Another North East team getting field turf

[Go Lehigh TU Owl]

Two great pics of Haaarvard Stadium....

http://www.varsityclub.harvard.edu/Stadium/Stadiumpictures.html

[ngineer]

Lookin' good. That's a great place to see a game. Close to the field and excellent sight lines with a steep pitch--BUT you gotta take seat cushions! Man, that poured concrete is tough...:o

[Pard4Life]

Well... there goes another Ivy grass field... boooo.... what happened to sticking to tradition and not "getting with it". This one area where I wish they didn't get with the times... trade this trend with playoff participation better yet....


Also Princeton has FieldTurf for this season... another awful change.. their grass was impeccably immaculate... best I've ever seen.. :(

[Umass74]

Any AGS people visiting Boston and Harvard is playing should make the effort to see a game at Harvard Stadium.

The size and width of the "official" American football stadium was based on the size field that would fit at Harvard. If you're a college football junkie, it's one place you have to visit.

An earlier poster was correct---bring cushions. Those seats are a killer.

Also be advised that the Harvard Band sometimes does X-rated half-time shows...

[Go Lehigh TU Owl]

I would love to get to Harvard. I would have gone last year when Lehigh played up there but time conflicts prevented it. I've been to Yale, Penn, Princeton, and Cornell so far. Harvard will deffinately be done, Dartmouth will be tough but its in a real nice area and if Lehigh played them i'd try to go. Brown and Columbia, ehh, at best.

[blukeys]

Any AGS people visiting Boston and Harvard is playing should make the effort to see a game at Harvard Stadium.

The size and width of the "official" American football stadium was based on the size field that would fit at Harvard. If you're a college football junkie, it's one place you have to visit.

An earlier poster was correct---bring cushions. Those seats are a killer.

Also be advised that the Harvard Band sometimes does X-rated half-time shows...


I've yet to see anything remotely competent when watching an Ivy League "band". They substitute sophomoric attempts at humor which is heavy on sarcasm and x rated topics. When an Ivy band takes the field it is a good idea to hit the rest rooms and get a soda.

[blukeys]

Any AGS people visiting Boston and Harvard is playing should make the effort to see a game at Harvard Stadium.

The size and width of the "official" American football stadium was based on the size field that would fit at Harvard. If you're a college football junkie, it's one place you have to visit.

An earlier poster was correct---bring cushions. Those seats are a killer.

Also be advised that the Harvard Band sometimes does X-rated half-time shows...


I've yet to see anything remotely competent when watching an Ivy League "band". They substitute sophomoric attempts at humor which is heavy on sarcasm and x rated topics. When an Ivy band takes the field it is a good idea to hit the rest rooms and get a soda.

[Umass74]

I agree with Bluekeys.

The Harvard football team is a excellent squad that could and should compete with I-AA's finest in the playoffs. But the Band...

The last time I was there the half-time show included the Harvard band doing a selection of patriotic songs while other band members did a skit showing civilians being machinegunned by terrorists. To be fair, this was way before 9/11. But still...

Give me FAMU's band any day. And follow Blukey's advise if you visit Harvard.

[RadMann]

Yeah, I saw a UD game at Princeton when I was a teenager and the band's antics were not too great. They seemed to poke fun at the very idea of a band.

[ngineer]

Yes, I attended the Harvard/Lehigh game last year. Twas a great time, and not just because of the final score. It's a classic stadium. Very reminiscent of Lehigh's old Taylor Stadium, though bigger, with the poured concrete ledges to sit on. So we went prepared. The Crimson Band thinks they're :cool: , but I much prefer to see some good ol' marching a la the Marching '97. :nod:

[UNH_Alum_In_CT]

I would love to get to Harvard. I would have gone last year when Lehigh played up there but time conflicts prevented it. I've been to Yale, Penn, Princeton, and Cornell so far. Harvard will deffinately be done, Dartmouth will be tough but its in a real nice area and if Lehigh played them i'd try to go. Brown and Columbia, ehh, at best.

Actually, going to Hanover isn't too much farther to drive then going to Harvard. It's a little under two hours from Hartford to Harvard Stadium and probably about 2:45 to Hanover from Hartford. And the drive up I-91 from Hartford is much more pleasant than the I-84 and I-90 trek to Boston!! While the Dartmouth stadium pales in comparison to the Yale Bowl, Harvard Stadium, Palmer Stadium (Princeton still calls it that, right??) and Franklin Field, the scenic ride up the Connecticut River valley and seeing the Dartmouth campus is worth the trip. Especially if you happen to play Dartmouth at the height of leaf peeping season! :nod:

[blukeys]

I agree with Bluekeys.

The Harvard football team is a excellent squad that could and should compete with I-AA's finest in the playoffs. But the Band...

The last time I was there the half-time show included the Harvard band doing a selection of patriotic songs while other band members did a skit showing civilians being machinegunned by terrorists. To be fair, this was way before 9/11. But still...

Give me FAMU's band any day. And follow Blukey's advise if you visit Harvard.


Give me Umass's band any day!!!!!!!:thumbsup: :thumbsup: :thumbsup: :thumbsup: :thumbsup: :thumbsup:

In all fairness the comparisons just don't wash. I was lucky enough to see FAMU's band in Dover at least 10 years ago. In terms of Musicality and pure musicianship I would place Umass and WCUPA above FAMU but in terms of putting on a show there is nothing better than a band like FAMU.

Comparing very good traditional marching bands to the really good HBCU bands is like comparing Led Zeppelin to Smokey Robinson and the Miracles. While both are great where do you begin to compare????

Anyone who has not seen a great HBCU band (DelState isn't one of them but they try) owes it to themselves to see it once. By the way if you have a chance to see the UMass band definitely check it out it is a pure quality outfit.

[Go Lehigh TU Owl]

Actually, going to Hanover isn't too much farther to drive then going to Harvard. It's a little under two hours from Hartford to Harvard Stadium and probably about 2:45 to Hanover from Hartford. And the drive up I-91 from Hartford is much more pleasant than the I-84 and I-90 trek to Boston!! While the Dartmouth stadium pales in comparison to the Yale Bowl, Harvard Stadium, Palmer Stadium (Princeton still calls it that, right??) and Franklin Field, the scenic ride up the Connecticut River valley and seeing the Dartmouth campus is worth the trip. Especially if you happen to play Dartmouth at the height of leaf peeping season! :nod:

It would be a real tough one day trip. From my house to the Yale Bowl is 2.5, Princeton 2, Cornell 1.5, Penn 2.25 Columbia 2.5. After that it gets pretty rough. Harvard would be tough but it would be worth it Bostons a 5 hours trip which would mean leave by 6am. Dartmouth would have to be an overnighter, Lehigh's gotta play them first. One of the great thing about the NE, so many great schools within short drives.

[GeauxColonels]

I feel so left out down south. We still have our CRAPPY natural field. If it wasn't so bad, I wouldn't mind that it is natural turf.

[TheValleyRaider]

Whoa, let's not all gang up on the Ivy Bands (pause while I digest hearing myself defend the Ivy Bands). I'm more than a big fan of a good corps style marching band, but the only Ivy school that's capable of putting that kind of band together is Cornell (which they do and the results are tepid at best). Knowing that they're simply not going to be that type of band, the rest have chosen to go in a decidedly different direction. It's different and unique. You may not care for it, and I'm aware that there are differing levels of quality in their playing ability, but there's no need to attack because they're not corps-style or something similar. :twocents:

I can't blame Princeton entirely for a FieldTurf change after watching their stadium turn into soup during the monsoon last season. A lot of teams seem to be doing it this year, it seems

[Umass74]

Whoa, let's not all gang up on the Ivy Bands (pause while I digest hearing myself defend the Ivy Bands). I'm more than a big fan of a good corps style marching band, but the only Ivy school that's capable of putting that kind of band together is Cornell (which they do and the results are tepid at best). Knowing that they're simply not going to be that type of band, the rest have chosen to go in a decidedly different direction. It's different and unique. You may not care for it, and I'm aware that there are differing levels of quality in their playing ability, but there's no need to attack because they're not corps-style or something similar.

VR:

I'm aware that marching bands are not everybody's cup of tea. And I'm aware that smaller schools can't do a UMass-Delaware-JMU style big band.

I've seen a couple small "pep" bands that I really liked. If the band puts effort into to its skills and performance, I'm all for it.

I think what Blukeys and I were saying was that some Ivy's combination of goofing on the whole concept of playing on a college band and sophomoric /snotty themes make an unpleasant halftime.

Then again maybe I'm an old/rural/traditionalist/fart that does not get snarky/prep school/privileged/soon-to-be-our-bosses/kids humour. :twocents:

[DFW HOYA]

Whoa, let's not all gang up on the Ivy Bands (pause while I digest hearing myself defend the Ivy Bands). I'm more than a big fan of a good corps style marching band, but the only Ivy school that's capable of putting that kind of band together is Cornell (which they do and the results are tepid at best). Knowing that they're simply not going to be that type of band, the rest have chosen to go in a decidedly different direction. It's different and unique. You may not care for it, and I'm aware that there are differing levels of quality in their playing ability, but there's no need to attack because they're not corps-style or something similar.

I'm also a big fan of corps-style bands (and in that matter, there's none better than Texas A&M), but the secondary problem with the Ivy (sans Cornell) bands is that they're not very good musically. The humor (read=elitism) of many Ivy bands is a cover for the "half-fast" approach to providing musical support for the teams and the fans. I'd much rather hear a UMass or a JMU-style band than an ensemble with a marcher walking around with a mailbox to be "clever".

Scrmable bands do not appear to be growing. Virginia has already cut the Pep Band out in favor of a marching unit, and after the Stanford band caused $30,000 in damages to its band room this summer, you'd think Stanford might have to consider another option.

As PL bands go, I've only seen three others--Lehigh, HC and Colgate. PL bands are, as a whole, too small and don't travel.

[TheValleyRaider]

As PL bands go, I've only seen three others--Lehigh, HC and Colgate. PL bands are, as a whole, too small and don't travel.

HC's band is too small, but Lehigh's is actually a decent size (at home at least) and we're growing (I swear!). Lehigh does travel some, sending a Pep Band-sized group to most away games, while Colgate travels to nearly every away game. Unfortunately, we are unable to make the journey down to DC for any Georgetown games, mostly relating to budget and travel restraints.

[DFW HOYA]

Unfortunately, we are unable to make the journey down to DC for any Georgetown games, mostly relating to budget and travel restraints.

In five years, I've seen only one PL band show up at Georgetown, and that was in 2001.

This speaks to the frustration that Georgetown remains isolated in the PL framework much as Miami was when they were in Big East basketball--people knew they were in the league, but most had never seen the place and couldn't name more than one or two players.

The PL needs to expand south.

[blukeys]

VR:

I'm aware that marching bands are not everybody's cup of tea. And I'm aware that smaller schools can't do a UMass-Delaware-JMU style big band.

I've seen a couple small "pep" bands that I really liked. If the band puts effort into to its skills and performance, I'm all for it.

I think what Blukeys and I were saying was that some Ivy's combination of goofing on the whole concept of playing on a college band and sophomoric /snotty themes make an unpleasant halftime.

Then again maybe I'm an old/rural/traditionalist/fart that does not get snarky/prep school/privileged/soon-to-be-our-bosses/kids humour. :twocents:

This old fart can't say it any better than 74!! :thumbsup: :thumbsup: :thumbsup: :thumbsup: :thumbsup:
I too have seen some excellent smaller bands. I have never worked for an Ivy grad. I did have one boss who graduated from Marshall.

[Husky Alum]

One of my favorite Harvard-Yale band gags that I saw was at the infamous "Freezer Bowl" game in 1987. The Yale band did their typical satire routine and then stood single file on the Yale hashmark facing the Harvarnd crowd and started to play the Yale fight song, or some other Yale diddy and the crowd went nuts. No one where I was sitting (in the end zone) realized what was going on until the band turned arond to take a bow, and several band members had letters on the back of their blazers that spelled "HARVARD BLOWS GOATS".

Quite funny.

Harvard Stadium looks great with the field turf.

Another piece of advice when going to a game at Harvard - be careful walking down the steps of the stadium. I've seen a ton of people take a header on the concrete steps.

[ngineer]

VR:

I'm aware that marching bands are not everybody's cup of tea. And I'm aware that smaller schools can't do a UMass-Delaware-JMU style big band.

I've seen a couple small "pep" bands that I really liked. If the band puts effort into to its skills and performance, I'm all for it.

I think what Blukeys and I were saying was that some Ivy's combination of goofing on the whole concept of playing on a college band and sophomoric /snotty themes make an unpleasant halftime.

Then again maybe I'm an old/rural/traditionalist/fart that does not get snarky/prep school/privileged/soon-to-be-our-bosses/kids humour. :twocents:

Bingo! I have no problem with bands doing certain 'schticks' and poking humourous songs and the like. But too often, some of the Ivies' performances are nothing more than deliberate and weak attempts at put-downs.
While small, Lehigh is the only PL school to still have a marching band. Typically numbering 50-70, it is a student run organization that does a very good job of marching with moving formations and playing at the same time. They travel to a couple away games each year--always to Lafayette, and the rest is usually a spirited pep band of bout 20 or so that go to the others. All based on budget/cost factors. They bring a great atmosphere to Lehigh's home games. Small but loud.
The other PL schools have pretty decent pep bands--some of which will perform while standing in front of the homestands at halftime.