Wednesday, August 19, 2009

Love Letter to the "Pride of the Sunshine"

Dear Fightin' Gator Marching Band,

I am sorry on how bad I have treated you. I ignore you, take you for granted, live life as if you are a given. The only band I wanted to listen to at the Swamp was FAMU. During halftime I could give 2 shits what you did.

This all changed during the 2003/2004 basketball season. I got into a routine with Eddy Davis (Outereach) and Dr. Tone Portela (House 112). We used to go to the bars on University Ave. crush some adult beverages & make our way over to the O'dome.

It was my first time ever sitting in the Rowdy Reptiles section and during an intermission your Basketball Pep Band played a rendition of "You Can Call me Al". I lost my shit. We lost our shit. The Rowdy Reptiles blew a hole through the O'dome's Teflon-coated roof. The crowd would get into it as if we were at a wedding singing "Shout" ....we would take it a little bit softer now , a little bit lower now and then blow the whole place apart.


I was hooked. I thought niceeeeee...everywhere we go we get to watch good ass sports teams and jam on the side. I'm a big dancer in case you didn't know. I was born to shake it. JP and I watch So You Think You Can Dance faithfully.


Then I went to the BCS game in Glendale, Arizona and my seats where right next to YOU under that giant cactus turd they call University of Phoenix Stadium . Only an aisle separated my double-fisting body of booze from you. I was running back and forth, up and down, the aisle beggin' you to play "You Can Call Me Al" spilling beer all over YOU.

Then I saw the Drum Major break it down and I thought I was at a Quince in Signature Gardens...I mean wtf we are killing Ohio (cant spell cOck SUcker with out OSU) State and we are breaking it down on the sidelines. Life couldn't get any better.




I mean I'm just sorry that I have failed to tell you how important you are to me and my experiences with Gator Football and Basketball. I hope you can forgive me and realize you too are part of this greatness.

Thanks for keeping my blood flowing....

PS
Def. enjoy how you can freestyle with the GPD.. I didnt know the cops in G'ville were would let you jam out on their motorcycles.

3 comments:

Wall Street Gator said...

love it...my two (2) fond band memories are after our 2nd national basketball championship I was behind the band and Al Horford came over to give them some love and I jumped in there and got a great picture of him...secondly, me and the gnome in FL/GA last year where I took a celebratory shot with the band rocking out as they were exiting the stadium...classic shot. DA-DADADA...Go Gators!

Gomer said...

So cool how the drum major jams out.

I was there for WSG's second memory. Great times. The band was fired up and so were we. Remember how we high-fived them all while they were headed back to the bus?

"Good work. Way to keep the crowd fired up! Liked your blowing out there Tuba boy, keep that up and we'll move you up a row".

It's important to encourage them.

Go give 'em their proper due.
Go Gators.

Caro said...

Did you also know that the Pride of the Sunshine rocked out to Michael Jackson's Thriller one year.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HCmL74Wiw4Q


How cool is that????!!!