The Bob Jones band packed their bags and headed to shake up – not stir – their final competition this year-the Outback Bowl. Held on December 31 to January 1, the band competed and won in the field show, parade, marching, percussion and jazz competitions for their class and senior Sarah Schumacher won Best Overall Drum Major. Additionally, they won Best Overall Color Guard and Grand Champions of the Outback Bowl.
“We had pretty stiff competition in our class, so it was great to come away with a win!” said Leigh Thomas, Assistant Band Director, of their experience.
Part of their prize was performing the opening song of their show centered on James Bond before the football game between Louisiana State University and Iowa State University.
Shannon Walker, Captain of the Color Guard, said, “The theme this year was James Bond because it was the 50th anniversary of the series. So this includes dramatic chase scenes, a tempting love interest, and of course, James Bond taking out the bad guy.”
Some students were intimidated by the large crowds, TV cameras, and even celebrity coaches like Les Miles, of LSU, but Elise Stone, senior and Drum Major, said, “ Directing on such a large field was exciting!”
There was at least one familiar face in the crowd rooting for them. Chris Broussard, a sophomore at LSU and an alumnus of the BJHS Band, managed to see some of his old friends between his own performances and theirs.
“I was able to watch the show from the end zone. The sound was very good,” he said congratulating them on their excellent performance.
With such a large competition comes a large amount of practice and hard work. Figuring out how to get over 180 students to Ybor City, a small suburb of Tampa, Florida was the first of many trials. Keeping that number of people in step, on time, and on the right foot was another obstacle.
Band parents helped as much as they could from providing popsicles in the august heat of band camp to chaperoning the excursion. They also filmed the performances and posted them on their web page for all to see. The band rehearsed from the summer and continued through the semester to competition day, when they got one final rehearsal in before judging.
“The students…definitely made an impression on the judges, staff, and crowds,” said their proud director, Ms. Thomas.
