Those who know me know that I love college football, especially the Big Ten: the traditions, history, intimidating home stadiums, AND the marching bands. I can remember watching a college game with a friend as the camera panned over the band and I said, “they play a Phantom of the Opera fanfare before big plays.” You can imagine the slow confused look he gave me.
Now this is a totally fun ranking and not meant to be a slight against anyone, however, if your school made the Top 10 Big Ten marching bands, congrats! If you don’t like where your school is ranked and are demanding my criteria, I ranked marching bands based on performance, marching style, in-game participation, ability to rally fan excitement, and most of all my opinion.
You may be confused since there are 14 teams in the Big Ten. Well, my apologies to Rutgers, Maryland, Indiana, and Northwestern, your marching bands did not make my top 10, but here we go with the rest!
10. Illinois
What I like about them: They have a decent pregame performance and at pivotal times during a game while on defense, their band plays a loud version of musical scales just before the snap. Also, their on-field formations of America, Illinois, a Star, Illini, and others are pretty decent to watch.
How they could’ve done better: There aren’t that many fans during pregame (or during the game for that matter), so they don’t exactly electrify the crowd beforehand. During the game, they are perched up very high behind the end zone with very few fans around them. Overall, the Illini band has relatively few unique areas that separate them from other bands.
9. Iowa
What I like about them: They play a crowd-pleasing Darth Vader fanfare after they stop an opponent on 3rd Down and fans also seem to get very excited when they play On Iowa (which I guess isn’t even their fight song).
How they could’ve done better: Their march is unexciting and pregame isn’t that thrilling. I enjoy classy uniforms and there have been some games I’ve noticed band members wearing overalls or baseball hats, even if it is non-conference games. Most of the excitement and noise that I see out of Kinnick Stadium involve traditions that aren’t tied to the band.
8. Minnesota
What I like about them: Outside the fact that Minnesota’s football program has struggled over the decades, they actually have a lot of traditions with the band. John Philip Sousa wrote a famous march for the school called “Minnesota March” which is their march on song. During pregame, they also do a cool Block M for the “Rouser” and then rotate the Block M in unison. During the game, the band gets the crowd engaged with a fun fanfare when their team gets a first down and pounds the drums for “Mars, the Bringer of War” before a defensive play. Lastly, they get the crowd loud by spelling Minnesota after their fight song.
How they could’ve done better: Unless it’s a big game, most people don’t show up for the pregame performance. Also their run-on is quite chaotic as it’s a wild disorderly high step run to get into their field position. When I attended some Gopher games at the old Metrodome, to my horror, there were microphones placed by the marching band to project their sound through the house system. I’ve been to numerous Gopher games over the years and their halftime shows are bland. I was once at a game with the father of a Minnesota student and after their performance on the field, he politely said they weren’t very exciting. Lastly, they lead the stadium in spelling Minnesota after their fight song. You may have noticed I put this in things I like and what they could’ve done better. After the 3rd quarter and 20th time, we get how to spell Minnesota. Rah.
7. Nebraska
What I like about them: During games, they are situated at an interesting spot in the stadium, around the 20-yard line, possibly for acoustics. They have an excellent flag core, fanfares, and musical selections throughout the game. Their pregame show isn’t terribly exciting, but it does the job to get their crowd fired up for gameday.
How they could’ve done better: The Nebraska Band as always felt like a glorified high school marching band. Their march is in sync, but feels like they perfected high school walking while on the field. Also, when they came to Camp Randall Stadium in Madison last year, I wondered why they needed 4 drum majors. Overall, they aren’t very exciting on the field, so I’m sure it was a shock for them to watch Badger fans stay and have so much fun with the Badger band AFTER the Nebraska/Wisconsin game.
6. Michigan State
What I like about them: Similar to their Spartan namesake, their band feels very military in style and sound. Their pregame show has an excellent opening fanfare, great musical composition, and they are able to get fans excited with unified cheers in the process.
How they could’ve done better: Outside of their pregame show, there is not much that stands out with their marching style, game participation, or fan support. Also, their initial run-on style at pregame feels juvenile with the quasi-skipping.
5. Michigan
What I like about them: They carry themselves with charisma and musical excellence. They are one of the few bands that enter the field from a tunnel at mid-field. They are also very involved with fanfares in between football plays. Many of us football fans will know the sound of “Temptation” when Michigan’s opponent fails on 3rd down. They also have great halftime shows. Last year they joined with the Penn State Marching Band to perform musical selections from Game of Thrones during halftime.
How they could’ve done better: I’m never personally captivated by the Michigan band. They may carry themselves with such pride and excellence, that their performance doesn’t seem that exciting. Their drum major typically doesn’t do anything exciting throughout the game and they typically don’t do anything cool or unique while on the field. It seems like there is more to say about Michigan’s Big House or their classic football uniform styles than about their band.
4. Ohio State
What I like about them: Nothing. Just kidding to all my relatives and friends who call Ohio home! There is a lot to like about the Ohio State Marching Band. Their uniforms look very old-fashioned and classy. They are very coordinated on the field and their marching and music is always crisp and clean. If you’ve watched any Buckeye game, chances are they turn cameras to the field during the band’s crown jewel: Script Ohio. The song played during Script Ohio is “Le Regiment de Sambre et Meuse” which is an upbeat French poem and military march. Their halftime shows are impressive as they do interesting formations that few other bands dare to perform. One example of this formation is Michael Jackson moonwalking. They also are very involved with drumming and fanfares in between plays during games.
How they could’ve done better: The band feels small. I’ve been to a few Ohio State games and sometimes it’s hard to hear the band because there are so few playing. I imagine they are selective in choosing only the best for TBDBITL, but they sacrifice volume in the process. Also, one thing I never understood about Script Ohio even when I lived in Ohio, the school is Ohio State or THEE Ohio State, NOT Ohio. This would be like Michigan State spelling out Michigan as a band formation. I get the state pride thing, but Ohio is not your school. Does Ohio University spell out Ohio State? I know this will ruffle many feathers that they aren’t #1 on this list, but this ranking is more than just one band tradition.
3. Wisconsin
What I like about them: I tried to be as non-partisan as possible, since I’m a Badger fan, but this band is unique from all other Big Ten Bands. They do a “stop at the top” marching style which means their march is more pronounced and exciting than all other bands. Band members definitely need to be in shape for this. The band was led for 50 years by well-known conductor Michael Leckrome and he had an emphasis on performance AND entertainment. The Badger Bash pregame show at Union South packs in fans excited for football Saturday. Their pregame run-on is well known in Madison as band members sprint onto the field in coordination to a fast high step as the crowd claps in unison. The band is so unique, they even have their own W logo that is separate from the Wisconsin athletics logo. Finally, every student knows of the “World Famous 5th Quarter” where the band marches back onto the field to lead the crowd in a series of cheers and dances after the game. Most people don’t realize this 5th Quarter tradition was added decades ago to alleviate traffic problems when 80,000 people leave Camp Randall Stadium at the same time.
How they could’ve done better: Tradition is the name of the game in Madison which means as a Badger Fan, you can recite almost everything the band does from start to finish, including PA announcements and song selection during games. Also, for some reason, the band has no fanfares to get the crowd excited in between football plays and they even seem a little disorganized in the stands during the game. And finally, since their march is so unique and entertaining, they sacrifice musical integrity while marching and playing on the field.
2. Penn State
What I like about them: They are definitely a band that aids in getting Beaver Stadium loud. They have an electric pre-game performance that involves several cheers from the crowd and they even have a drum major that runs on to the field and does a front flip at mid-field. The band is situated at an interesting corner angle near the student section and is heavily involved with fanfares in between plays and guiding stadium noise. One of my favorites is when they play the soundtrack “Gladiator” just before a big defensive play. As a side note, they may also have one of my favorite fight songs in the Big Ten: “Fight On, State”, very unique sounding.
How they could’ve done better: Their marching style is fairly bland and I’m not overly impressed with their halftime performances. I’ve seen some half-time shows where they walk into their on-field position instead of a coordinated march like pregame.
1. Purdue
What I like about them: Almost everything. I have been to 3 games at Ross-Ade Stadium. During one game, the seats around us were sparsely filled but then slowly it started to get packed. I wondered why everyone decided to show up around halftime. Then after the band performed, the place around us emptied. I realized many of the fans came just to watch the band! They have a phenomenal pre-game show and so much entertainment on the field: flags, drum majors, baton twirlers, classy uniforms, AND the largest drum in the world. Purdue also has the “oldest marching band formation” in the world with their traditional Block P formation as they perform their fight song: “Hail Purdue”. During games, they are constantly playing fanfares in between plays to get the crowd excited. If you ever get a chance to travel and attend a Big Ten game, make sure watching the Purdue AAMB at Ross-Ade Stadium on a Fall Saturday is on your list!
If you want to see one of their pregame shows in the background on ESPN:
Reaching the Summit 