The Wildcats’ marching band earned a first division score at UIL competition Tuesday at Mt. Pleasant. Band Director Charles McCauley said the band had their best performance of the year, especially playing music. He admitted that some issues remained to be solved in marching.
McCauley said it has taken some time for the band to get this year’s show together, especially the difficult ending. Despite mostly positive critiques from judges, McCauley said the band still has things to work on. They’ll get another chance at a contest this Saturday at Prariland. The band will perform at 2:45 p.m.
McCauley said the band had to overcome the heat at the contest in Mt. Pleasant. He said Tuesday’s contest was one of the hottest he had ever been a part of. It was 92 degrees when the band took the field at 4:30 p.m. McCauley said he allowed band members to put on their coats right before they performed. He also credited the band’s afternoon practices with getting them ready for the heat. Some other bands may have been impacted by the weather. McCauley said one band director told him his band just wilted and had no energy.
Because of a quirky old UIL rule, the Wildcats’ band will have no opportunity to advance to another round this year. They can only advance every other year. McCauley said the rule is very unfair. He said the band was the only group with such a rule. McCauley said could you imagine such a rule for sports teams or UIL Academic teams.
