College Football Awards: Fight Songs and Music

In honor of the upcoming rivalry weekends, conference championship games, and bowl games, I took it upon myself to search the nation over… or the teams I have watched on TV for the best/worst of college football. One of the things that makes a college football game great is music. Sure, there’s music that comes over the loudspeaker, but mostly from the “band geeks”. From the drum line, to the trombones, to the giant tubas there is something special about the songs and the unique way all the instruments blend as one harmonious sounds. Not to mention, there’s something about the band with a touchdown that makes you feel that much better when the home team scores.

So, without further adieu, here are the college football music awards *fanfare, fanfare*

1. Best Entrance Music

A good start can lead to an even better finish. Here, in rank order, are the best songs for a college football entrance

3. “2001 Space Odyssey” South Carolina Gamecocks

Not only did this fight song come from a great movie, the South Carolina band has a great tribute to the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra and the movie that it parallels. Plus, who wouldn’t get pumped up to a song like that? It’s a great tradition and it definitely deserves praise for one of the best entrance songs

2. “Battle Hymn of the Republic” Georgia Bulldogs

There is something about this song that I will never begin to understand. However, when the lone trumpet player stands in the southwest corner of Sanford Stadium, there is a glimmer in every Georgia fans eyes, goose bumps and hair on the back of people’s neck stand up, and this song charges up every single Georgia fan until they explode with excitement. The game I attended left me speechless, and I have never heard a stadium so loud in my life. Kudos, UGA, kudos.

1. “Enter Sandman” Virginia Tech Hokies

For anyone who has known me, I am very much against music that comes from a loudspeaker at a college football game. However, when I attended the ACC Championship Game last year in Jacksonville Florida. There were thousands of Virginia Tech fans literally starving for that song when they saw the Hokies in the entrance tunnel. When the loudspeaker turned on the song, “Enter Sandman” there has never been a time where I have seen a crowd go from excited, to downright insane. One of the best college football moments I have ever been a part of. Never, in my life, have i seen fans that are almost dependant to start a game as Hokie fans are. If you get a chance to see it live, you will not be disappointed.

2. “I get it, we’re a panther” award…

Comic great Jon Reep made an astute observation when he stated that the NFL team the Carolina Panthers play the “panther sound effect” far too often. So let me share the top 3 schools that play a certain fight song way too often…

3. “Tribute to Troy”  USC Trojans

By itself, it’s a catchy song, and I am sure if I went to USC, maybe I would enjoy it. However, the Marching Trojans play this song to nausea as the Trojans march towards their 70^th point over weak Pac-10 teams.

2. “War Chant” Florida State Seminoles

Normally, this would be my #1 and it has been for some time. However, FSU fans, this chop can be done significantly less. I have been to 4 Florida State games in my life and I have heard the “War Chant” at least 100 times per game. It also becomes bad news when other schools mock “the chop” when Florida State loses, and why not? FSU has a great fight song, play that a few more times…

1. “Boomer Sooner” Oklahoma Sooner

I will give credit to the Sooners for a unbelievable win over Texas Tech, but if I heard a variation of that song one more time, I would have stabbed my eardrums, and even then, the ear piercing sounds that would have ensued would still be less painful then this fight song. Not only do they play the song when the Sooners score, they play variations on first downs, interceptions, and field goals to say the least. I have to figure the band hated playing the song by the time the game is over. Oklahoma, you have the most uninventive song selection of any band I have ever heard.

3. Most Overplayed Songs by different schools

You may have the trademark to this song, but other colleges are using it. It’s time for someone to put their foot down and make a stand to say, “This is our fight song dammit!” I will provide the song and whom it should belong to…

3. “Glory, Glory Hallelujah!” Belongs to: Georgia Bulldogs

A song that praises the word of Christ has been used for States and Universities in their band repertoire. It’s Georgia’s fight song, but Colorado uses it, various high schools use it, even Auburn uses it. It’s a good song (and very simple might I add) in it’s context, but it’s Georgia’s fight song, let’s keep it that way.

2. “Tiger Rag” Belongs to: Clemson Tigers

This may be just a problem of how many schools name their mascot the “Tigers” but with every school, they have to play the song, Tiger Rag… and I have about had it with that song. Clemson uses it as their main fight song, and they include a cool spelling of: C-L-E-M-S-O---N! at the end.  It’s a good tradition, good song, but it needs to stay in South Carolina

1. “Kernkraft 400” Belongs to: Nobody

In a successful attempt to make Euro-chants trendy in the United States, Zombie Nation created the song “Kernkraft 400” that is about as well know as the “Olay Olay” chant. Nevertheless, It really shows how much American’s know about chants in premiere league soccer in Europe. Colleges around the country use this song before games and kickoffs, and unfortunately, I bleed from the ears every time I hear it. This song should be stricken from the records and should never be played in another college stadium, ever… again…

4. Worst Fight Songs

A fight song should be exciting, should bring adrenaline to the fans, and should be a song of celebration (not to mention easy to remember). However these songs put shame to all that is good about fight songs

3. “Hail to the Victors” Michigan Wolverines

Before all the Buckeye fans cheer and laugh at this ranking, don’t be too proud, your fight song was a close #4. Besides the overwhelming tradition that Michigan has, I wish their fight song would do the same, and let’s put the irony that Michigan has won 3 games all season aside. This fight song is bland, cliché, and just downright boring. Besides Michigan, nobody gets excited about this fight song. Sorry Michigan, even I am not cutting you a break this year.

2. “The Waving Song” Oklahoma State Cowboys

There is something that really bothers me about this song selection by Okie State. Now, I believe that “Ride ‘em Cowboys” is the official fight song of Oklahoma State. If that is the case, then why in the world do the Cowboys play the “Waving Song” after a touchdown? It is the pokiest, Busch league, state fair song I have ever heard in a college stadium. It literally sounds like drunken cowboy music from a Loony Tunes episode. You’re a great team, with a great coach, and have a good fight song, stop playing this state fair song after touchdowns, cowboys!

1. “The Good Ole’ Song” Virginia Cavaliers

If you think I am biased, let me give you an example of how boring this fight song is. When I attended Appalachian State, a couple of my friends and I played NCAA Football 2008. My friend decided to be Virginia for a season and quit 3 games in because he could not stomach the fight song. So picture this, after Virginia scores a touchdown, the Virginia faithful puts their arms around each other, swings to and fro, and sings the “Good Ole’ Song” which is identical to that holiday classic “Olde Lang Syne”. If there is a more boring song on the face of this earth that is featured on a college field, I want to hear this song. However, UVA is filled with a bunch of bright kids, I believed they figured out that, “Maybe if we make the students fall asleep with our fight song, they wont have to watch the rest of the UVA v. USC game.” Lord knows, no one wants to be awake for “Tribute to Troy” anyway. Brilliantly done, UVA.

5. Best Fight Songs

Now, to show that I am unbiased, I am leaving the Alabama fight song out of the running for best fight song (even though it is the best). In fact, I have taken out all fan biases to make this list. This is based on the fight song, and the fight song only. So here is the cream of the crop… according to me…

3. “NCSU Fight Song” NC State Wolfpack

Not exactly the most inventive name or most original song. However, NC State took the song “Army Goes Rolling Along” and sped the tempo up. It’s hard to sing, but its very exciting, it matches the feeling of how a touchdown should feel, and isn’t that the point of a fight song. Now, I am fan of military songs in general, but this method was well done and it’s something I can celebrate to.

2. “Rocky Top” Tennessee Volunteers

Remember when I said that this was based on “just the fight song”, well here is the example. Now, I hate Tennessee, I hate the town, I hate the stadium, I hate (most of) the fans, and I hate that shade of orange. However, when the Tennessee band plays the famous bluegrass song, it literally projects through the stadium and your home whether you want it to or not. Now, Tennessee fans will force you to listen to this song and it’s painfully annoying. However, take this song with any other university, and it’s a classic.

1. “Texas Fight” Texas Longhorns

Now, aside from the worst band uniforms in college football (which look like a cowboy costume I wore when I was 5) this is the most complete fight song I have heard. Fast tempo, chanting, easy lyrics, and people can use profanity if they want to in this song. Colonel Walter S. Hunnicutt had something on the ball when he wrote this. This is something you have to hear for yourself.  However UT, do us all a favor, try shifting those talents to the person who makes the band uniforms, “band geeks” don’t need anymore hassle (though, chaps are a good look for cheerleaders). 

Excessive Celebration: The Death of Fun

There is nothing quite like a college football game. The smell of the grill, the noise of the crowd, and the overwhelming sensation when the team we watch wins a big game. It’s an adrenaline rush for the fans and for the players playing the game. Or at least it was…

We have witnessed, over the past ten years, a penalty that is ruining the fun of college football, and that is the excessive celebration penalty. That’s right, if you mock the crowd or jump for joy too much, you cost your team 15 penalty yards assessed on your next kickoff or on the extra point attempt. In theory, this could be a penalty to stop the inevitable Chad Johnson type circus show after a touchdown. However the NCAA has taken this penalty way too far: it’s inconsistent and it has cost some teams to lose a game due to a celebration after an emotional touchdown.

First and foremost, where do we draw the line with this type of penalty? Three players went to Tiger Stadium at Louisiana State University and made the same gesture after their respective touchdown. Heisman trophy winner Tim Tebow of Florida dialed his fake phone taunting the LSU crowd, no flag. Superstar running back, Knowshon Moreno of Georgia dialed his fake phone taunting the same crowd, no flag. So why is it that senior quarterback, John Parker Wilson of Alabama gets 15 yards of unsportsmanlike conduct for the exact same gesture as the last two players. There has to be a standard, and if referees assess the penalty one time, then they need to keep doing it.

Let’s not forget that this penalty has cost a few teams the game. In 2005 unranked Vanderbilt faced the thirteenth ranked Florida Gators. In an emotional game that saw a remarkable comeback in the fourth quarter by Vanderbilt to make the game 34-35 with 54 seconds remaining, Vanderbilt decided to go for the gutsy call as head coach Bobby Johnson held his fingers to say, let’s go for two and the win. However, put those fingers down, Vanderbilt was charged with excessive celebration. How does one celebrate excessively when you tie the thirteenth ranked team in the country? As a result, Vanderbilt kicked a field goal and eventually lost that game in overtime. It was a game that led people to ask, why didn’t Vanderbilt have that shot to go for two?

More recently, unranked, and still winless Washington scored a late touchdown against fifth teen ranked Brigham Young with two seconds left to put the Huskies within one. It was an emotional score at home to possibly upset a great BYU team. Hold your horses though, here comes that hankie falling to the field. Once again Washington was charged with excessive celebration. ESPN analysts couldn’t see it, the announcers couldn’t see it, and as a result BYU blocked the extra point that was knocked back 15 yards. Another excellent call by the officials to further ruin another game.

Though the highlight of the century, in my mind, with relation to this penalty had to have been last years, Florida vs. Georgia game. Florida had Georgia’s number for many years, and it was to be another tight game. It wasn’t until Georgia came close to the goal line that Knowshon Moreno stretched for the end zone and scored. Mark Richt told his team that they had better get an excessive celebration penalty. The result was the entire Georgia team rushing the field and dancing into the end zone. It sent the players and the fans into a frenzy and the Bulldogs beat the Gators in an emotional win. The action by Richt was criticized by the media (and Florida fans) and was seen as a sign of disrespect. However, in the grand scheme of things, it was a middle finger to the NCAA for penalizing teams for celebrating. The idea that we had better get a penalty made a team run through walls for coach Richt and it was a brilliant move.

Where does it end though? Do all teams have to run back to the sidelines like robots after an emotional touchdown? Can we raise our hands in the air? Can we high five? One game is enough damage; let’s stop the madness once and for all. Players aren’t sliding down the goalpost, giving the football CPR, or playing putt-putt with the pile-on. I believe it was Tom Landry that said, when you score a touchdown, act like you’ve been there before, and I agree. However, when we are penalizing teams for enjoying the game, it’s become an absurd suggestion. If we are going to penalize players, let’s penalize Les Miles for his overexcitement when LSU scores. Why not?

All in all, I am going to miss moments when players tackle their own defensive linemen after a touchdown when the “big man” rumbles for six.  Or when a player catches a Hail Mary pass at the end of the game and the entire bench erupts. Football is an exciting and expressive game; players and fans alike should be able to be allowed to go nuts about the game that they love. However, despite the criticisms by the media and fans to get rid of this penalty, the NCAA probably never will. We want to tell the officials to keep that yellow flag in their pocket and let the boys play, but they never will…

And thus, will be the death of fun in college football… and this was the eulogy. Rest in Peace.