On Saturday August 27, 2022, Kirke and I went to see the Tar Heels vs FAMU football game. The game between Florida A&M and the University of North Carolina was a celebration of Historically Black Colleges and Universities, also known as HBCUs.
A cousin of ours had a connection and got us seats in one of the skyboxes for the game and we were both very excited. Being a marching band fan, I was hoping that FAMU brought the Marching 100 for a performance at halftime. I got even more than I bargained for!
Photo of us in front of the Bell Tower at UNC Chapel Hill before the game.
We arrived and had a small issue with the tickets but it was quickly handled by the Rams Club (booster club at UNC) and we entered the stadium. As we got to the South Koury Box, the bottom fell out and it started to rain. Luckily for us, we were covered so it made it a much more pleasant experience than being in the stands soaking wet for the rest of the night.
We took our traditional selfie from our seats like we always do, got a bite to eat and drinks and headed to back to our seats just in time to see the Tar Heels take the field amidst flames shooting in the air, a ton of pyrotechnics and smoke and the Marching Tar Heels blasting the fight song.
It was a game that was closer than Tar Heel fans would have liked it to be but in the end, the Rattlers were outmatched. They had 25 players ineligible due to some issues with grading. It kept a likely 1st round draft pick off the field along with the starting QB and 4 other starters. The FAMU depth clearly took a hit because they hung with the Heels until late in the 3rd quarter when they started running out of gas.
During the game, UNC honored the first black athletics coach at the school as well as the first black professor who was turning 104 years old the same day as the game. It was really nice to see the flagship university in North Carolina recognizing the groundbreaking people.
As halftime came closer, I became more and more excited. I grew up the child of two Marching Chiefs from Florida State. My mom and dad loved the band so much, they started the FSU Alumni Band along with their friends Curtis and JoEllen. I grew up going to marching band competitions and it contributed to my love of all types of music.
As the clock went to zeros, the bands began to make their way onto the field. We saw a performance from both bands together for the National Anthem before the game and they performed together for the halftime show too. The Marching Tar Heels took the field first and did a great job as usual.
Then, the Marching 100 took the field. You can see the video of them taking the field here on Brian’s Tiktok account. The crowd reacted immediately, and I had not noticed how many people had stayed in their seats to watch the show. Normally at Carolina games, the stands are half full because everyone has gone to the bathroom or gets something to eat.
The Marching 100 continued their show with their usual high stepping precision and spelled out UNC on the home side of the field and FAMU on the visitor side. That video can be seen here.
From there, the Marching Tar Heels joined the Marching 100 on the field bringing the combined bands to almost 500 members strong. As the announcer said, “Chapel Hill, are you ready for this?” the performance exploded with sound and the members of both bands breaking out in a choreographed dance, and jumped right back into the music. See the video of the combined bands here.
It was an incredible halftime performance and one that those in attendance won’t soon forget.
After the game, I convinced Kirke to indulge me and we went to the visitors side to listen to the post game performance. After the stadium was mostly clear and the UNC band had gone home, the FAMU band was still blasting tunes from their place in the stands to the delight of both the FAMU faithful and a few Tar Heel fans that wanted to take in the full experience around us.
It was definitely a night I won’t forget. If you ever have the opportunity to go to an HBCU football game, I encourage you to do so. I have been to a few and they are an amazing experience. The pageantry and pride that HBCU fans have in their schools, their teams, and the bands and dance teams are admirable and rival some of the most rabid fan bases in college football.
The view from our seats at the South Koury Box.
