and we are excited for the opportunity to travel with them to post-season play,” said Elva Kaye Lance, director of bands. “It is great fun for the students to visit other parts of the country and share a little of the Bulldog spirit and tradition with fans from other schools. The pep band members love basketball and the Bulldogs, and traveling with the team to cheer them on in March Madness is certainly a ‘get-to’ moment for our students.”
MSU’s College of Education, home of the Department of Music and Famous Maroon Band, also includes four additional academic departments, a division of education, one research unit and numerous service units. Learn more at https://www.educ.msstate.edu/.
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