Yesterday was the first BYU football game of the year, and as colorguard, we were, of course, in attendance. Game Day started as I left my apartment wearing my uniform drove to Walgreens to get some fake eyelashes. I think everyone at Walgreens was secretly snickering behind my back at how silly I looked wearing skin-tight pants and full show make-up. But luckily the whole Walgreens event lasted less than five minutes and I was on my way to Lavell Ed
wards Stadium.
When I got to the stadium, I had to park all the way at the Marriott Center's parking lot and walk down University Parkway to the stadium. I was surprised at how many people were already at Lavell Edwards. There were Huskies fans lounging on the grass that surrounds the stadium, there were police officers directing traffic, and there were students rushing across the streets. I eventually arrived at the guard room, just in time to get my bangs french-braided by Amy. Then it was socializing time. Also at this time, we could take pictures, so I put a couple of them up so you can see our costumes and the wonderful girls that I hang out with in colorguard.
Amy fixing Jenny's eye-makeup. Hair and make-up are essential components to the BYU colorguard look.
At 3:00, the colorguard and the band went to Helaman Field's for a last run-through of pre-game and the half-time show. It was brutally hot. And the BYU flags we were given were extremely heavy. But even with all that, we had a good run-through. So we sipped the rest of our now warm water and prepared to officially start Game Day!!
On Game Day, the band gives several performances. In fact, before we even return to the stadium, we have two performances. So we marched in grandiose marching style down University Parkway, shouting BYU chants and always smiling. Then we stopped in front of the Cougar statue and performed pre-game and the fight song. Then we began to march again and heel-stepped our way to the tailgate party, where we performed "Hey Baby" and the fight song. Then, at last, the marching band made its way into the stadium.
Pre-game. To say it simply, I did not do well. It was like perpetual brain farts. I would confuse the choreography from another part of the show, I marched too fast, and then to add the cherry to the top, I dropped my toss. :( And the sad thing is that everyone who knew that I was in colorguard watched me drop that toss. And mentioned it to me later. Ugh! Really, I could just go on and on about the terrible things that happened during pre-game, but there were some pretty awesome stuff too. First off, I was on a field performing in front of 64000 people. That, in its self, is just way cool. Then, I was an arm length distance from Jim McMahon. If I wasn't on colorguard and had to wave my flag around, I would have received a high five from him. That's how close he was. Then in a flurry, the football team burst from the tunnel and the crowd went wild and the band played the fight song. As the beat from the drums rang out, the chaos began as the band rushed to get off the field.
Now I need to make a note. I am only focusing on Game Day from a colorguard perspective. Not football. So all I will say for the first half of the game is that the Cougar defense was lacking and that it was turning out to be a boring game. And the heat wasn't making it any better.
At nine minutes before half-time, the colorguard left the stands and began to practice for the show. Practice was going okay, although I had to watch out for a cute little girl who would sometimes get very close to where I was. But it was while we were practicing "Anyway You Want It" that I almost lost it. We were doing a section where we toss our flag, catch it and tuck it, then unwind at the 45. I don't what happened, but I missed grabbing the end of the pole at the flag slammed me in the mouth. I immediately stopped and held my mouth. Ashlee, the coach, asked if I was only. I couldn't speak, afraid my voice would betray me and I'd start to cry, so I gave a thumbs up and gestured that I needed a minute. So I stood there and suffered through the worst of the pain. Then, I picked up my flag and continued to practice. But my injury unnerved me and half-time got a lot more stressful. A few moments later, the band joined us and we made our way to the field.
When we got to the field we lined up along the wall behind the Washington football team and watched the last 30 seconds of the first half. As I stood there, my lip throbbed. I nervously tried to visualize the choreography of the show in my head. Finally, I said a prayer asking Heavenly Father to help me keep my cool and do a good job performing the show. The siren blasted, ending the second quarter and the football players ran off the field to be replaced by some spectacular people. I, Sarah Toller, was ten to twenty feet away from such greats as Steve Young, President Samuelson, Lavell Edwards himself, and Jeffrey R. Holland of the Twelve Apostles. It was SOOOO sweet! Definitely one of the best perks of being on guard. Finally, they exited the field and the show began. It went really well. I felt calm and collected, therefore, I was confident as I did my flagwork. I could concentrate easier. And I was proud at my performance. But it was all thanks to Heavenly Father, who calmed me. I ran off the field feeling marvelous.
When we got back to the stands, the section reps passed out granola bars and water. It was like manna from heaven. I'd not eaten since noon and it was now around 6:30. Then we danced to the stand tunes and watched the rest of the game. And the football did get better and in the end, BYU won 23-17. Go Cougars!!!
Following the game, the band had still one more concert outside the west gate to the stadium. The guard improvised routines to the tunes. Then, the concert was over and the guard headed back to the guard room to grab our belongings and I headed home, ending my first BYU game day.
