The percussion section starts its cadence and about 120 members of the pep band take off and do anything and everything on their way to take their positions for the first song.
The Virginia Pep Band consists of students from every year and every school - and even some alumni that are only students at heart - and plays at men's basketball and football games.
"Basically you take out everything that sucked about marching band in high school," said third-year Education student Heather Pozun, the director of the pep band. "Idealistically, pep band is humor-based. It is the jokes that are important."
First-year College student Brian Kidd, a pep band member, said the band has participated in shenanigans like distracting goalies at soccer games.
"At the game against UNC, half the band wore T-shirts that said 'UNC SUCKS,'" Kidd said.
The pep band is a "scramble band," which means the focus of its field show is not on marching, but rather the humor in a script that is announced as the pep band scrambles around the field. The jokes usually are reflected in formations it makes during the show.
"I think the pep band is hilarious," said first-year College student Steve Ander, a pep band fan. "The pep band is so wacky and wild that I can hardly contain myself when they are on the field."
However, some students disagree with this sentiment.
"I think that they have a lot of musical ability, but I wish we had a more traditional marching band," fourth-year Education student Erica Lloyd said.
For many members of the University pep band, there is no denying the fact that the group is unique. That is one of the things that the pep band is most proud of.
"There is no stereotypical [pep] band member," Pozun said. "It is a lot of people that did marching band in high school, and then a lot of people that just love Virginia sports."
The pep band members are free to express this uniqueness through what they choose to put on their vests. Everything from buttons to pictures to stuffed animals is clipped, pinned or somehow stuck to that one article of clothing.
"My favorite thing [on the vest] has to be this cow," class of 2001 alumnus Robert Koehl, a tuba player, said as he affectionately petted the black-and-white stuffed cow pinned to his vest. "I got it on one of the trips that I took with the band, maybe during my first year."
The pep band supports all University sports, including football and field hockey, and men's and women's basketball, lacrosse and soccer. Members are also known for doing what they call "pre-game scrambles" before big sporting events and during events involving the University, like move-in day.
The traveling that the pep band does is one of the rewards for being a dedicated member. One of the managing board members, third-year College student Emily Reuschenberg, said she keeps track of who attends which events so that only the most dedicated members go on the best trips. She said she takes attendance at every event so that people who have not done anything all year do not show up and suddenly get to go.
The band has traveled far and wide with various sports teams. All of the traveling is done with the University's Department of Athletics. According to Pozun, basketball usually takes the band farther away and to better places, but the band did go to the Aloha Bowl with the football team last year.
"We go with the team," she said. "All of our traveling is done with the athletic department. It's one thing that we love and one of our reasons for staying with the athletic department."
Members also accompany sports teams on away games. The pep band has traveled to such places as Memphis, Miami and even Missoula, Montana.
Pep band members stay quite busy, with some arguing that "they put in just as many hours as any athlete," as second-year Nursing student Amy Alderman said.
The pep band holds practice three times a week and with games, events, pre-game scrambles and the occasional social activity, members can sometimes have six or more commitments in a given week.
"We do put a lot of effort into the shows that we produce," first-year Engineering student Matthew Haney said.
At any game in Scott Stadium, there is a sea of orange vests near the front of the stands. During a game at University Hall, there is that unmistakable clump of orange-clad students among the navy blue of the surrounding seats. The pep band is present at a majority of sporting events in support of the teams and anticipates these events with enthusiasm.
"The one event that I am looking forward to is the Virginia Tech game where we will be playing halftime for the first time this year," Kidd said.
For all other football games this year, the athletic department has chosen high-school bands to perform at halftime, not the pep band. And as a response to a complaint about the lack of uniformity of their head gear from the athletic department, the band had "crazy hat day." At the Wake Forest football game, atop the normal orange vested bodies were heads donned with creative hats.
The band showed up wearing everything from jester hats, to Dr. Seuss hats, to a hat that was a flower pot. There were sparkling tiaras, camouflage hats, cowboy hats and even a Burger King crown. Apparently, this sort of thing is not unusual.
"They're just different," Alderman said. "They're not your typical pep band - obviously."
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