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Post by unafied on Jan 4, 2019 8:13:49 GMT -6
I plead ignorance as to how a pep band works. Is it made up of certain members of the POD? Do you volunteer? Are certain folks invited to be take part? I guess I just don’t understand how it can be an extra cost. And again, maybe this is where my ignorance plays part. If the pep band members are separate from the POD, and maybe on additional scholarships and/or financial aid, that can make some sense. Otherwise I’m struggling to see cost being a factor. It’s not like we’re asking them to carry a pep band to road games, just play in Flowers. What am I missing? I'm still finding out the specifics on that. What I understand, currently, is that POD members were paid a stipend for pep band on top of their band scholarship. This is also how UWF does their pep band. I'm not sure on Bama, Auburn, or FCS programs. When I was in the POD, back in the day, it was expected that scholarship recipients would volunteer for some of these "extra" gigs. I gladly did! I loved pep band. Also, when I was a HS student in the 80s, UNA brought full HS bands in to be the pep band every now and then. They would send copies of the fight song before hand. The stipend part doesn't surprise me. I was just totally clueless as to how it all works. Appreciate the info. I realize it's difficult to ask kids to volunteer their time outside of classes/POD practice/work/social life, etc. So I certainly don't have a problem with giving them a little something extra. But I would not have guessed it adds up to $10 - 15k. And that's not to imply I think Linder is lying, because I don't. It's just frustrating. I don't want to be known as the board's negative nellie, but gosh, these are the kind of cost-cutting measures I feared. I was an advocate of staying D2 *until* we could make sure stuff like this doesn't happen. As much as I love football, I don't want to pour all our resources into it while every other team suffers.
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Post by unafied on Jan 4, 2019 8:15:34 GMT -6
Former member of POD here. Yes. Members of the band were paid a stipend to be in pep band. This is how it is done at most schools since basketball has so many more games than football, which is just once a week and mostly always on the same day of the week. Pep band is a specialty group outside of the official marching and concert bands that band scholarships specifically pay for. (Marching and concert bands are official classes and the organizations music majors are required by college curriculum to be in as part of their degree. Pep band is voluntary and “outside the standard curriculum,” so a stipend is usually paid to entice band members to participate since it is hours they can’t be working a job or doing other college activities.) Thanks 2001. Good information.
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Post by brandon on Jan 4, 2019 10:52:41 GMT -6
I'm still finding out the specifics on that. What I understand, currently, is that POD members were paid a stipend for pep band on top of their band scholarship. This is also how UWF does their pep band. I'm not sure on Bama, Auburn, or FCS programs. When I was in the POD, back in the day, it was expected that scholarship recipients would volunteer for some of these "extra" gigs. I gladly did! I loved pep band. Also, when I was a HS student in the 80s, UNA brought full HS bands in to be the pep band every now and then. They would send copies of the fight song before hand. The stipend part doesn't surprise me. I was just totally clueless as to how it all works. Appreciate the info. I realize it's difficult to ask kids to volunteer their time outside of classes/POD practice/work/social life, etc. So I certainly don't have a problem with giving them a little something extra. But I would not have guessed it adds up to $10 - 15k. And that's not to imply I think Linder is lying, because I don't. It's just frustrating. I don't want to be known as the board's negative nellie, but gosh, these are the kind of cost-cutting measures I feared. I was an advocate of staying D2 *until* we could make sure stuff like this doesn't happen. As much as I love football, I don't want to pour all our resources into it while every other team suffers. Give it some time. We are in year 1. We have not made any NCAA money yet, that will be in time to come. I did talk to a donor last night, she tells me that at the moment, money has to go to things that are absolutely needed and (I am quoting now) "I also inquired about a band at basketball games, and after I was told what the money is going toward, I am happy about it. I can't share the plans, but it's in the best interests of the athletic programs." I take that as, until revenue starts coming in, we have to be smart with money we have.
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Post by lions09 on Jan 4, 2019 11:32:07 GMT -6
The stipend part doesn't surprise me. I was just totally clueless as to how it all works. Appreciate the info. I realize it's difficult to ask kids to volunteer their time outside of classes/POD practice/work/social life, etc. So I certainly don't have a problem with giving them a little something extra. But I would not have guessed it adds up to $10 - 15k. And that's not to imply I think Linder is lying, because I don't. It's just frustrating. I don't want to be known as the board's negative nellie, but gosh, these are the kind of cost-cutting measures I feared. I was an advocate of staying D2 *until* we could make sure stuff like this doesn't happen. As much as I love football, I don't want to pour all our resources into it while every other team suffers. Give it some time. We are in year 1. We have not made any NCAA money yet, that will be in time to come. I did talk to a donor last night, she tells me that at the moment, money has to go to things that are absolutely needed and (I am quoting now) "I also inquired about a band at basketball games, and after I was told what the money is going toward, I am happy about it. I can't share the plans, but it's in the best interests of the athletic programs." I take that as, until revenue starts coming in, we have to be smart with money we have. We've had a pep band for years. I call BS!
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Post by unafied on Jan 4, 2019 12:31:45 GMT -6
The stipend part doesn't surprise me. I was just totally clueless as to how it all works. Appreciate the info. I realize it's difficult to ask kids to volunteer their time outside of classes/POD practice/work/social life, etc. So I certainly don't have a problem with giving them a little something extra. But I would not have guessed it adds up to $10 - 15k. And that's not to imply I think Linder is lying, because I don't. It's just frustrating. I don't want to be known as the board's negative nellie, but gosh, these are the kind of cost-cutting measures I feared. I was an advocate of staying D2 *until* we could make sure stuff like this doesn't happen. As much as I love football, I don't want to pour all our resources into it while every other team suffers. Give it some time. We are in year 1. We have not made any NCAA money yet, that will be in time to come. I did talk to a donor last night, she tells me that at the moment, money has to go to things that are absolutely needed and (I am quoting now) "I also inquired about a band at basketball games, and after I was told what the money is going toward, I am happy about it. I can't share the plans, but it's in the best interests of the athletic programs." I take that as, until revenue starts coming in, we have to be smart with money we have. I totally agree with that, I just don't like taking two steps backward to go one step forward. We hear that we need to fill Braly to eventually get a new stadium. Ok, that makes sense. Well, what if they cut out the POD entirely next year? Think a lot of fans would decide not to come? We all know they would. We can make fun of the people that show up mostly just to hear the halftime show, but the truth is, the reason they do it is because the POD is damn good at what they do. So I get that. Obviously the pep band is a much, much smaller part of going to a basketball game. But it's still important, and in a season where the play on the court (or at least the record) isn't going to inspire people to come out, why make the game experience even a little less fun? I get that they've added a lot of things, crowd interaction with the big screens and whatnot. But I'd take the band over all of that and I know I'm not alone. Not saying the crowd interaction is a bad thing - just that they removed one piece of the puzzle while adding pieces on the other side.
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Post by brandon on Jan 4, 2019 12:37:51 GMT -6
Give it some time. We are in year 1. We have not made any NCAA money yet, that will be in time to come. I did talk to a donor last night, she tells me that at the moment, money has to go to things that are absolutely needed and (I am quoting now) "I also inquired about a band at basketball games, and after I was told what the money is going toward, I am happy about it. I can't share the plans, but it's in the best interests of the athletic programs." I take that as, until revenue starts coming in, we have to be smart with money we have. We've had a pep band for years. I call BS! Dont take this as me taking up for Linder, or anyone, but, like Andy said, they didnt get paid for being in the pep band. And from what it sounds like, other D1 schools pep bands do. So if they got voluntarily pep band, they would eventually start not volunteering because they know they could be getting paid for it. Like what was said in my previous post from the donor, the money that could be paying a pep band is going to fund something else for the time being in the athletics dept.
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Post by brandon on Jan 4, 2019 12:41:50 GMT -6
Give it some time. We are in year 1. We have not made any NCAA money yet, that will be in time to come. I did talk to a donor last night, she tells me that at the moment, money has to go to things that are absolutely needed and (I am quoting now) "I also inquired about a band at basketball games, and after I was told what the money is going toward, I am happy about it. I can't share the plans, but it's in the best interests of the athletic programs." I take that as, until revenue starts coming in, we have to be smart with money we have. I totally agree with that, I just don't like taking two steps backward to go one step forward. We hear that we need to fill Braly to eventually get a new stadium. Ok, that makes sense. Well, what if they cut out the POD entirely next year? Think a lot of fans would decide not to come? We all know they would. We can make fun of the people that show up mostly just to hear the halftime show, but the truth is, the reason they do it is because the POD is damn good at what they do. So I get that. Obviously the pep band is a much, much smaller part of going to a basketball game. But it's still important, and in a season where the play on the court (or at least the record) isn't going to inspire people to come out, why make the game experience even a little less fun? I get that they've added a lot of things, crowd interaction with the big screens and whatnot. But I'd take the band over all of that and I know I'm not alone. Not saying the crowd interaction is a bad thing - just that they removed one piece of the puzzle while adding pieces on the other side. Other than halftime, it feels like they have cut out the POD. They barely play anymore during the game unless we score. To be honest, I'm a lot more pissed about that than the pep band. And I like the pep band, so dont think I'm hating on that.
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Post by unafied on Jan 4, 2019 12:51:16 GMT -6
I totally agree with that, I just don't like taking two steps backward to go one step forward. We hear that we need to fill Braly to eventually get a new stadium. Ok, that makes sense. Well, what if they cut out the POD entirely next year? Think a lot of fans would decide not to come? We all know they would. We can make fun of the people that show up mostly just to hear the halftime show, but the truth is, the reason they do it is because the POD is damn good at what they do. So I get that. Obviously the pep band is a much, much smaller part of going to a basketball game. But it's still important, and in a season where the play on the court (or at least the record) isn't going to inspire people to come out, why make the game experience even a little less fun? I get that they've added a lot of things, crowd interaction with the big screens and whatnot. But I'd take the band over all of that and I know I'm not alone. Not saying the crowd interaction is a bad thing - just that they removed one piece of the puzzle while adding pieces on the other side. Other than halftime, it feels like they have cut out the POD. They barely play anymore during the game unless we score. To be honest, I'm a lot more pissed about that than the pep band. And I like the pep band, so dont think I'm hating on that. I don't. I realize this whole process is not cheap. Without being on the inside it's hard to know what difficult decisions were made as it concerns the financials. But what would fans do if we weren't allowed to vent our frustration? Very much agree with you on the football games, as well. I hate the PA music. Heck, it's a small thing, but they don't even play the "full" version of the fight song anymore. Just the abbreviated version.
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Post by unalions on Jan 4, 2019 12:51:44 GMT -6
Other than halftime, it feels like they have cut out the POD. They barely play anymore during the game unless we score. To be honest, I'm a lot more pissed about that than the pep band. And I like the pep band, so dont think I'm hating on that. Don't even get me started on the atmosphere at the football games. It's horrible compared to other DI schools. The band plays plenty but could play more. I'm just about done with being a fan. How disappointing.
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Post by unalions on Jan 4, 2019 12:53:08 GMT -6
Other than halftime, it feels like they have cut out the POD. They barely play anymore during the game unless we score. To be honest, I'm a lot more pissed about that than the pep band. And I like the pep band, so dont think I'm hating on that. I don't. I realize this whole process is not cheap. Without being on the inside it's hard to know what difficult decisions were made as it concerns the financials. But what would fans do if we weren't allowed to vent our frustration? Very much agree with you on the football games, as well. I hate the PA music. Heck, it's a small thing, but they don't even play the "full" version of the fight song anymore. Just the abbreviated version. They play abbreviated after a TD until the PAT is kicked. Then, they play the full fight song with cheer. Are you there and paying attention?
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Post by 1949lions on Jan 4, 2019 13:06:05 GMT -6
Ugh. Maybe I'll just stay home instead.
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Post by unafied on Jan 4, 2019 13:58:41 GMT -6
I don't. I realize this whole process is not cheap. Without being on the inside it's hard to know what difficult decisions were made as it concerns the financials. But what would fans do if we weren't allowed to vent our frustration? Very much agree with you on the football games, as well. I hate the PA music. Heck, it's a small thing, but they don't even play the "full" version of the fight song anymore. Just the abbreviated version. They play abbreviated after a TD until the PAT is kicked. Then, they play the full fight song with cheer. Are you there and paying attention? Ha. Well, I took a three year old to the only game I was able to get to this year. So, I could be wrong. It happens a lot. I'm not a musical guy when it comes to the technical jargon, so it's hard to describe what I mean. There is an abbreviated, maybe 5-second long version that they do after the TD. Then there's a version that is played that is longer, that to my ears still doesn't cover the entire song. If you reference the actual words (lyrics?), it leaves out a few lines. I was trying to sing the entire song to my daughter and had to leave them out. It's not a big deal, but if we're already here complaining, I might as well get my licks in while I can.
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Post by tuna85 on Jan 4, 2019 14:21:51 GMT -6
Dissapointing thread. Leadership can either be reactive or proactive. Which will inspire passion and keep interest in the program? Which will cause it to wane? Either you are serious about the move up or not. Reactive is a sign of not knowing how to proceed in my book. Rome could burn to the ground while folks figure out a proper way to line up a bucket brigade. I still have not seen or heard of any plan to get out of or outright own Braly by the year 2050 (would prefer no later than 2025 but that window is rapidly closing cause there is no proposed plan with milestones). Don't have anything personal against the AD or department but, I get the impression they want Joe fan to lead this effort. It will not happen. Joe fan is looking for direction and a visible plan from the University and the Athletic Dept. Point out the path and plan and Joe Fan will support it. Wait on Joe Fan to come up with the plan and it will be a long wait. Joe Fan needs a vision.
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Post by unalions on Jan 4, 2019 14:23:01 GMT -6
They play abbreviated after a TD until the PAT is kicked. Then, they play the full fight song with cheer. Are you there and paying attention? Ha. Well, I took a three year old to the only game I was able to get to this year. So, I could be wrong. It happens a lot. I'm not a musical guy when it comes to the technical jargon, so it's hard to describe what I mean. There is an abbreviated, maybe 5-second long version that they do after the TD. Then there's a version that is played that is longer, that to my ears still doesn't cover the entire song. If you reference the actual words (lyrics?), it leaves out a few lines. I was trying to sing the entire song to my daughter and had to leave them out. It's not a big deal, but if we're already here complaining, I might as well get my licks in while I can. Lol. No, you're partially correct! It seems there are several versions the band currently plays. Maybe our former (more recent) POD member will chime in again on this. After a score, it's a very quick fanfare of the portion of the song near the end with lyrics "Go, Fight, UNA! We are behind you all the way!" (1:19 in the pre-game video below) At pre-game (and sometimes after a TD), they are playing a version with a section omitted in the middle. It jumps to the cheer much faster - which I assume has to also do with pre-game time allotment. There's also the full version, which they sometimes sing part of.
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Post by unafied on Jan 4, 2019 14:55:26 GMT -6
Ha. Well, I took a three year old to the only game I was able to get to this year. So, I could be wrong. It happens a lot. I'm not a musical guy when it comes to the technical jargon, so it's hard to describe what I mean. There is an abbreviated, maybe 5-second long version that they do after the TD. Then there's a version that is played that is longer, that to my ears still doesn't cover the entire song. If you reference the actual words (lyrics?), it leaves out a few lines. I was trying to sing the entire song to my daughter and had to leave them out. It's not a big deal, but if we're already here complaining, I might as well get my licks in while I can. Lol. No, you're partially correct! It seems there are several versions the band currently plays. Maybe our former (more recent) POD member will chime in again on this. After a score, it's a very quick fanfare of the portion of the song near the end with lyrics "Go, Fight, UNA! We are behind you all the way!" (1:19 in the pre-game video below) At pre-game (and sometimes after a TD), they are playing a version with a section omitted in the middle. It jumps to the cheer much faster - which I assume has to also do with pre-game time allotment. There's also the full version, which they sometimes sing part of. Good stuff! I knew I wasn't crazy. The version with the middle section omitted is definitely what I remember as the "long" version played, at least, during the Homecoming game. If they played the entire version of the song, I must have missed it. Ah well. Call me crazy, but I just really like our fight song and want to hear it as much as possible. Going back to the pep band situation, that's one of my biggest issues with the whole situation. I think during the doubleheader I went to on November 10th they played it ONCE, during the men's intro (though I arrived a few minutes late and missed the women coming out onto the court). Piping it in wouldn't be great, but it beats not hearing it at all.
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