Kansas State University - Royal Purple Yearbook (Manhattan, KS)

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Home Coming Sparking interest to enhance For the first time in three years, Black Student Union members gathered at the north end of Memorial Stadium to kick off Homecoming ' s Pant the Chant competition. After taking a break from Homecoming ac tivities, BSU entered the organizations ' division confident they would win. They were the only team in that division to compete. We ' d like to see more organizations compete, Colette McLemore, BSU president and senior in social science, said. I think competition would be fun. BSU members began planning to participate in Homecoming about three weeks before competition began. Of the six Homecoming events, BSU competed in two. I think next year we ' ll be involved in more activities rather than just the parade, the chant and banner, Irysha Walker, BSU social director and sophomore in prelaw, said. This is kind of new for us so we just put one foot in rather than jumping in all the way. by barbara hollingsworth Members began the week, Oct. 13-18, by hanging their spirit banner in the K-State Student Union Courtyard. The banner resembled the gray T-shirts members wore for the Pant the Chant competition on Friday. The shirts said, Umoja, wajibu, amali, Swahili for unity, commitment, action — BSU ' s theme for the year. Walker said BSU members enjoyed the variety of students. We ' ve had a lot of newcomers in BSU, she said, and I think they ' ve been really excited about participating in activities that don ' t only involve black students but students of different races. More than 30 members participated in Pant the Chant, but Walker said almost every one of BSU ' s nearly 70 members participated. We ' re bringing in new members and jumping them into Homecoming to spark their interest in BSU, she said. By participating in Homecoming, we ' ve been building our participation and excitement. Pant the Chant was the week ' s highlight, Erika Cannon, freshman in civil engineering, said. Members practiced for the competition at their weekly meeting and the night before the competition. It really gave us all an opportunity to all come together and, not so much as individuals in meetings, but to show ourselves, Cannon said. We ' re a big group of kids. This really gave us an opportunity to come together as older kids and have fun. 10. homecoming

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together at halftime ' While K-State and Texas A M ' s football teams play against each other, their marching bands unite to celebrate 100 years of Stars and Stripes Forever. Saxophone player Amy Lilyhorn, freshman in agricultural economics, watches Texas A M University practice before the game at KSU Stadium. The performance was unique because of the bands ' different marching styles. (Photo by Clif Palmberg) When the Texas A M University Aggies came to Manhattan, the football teams battled, but the bands united. Frank Tracz, K-State Marching Band director, and Col. Ray Toller, Texas A M band director, brought the bands together at halftime Oct. 18 to celebrate the 100th anniversary of John Phillip Sousa ' s famous Stars and Stripes Forever. We ' re very pleased to be invited by Dr. Tracz to perform at Kansas State, Toller said. Dr. Tracz and I are good friends, and we were excited about the performance. Preparations for the show began in spring 1997. The bands finalized details two weeks before the performance and practiced together about 20 minutes before the game. The idea came about last spring when I heard the A M band was coming up for sure, Tracz said. I knew A M was a great band, and we would need to perform our best. After each band ' s separate performance, the bands combined. The more than 600 musicians stood together to play Stars and Stripes Forever as Tracz and Toller conducted. The different military style of Texas A M was difficult for K-State ' s band to adjust to, said Todd Bennett, senior in chemical engineering and clarinet section leader. The difficult part was the way they look at things and trying to work with their tempos and marching styles. Bennett said. Having another band perform at the game made the crowd more attentive, said Erin Irick, sophomore in apparel and textile marketing and piccolo player. It is a little intimidating when a band comes, but it makes us perform better, Irick said. I think we all did well, though, because we were so pumped for the game. by chris davis A Texas A M University band member plays the trumpet during halftime of the Oct. 18 game against K- State. The Cats defeated Texas A M with a final score of 36-17. (Photo by Brandon White) band day.9

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K-State mascot the Wildcat pumps up crowd at Stadium during Homecoming Pant Chant event and More than students and attended to show support before the A M University game. (Photo Brandon White) homecoming.11