Something will be missing from Saturday's halftime performance at the 109th Stanford-Cal Big Game: the joyful dancing musicians in the fluorescent clown suits. The Stanford band is grounded, confined to the stands for past misbehavior. The band -- both beloved and reviled for its costumes, antics and raucous rock 'n' roll tunes -- will be allowed on the field to play only ``The Star-Spangled Banner.'' The two collegiate bands have historically shared halftime, but this year Cal's traditional marching band will be the lone entertainment, in lock step, playing Sousa. The band has been on ``provisional status'' after $30,000 to $50,000 worth of vandalism to the Band Shak in mid-July. The university wants all members of the band who vandalized the Shak to be suspended from the band, but it isn't clear who they are. The matter is still under investigation, but alcohol is now off-limits at band activities. And -- except for this weekend, when the rules will be relaxed -- the band has to stay home. ``We're disappointed we will not be able to properly support our football team and the fans,'' said band publicist and trumpet player Chris Holt, 22. ``The student body wants to see us on the field.'' Even Cal feels let down. ``This is the first year in many years they won't be in the field show,'' said alto sax player Max Ghenis of the University of California-Berkeley. ``We've always had a friendly rivalry. The fans like seeing their shows.'' Kickoff for one of college athletics' most storied rivalries is at noon Saturday at Berkeley's Memorial Stadium. Stanford has lost the past four Big Games -- last year, by a humiliating 25 points. In a joint statement released Thursday, Stanford President John Hennessy and UC-Berkeley Chancellor Robert Birgeneau warned students against fighting and mean-spirited ``pranks,'' or damage of property. Misbehaving students will be ejected from the stadium or arrested, they said.
The Stanford band, now on good behavior, takes its job seriously, Holt said. ``We love this school and we love this experience,'' he said. It takes hard work and dedication to be in the band, he said. ``Every week, we come up with concepts and scripts, with two field rehearsals before every game. We take it seriously. We practice and play a lot.'' Their reputation as destructive inebriates is undeserved, he said. While perhaps not the New York Philharmonic, they are not ribald rugby singers, either. ``It's myth and misconception. We have this aura of being rowdy people,'' Holt said.
``We're sober people who are very musical and very enthusiastic,'' he said. ``We are a musical organization with a strong sense of values and integrity, and a fundamental part of the Stanford community.'' The band and its mascot, the Tree, have a long history of livening up Stanford athletics. In February, the Tree was suspended after dancing onto a basketball court. A Breathalyzer test measured her blood alcohol level at 0.157, almost twice the legal driving limit in California. In March, the replacement Tree was ejected after dancing beyond the designated area. Band members protested by pinning foliage to their uniforms. The band's most famous role in collegiate football came at the conclusion of the 85th Big Game in 1982. In what is widely considered the greatest play in college football history, four Cal players lateraled the ball five times on a kickoff return with four seconds left on the clock. The final ball carrier ran for a touchdown -- directly through the Stanford band, which had prematurely rushed onto the field to celebrate. One band member had to be hospitalized for injuries. Closer oversight is necessary, according to a member of the athletic department, who asked not to be identified. A band ``reinstatement committee'' is meeting twice every month to discuss restrictions on the group.
The band's Holt agrees that the wrongdoers deserve to be punished -- but not the entire band and the student body. This week, band members have performed at on-campus rallies, as well as volleyball and basketball games. Saturday, they'll be in the stands. ``We'll be sitting on our hands,'' Holt said.
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