The Magic of Music in Motion: USF’s Herd of Thunder marching band marks a grand tradition in its 25th year

By DAVE SCHEIBER

JUST BEYOND THE DIN OF AFTERNOON rush-hour traffic on Fowler Avenue, a jam of a different kind takes shape on a sprawling USF practice field. Overhead, gray and white clouds billow against a blue backdrop, a vibrant sideshow to the cacophony of brass, woodwinds and percussion warming up beside fluttering Color Guard flags. It is as if the sky has heard the Herd and wants in on the act.

Welcome to another evening practice for USF’s marching band, the Herd of Thunder, aka HOT, one of up to four weekly three-hour rehearsals during football season. After a long day of classes and part-time jobs, students toting instrument cases, flags, rifles and sabers converge on Fowler Field just before 6 p.m. to rehearse before the Bulls’ next home football game at Raymond James Stadium.

For the past 25 years, the HOT band has united students and staff and nurtured an enduring bond, with friendships that last long after the final halftime show.

Outwardly, the Fowler Field scene has changed since the summer of 1998, when USF’s first Herd of Thunder practiced “The Mission,” an anthem composed by its inaugural director, Sid Haton. That initial band camp under a sweltering summer sun drew some 160 members. Today, the Herd of Thunder marks its silver anniversary with numbers exceeding 350.

Their formations have become more intricate, their performances more sophisticated, and they now sometimes rehearse in the new, air-conditioned Porter Family Indoor Performance Facility. Yet, in other ways they remain the same. They still stampede from the stadium tunnel onto the field for their pregame show. And they still play “The Mission” at the end of every game.

Cherished traditions can be created only when one invested generation passes them along to the next. In 2009, HOT alumni were invited for the first time to join the band on the field during the Homecoming game. Nineteen enthusiastic Bulls answered the call. This year, the annual Homecoming reunion performance drew a record 158 former HOT members.

“As corny as it sounds, the band acts like a family,” says Director of Athletic Bands Trevor Butts, ’15 and MM ’20. “The ties the students establish throughout band camp starting in freshman year remain very strong.”

Continue reading in USF Magazine