| Dr.
Robert L. Spradling became Director of Syracuse Band in August 1980.
He had received his doctorate degree from Florida State University
and had taught in several Florida public schools. Upon his arrival,
“Dr. Bob” met the challenges of SU’s growing bands
by reestablishing the assistant band director position and appointing
Dave McCullough and eventually adding graduate assistantships too the
program, as well.
Along
with larger numbers, Dr. Bob and his Pride of the Orange also got a
slightly bigger (and more weather-proof) band room in 1980…
S.U’s
$26.85 million, 50,000-seat Carrier Dome opened on September 20th,
1980. The Orangemen won their first game on home turf, beating Miami
(OH), 36-24. Today, the Carrier Dome remains the only domed collegiate
stadium in the Northeast and the largest of its kind on any American
campus.
As
numbers grew within the Pride, Dr. Spradling and McCullough took steps
to build up organization and leadership within the marching band, not
just around it. Both directors had prior experience with Kappa
Kappa Psi (National Honorary Band Fraternity) and Tau
Beta Sigma (National Honorary Band Sorority) and asked members
of those respective chapters at West Virginia to come and stir student
interest in the organizations and their purposes. Several members of
the band stepped forward and, on December 4th, 1982 became initiated
as the Founding Fathers & Sisters of KKY-Eta Phi Chapter and TBS-Eta
Alpha Chapter, respectively.
The
impact of these organizations over the years has had a lasting effect
on the band program. As time has progressed, "KKPsi" and
"TBS" have been important in the development and implementation
of many tasks normally handled exclusively by the University Bands
Office, including but not limited to the annual projects: Band Camp,
Wind Ensemble and Symphony Band Concerts, "Big Buddy/Little Buddy"
programs, fundraising, organizing and coordinating Bowl Games, and
countless others.
The
extra help came at a great time as the Syracuse University Marching
Band started performing a lot more on the road, playing at several
Canadian Football League games in Ottawa. But The Pride also hit the
road plenty to play for its own team, traveling to 6 bowl games in
8 years! The bowl-run started in 1985, with a 35-18 loss to Maryland
at Detroit’s Cherry Bowl. Following that defeat, the Orangemen
would tie or win its next EIGHT bowl games:
| 1987 |
Sugar
Bowl New Orleans, LA |
SU
16, Auburn 16 |
| 1988 |
Hall
of Fame Bowl Tampa, FL |
SU
23, LSU 10 |
| 1989 |
Peach
Bowl Atlanta, GA |
SU
19, Georgia Tech 18 |
| 1990 |
Aloha
Bowl Honolulu, HI |
SU
28, Arizona 0** |
| 1991 |
Hall
of Fame Bowl Tampa, FL |
SU
24, Ohio State 17 |
| 1992 |
Fiesta
Bowl Tempe, AZ |
SU
26, Colorado 22 |
| 1995 |
Gator
Bowl Jacksonville, FL |
SU
41, Clemson 0 |
| 1996 |
Liberty
Bowl Memphis, TN |
SU
30, Houston 17 |
| |
|
**band
did not travel |
During this stretch, the Pride had to trade in its uniforms several
times. The band’s late-70s/early-80s look was influenced by the
school’s roman warrior mascot. A temporary replacement for the
controversial Native American Saltine Warrior, the roman solider was
eventually laughed out of town by students and fans. The mid-80s brought
blue bib pants with orange stripe, orange and white tops with “SU”
on the front and tails in the back, and one item that has remained
onboard as an SUMB staple to the present… the blue shako.
The
band continued to evolve and grow, ballooning from roughly 120 members
in the mid ‘70s to more than 200 by 1990. This growth was due
in large part to better recruiting techniques and more cooperation
with the university’s admissions office in the early ‘90s.
During
this time, SUMB leadership established a consistent pre-game show that
has remained the norm today:
1. Run-On
2. Fanfare for the Saltine Warrior
3. Syracuse Fight Song (“Down the Field”)
4. New York Medley
5. Syracuse University Alma Mater
During
the Spradling Years, assistant directors and graduate assistants took
on a more important role in the management and leadership in the S.U.
Bands. Some major players include: Administrative Assistant Janet Ashworth,
an SU alumnus who organized trips, band camps, and other events from
1986 to 2005; Dr. Frank Tracz, a true Buckeye credited with bringing
a “Big Ten” discipline to the marching and symphonic bands;
Lawrence C. Clark who brought with him from James Madison University
his renown skill for arranging both music and drill; Joesph Riposo,
another SU alumnus and widely-respected jazz educator and performer
who led the Syracuse University Jazz Ensemble for more than 20 years.
As
the SUMB grew, so too did the Sour Sitrus Society. After starting off
with 25 members in their founding year, the “#1 Basketball Pep
Band in the Land” grew to more than 100 players by 1990, some
years peaking to around 180. Sitrus had become more integrated in the
S.U. Band structure, using the University Band's resources, music and
instruments to improve the quality of the group, but remained student-run.
At
age 17, Sitrus finally got invited to its first Big Dance. Absent during
Syracuse’s first Final Four run in 1975, the pep band made the
trip to New Orleans in 1987, cheering on our team up through the final
seconds of the championship when Indiana’s Keith Smart poured
in a 3-pointer from the corner, lifting the Hoosiers to a 74-73 win
over Syracuse.
All
the excitement during the Spradling Years did not come without an element
of tragedy. On December 20th, 1988, terrorists exploded Pan Am Flight
103 over Lockerbie, Scotland, killing 35 Syracuse University students.
To commemorate their deaths—and their lives—Syracuse’s
Eta Phi chapter of Kappa Kappa Psi and Eta Alpha chapter of Tau Beta
Sigma co-commissioned the piece “Riverwalk.” It premiered
on November 15th, 1989.
In
the fall of 1990, the SUMB traveled to Beaver Stadium for the final
meeting between Syracuse and one its most heated rivals, Penn State.
Due to bad weather, legendary coach Joe Paterno prevented both bands
from performing their halftime shows. After the game, both bands met
on the field and performed standstill shows for each other, and more
than 10,000 fans that stayed to watch.
Traveling
wasn’t just for the marching and pep bands, either. In the spring
of 1992, the SU Wind Ensemble took a performance tour of schools from
Central and Upstate, NY on down to Long Island.
One
year later, in the Spring of 1993, Dr. Spradling announced that he
would be leaving SU to become Director of Bands at Western Michigan
University. Adding to the solemnity of Dr. Bob’s departure, the
Men’s Basketball team missed the postseason for the only time
during his tenure—and since.
The History
of the Syracuse University Band Program
|
Dr.
Robert Spradling
Dave
McCullough
Kappa
Kappa Psi/
Tau Beta Sigma
Dr.
Frank Tracz
Larry
Clark
Joseph
Riposo |
Alumni