History of the Band
The WVU Marching Band was formed 123 years ago in 1901 as an all-male ROTC band of eight members with Walter Mestrezat serving as the band’s first director.
Walter Mestrezat
In 1925, a group of eleven non-ROTC males were allowed to join the band, but were
not permitted the same monetary benefits as those enrolled military band members.
Feeling that this was an unfair practice, the eleven decided to form their own
marching band. This "rebel" band of musicians wanted to also perform at halftime
and did in fact receive permission from Director Mestrezat and the athletic director.
However, when then WVU President Frank Trotter heard about the possibility of two
bands, he moved quickly to rectify this situation. The "rebel" group had to first
become a legitimate student organization to even be recognized. This group quickly
pledged a Greek fraternity and formed what is now WVU’s Omicron chapter of Kappa
Kappa Psi. It wasn’t until years later that the two bands merged into one true
University Marching Band.
After serving for 37 years as its director and increasing the band's size to approximately
70 members, Mestrezat stepped down as director and Bernard McGregor assumed the
position in 1938. McGregor served a 13-year span as the band's director, but was
on leave for one year due to his military duty in World War II. During that year,
Clifford Brown, who later became assistant dean of the College of Creative Arts,
served as the band's director on an interim basis.
Marching band practicing, c. 1966
The modern era for the Mountaineer Marching Band began in the 1950's and 1960's with
Larry Intravaia and Budd Udell serving as the directors. Two other gentlemen, Richard
Strange and Frank Borkowski, also served as marching band directors during this
time - each serving for one year. Outstanding arrangements and creativity began
to bring recognition to the group. Both of the University's fight songs, "Fight
Mountaineers" and "Hail West Virginia" were arranged for the band by Budd Udell
and are, in fact, the same arrangements the band plays today. In 1970, Gerald Zimmerman
served a one-year appointment as the band's director.
In 1971, Don Wilcox came to WVU as Director of Bands. During the 1970's, the WVU
Marching Band experienced rapid growth and impressive development, during which
it more than tripled in size, gained a national reputation, and saw major changes
in attitude, desire, and dedication. For his first year, Wilcox inherited an all-male
band of 88 members. This membership changed in 1972 when Wilcox encouraged women
to join the program for the first time. During the early '70's, the band performed
at several prestigious events such as area NFL games and two Peach Bowls in Atlanta.
The phrase "The Pride of West Virginia" was first used by the 1975 Peach Bowl announcer;
eventually it became the band's official nickname.
The band on the field in 1977
The middle and late 1970's saw a new set of uniforms and a steady increase in membership.
Because of the unsurpassed pride and desire for high performance standards, the
band grew to 280 members by the end of the decade. Several "highs" were achieved
during this time with trips to Kentucky, Penn State, Virginia Tech, Oklahoma,
and New York City. The '79 Band set the highest standards yet, and ended the
season with a very special "Goodbye to Mountaineer Field" show as
Old Mountaineer Field saw its last football game.
The 1980's opened with a new stadium, a new football coach (Don Nehlen), and a marching
band of over 300 members. Throughout the '80's and the '90's, the band achieved
many new levels. Not only did the band introduce two new sets of uniforms to
the delight of Mountaineer fans during this time, but it also served as host
to several events including summer shows by Drum Corps International and many
annual Eastern Regional Competitions of Bands of America. Because of the continued
success of the football team, the band also had the opportunity to travel to
many exciting bowl games throughout the country, including the Peach Bowl, Hall
of Fame Bowl, Bluebonnet Bowl, Sun Bowl, Fiesta Bowl, Sugar Bowl, Carquest Bowl,
and Gator Bowl!
During these decades, the band traveled to almost every county in West Virginia.
This increased statewide exposure, along with its participation in the University
sponsored "WVU Days" program, the annual "KeyNotes" concerts, and its continuing
off-campus performances, led to the WVU Band's growing recognition during the
1990's as an ambassador throughout the state of West Virginia. The band also
traveled during these years to several regular season games at sites that included
Virginia Tech, Pittsburgh, Maryland, Syracuse, and Purdue. In 1995, the band
expanded its recordings to include their first compact disc.
Sudler Trophy presentation
Arguably the most important event in the first century of the WVU Marching Band’s
history took place in 1997 when the band was selected as the recipient of the
John Philip Sousa Foundation's "Sudler Trophy." This prestigious award honored
the WVU Marching Band as the nation's outstanding collegiate marching band for
that year. The Sudler Trophy recognized the long-standing tradition of dedication,
commitment, and pride by the band’s present and past members, staff, and directors.
The trophy was awarded by the officers of the John Philip Sousa Foundation at
the 1997 Homecoming game with over 500 members of the Alumni Band joining the
330-member WVU Marching Band for the special presentation. Today, the Sudler
Trophy is proudly displayed in the office of the WVU Bands in the Creative Arts
Center.
At the end of the 1997 "Sudler Season," and after 27 years as the marching band director,
Don Wilcox promoted Assistant Director John Hendricks, making him the 10th director
of the WVU Marching Band. Under John Hendricks' leadership, the 1998 WVU Marching
Band continued achieving milestones by being the largest band in the University's
history at that time with over 380 members! New standards of performance excellence
were achieved by the bands of the late 1990's and early 2000's. The band traveled to several away games including those in
Charlotte (NC), Cincinnati (OH), College Park (MD), Blacksburg (VA), and Notre
Dame (IN). During this time, the group also traveled to the Insight.com Bowl,
the Music City Bowl, the Continental Tire Bowl, and twice to the Gator Bowl.
Besides the start of a new era of WVU football with Coach Rich Rodriguez, the 2001
season was very special for the WVU Band with the celebration of its 100th anniversary.
The culmination of the centennial festivities occurred at Homecoming, when the
band was joined by over 500 members of the Alumni Band for a rousing pregame
tunnel entrance, which soon spread to cover the entire field! The 850-member
mass band closed this special anniversary halftime show with one of the most
popular halftime selections in the WVU Band's library - "Walk Him Up the Stairs/Old
Man River."
The band performing in 1983
At the end of the 2004-2005 academic year, Don Wilcox retired after a prestigious
34-year career at WVU. John Hendricks replaced Wilcox as WVU's Director of Bands
and Assistant Director Jay Drury was named the 11th director of the WVU Marching
Band. During the 2005 season, the WVU Band performed on the grounds of the US
Capitol as part of the national "Constitution Day" festivities, as well as at
WVU's first BCS Bowl Game, the Nokia Sugar Bowl, in Atlanta, Georgia. The 2006
season featured a brand-new set of uniforms, a record-breaking "Band Aid" fundraising
campaign by the WVU Foundation, and a Gator Bowl victory with a second consecutive
top-ten finish for the WVU Football team. 2007 was also a successful season for
the band as the WVU Foundation instituted the "Pride Travel Fund" to help defer
the cost of band travel. The group performed in several locations around the
country, including at the 2008 Tostitos Fiesta Bowl in Glendale, AZ where the
Mountaineers defeated Oklahoma under then interim head coach Bill Stewart and
finished in the top-ten for a third consecutive season!
The 2008 season had the distinction of seeing the largest WVU Marching Band ever,
as the band topped 390 members as band camp began. A great trip to New York City
and the UConn game highlighted the regular season, as well as a 4th consecutive
bowl victory for the Mountaineers and sharing the final game with WVU quarterback
Pat White. The 2009 season featured another outstanding 370+ member band and
featured a trip to SEC country to play the Auburn Tigers in Alabama and concluded
with an 8th consecutive bowl appearance as the band performed in Florida at Universal
Studios in Orlando and in Jacksonville as part of the 2010 Gator Bowl. The 2009
season also marked the end of an era for the band's old "crow's nest" as a new
"state-of-the-art" rehearsal tower has been constructed at the band practice
site. In 2010, the band once again traveled extensively, with the highlight being
a trip to the LSU game in Baton Rouge, Louisiana and a visit to New Orleans;
the longest regular-season trip in WVU Band history at that time. A visit to
Orlando, FL for the Champs Sports Bowl, including another performance at Universal
Studios, was the band's 9th consecutive bowl trip and topped off another successful
season for "The Pride."
The band in formation in 1967
The 2011 season marked the first season of WVU Football under new Head Coach Dana
Holgorsen and the final season for WVU as a member of the Big East Conference.
Highlights for the band included final conference game trips to Cincinnati and
Rutgers, which included a visit to New York City. With the success of the 2011
WVU Football Team, the band ended the season with an exciting trip to Miami,
FL for WVU's 10th consecutive bowl game and 3rd BCS Bowl victory as the Mountaineers
defeated the Clemson Tigers in the 2012 Discover Orange Bowl! 2012 marked the
inaugural season for WVU in the Big XII Conference, and featured home games with
Oklahoma, Baylor, TCU, Kansas, and Kansas State at Mountaineer Field. The band
traveled to Washington, D.C. to perform at FedEx Field, the home of the NFL's
Washington Redskins, for the WVU vs. James Madison Game. The season concluded
with a trip to the band's 11th consecutive bowl game at the Pinstripe Bowl in
New York City at Yankee Stadium. The 2013 Season featured the band's first trip
to a Big XII conference school for the game against Oklahoma and a big home victory
over No. 11 ranked Oklahoma State! 2014 featured a trip to Atlanta for the kickoff
game vs. Alabama and to Maryland for the Mountaineers' big win over the Terrapins.
Both trips featured combined band performances as "The Pride" shared the field
with The Alabama "Million Dollar Band" and the "Mighty Sound of Maryland." The
band also enjoyed a fun trip to the AutoZone Liberty Bowl in Memphis, TN to close
out the season.
In 2015 the band experienced a performance at the Pittsburgh Steelers vs. San Francisco
49ers NFL game at Heinz Field in Pittsburgh, WVU's first home victory over traditional
conference powerhouse Texas, sharing the field with Country Music Superstar Brad
Paisley for a nationally televised ABC TV special, and the unveiling of a brand
new set of Uniforms! The band also enjoyed a fun trip to Phoenix, Arizona for
the big bowl win over Arizona State in the Cactus Bowl at Chase Field - the home
of Major League Baseball's Arizona Diamondbacks!
Highlighting the start of the WVU Marching Band’s second century of existence was
the band’s appearance in the 2016 Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade. Chosen to lead
the parade, "The Pride of West Virginia” marched through the streets of New York
City performing the WVU fight song, "Hail West Virginia!" along with one of the
band’s signature tunes, “Country Roads."
Throughout its 123-year history, the Mountaineer Marching Band has grown and evolved
into an active, high-spirited organization with great tradition. To the citizens
of the state of West Virginia (and beyond), the Pride exemplifies WVU. The esprit
de corps of the group, its tradition of excellence in performance, and the enthusiastic
audience response to the sights and sounds of the band have brought great recognition
to the both the band and the university throughout the country. The members take great pride in not only maintaining this rich
legacy, but building on it as they strive to reach new heights.
