As a sophomore on the JV football team, getting to use the game field to practice is something that rarely happens, so it’s seen as a privilege. Recently, the band has taken up half of Hanson field so that they can practice during time we used to be able to practice on the playing field, forcing us to practice elsewhere.

I am not in band, but do they really deserve the football field over the football team? When we practice on Hanson field, it gives us a feel for what is to come on Friday nights. When the band comes and starts to play their instruments and takes up half of our practice field it is harder to focus and complete plays. It is called a football field for a reason. They don’t need to take up the game field for that. When I was a freshman on the football team, the band had no problem practicing up near us on the JV baseball field, which I had no problem with. Now, I am left wondering what changed.

Given the band hasn’t interrupted our practice in a couple of weeks, this wasn’t the only time that their practice schedule had interfered with a football related event.
When the band showed up, they asked the team to leave the field because they said they had reserved the field. Of course this was met with opposition, because the team had been doing this for 10 years with no prior issues. When the players asked the band members what they were doing there, instead of just explaining the situation and asking nicely, they got angry and even made comments about the team’s recent struggles as a way to defend their claim to the field.

Jerry’s Corner is something that the varsity football team has been doing for the past 10 years, and it is essentially a way for the varsity football team to get in the right frame of mind the night before a game. For the last two weeks, the team has been forced to use the amphitheater, as the band has kicked them off the field.

Like I said before, the team had been doing this for 10 years and never had any problems. Not only did they show up and derail a tradition that many people had been looking forward to since their freshman year, but also verbally attacked the team. Had the band just nicely asked the players to leave, I am sure that they would have been much more receptive.