Cheerleaders + Husky Marching Band + Dawg Pack = Husky Football 2014

by Natalie Gilbert

 

Ok Husky football fans, I know what you’re thinking. You’re sleep deprived, you have been stuck in the library for the past week, and you are wondering if you will ever make it to summer alive.

To give you a little hope, and reassure you that everything is going to be ok, I want you to think about this: Husky Football.

Feel better? Me too. I am not going to lie, Husky Football was one of the major reasons I wanted to attend the University of Washington and I know I am not the only one who felt this way. The thought of how fun football games are, helps me to get through even the most stressful of times (aka finals).

Yes, I agree, cheering in the student sections is an accomplished goal of mine as well. But have you ever thought about being part of the game in a different way? I thought it would be fun to hear from the people that do Husky Football the best.

August Mendoza and Nikki Buchanan have a very unique perspective on Husky Football. While the rest you and your friends make your way down from campus, tailgate and find the best seats in the student sections. These women have the best seats in the house, and have been at the field hours before you arrive.

August Mendoza is a sophomore at UW, and a piccolo player in the Husky Marching Band, and she is one of the biggest Husky football fans I know. I got a chance to sit down with her, and ask her a few questions about Husky Football from her perspective.

Her favorite memory performing in Husky Stadium was during the Don James tribute show, she said.

“The entire stands went crazy, and I felt honored to be a part of such close-knit family; Husky Marching band, and the University of Washington, being able to honor such a great man,” Mendoza said.

Mendoza loves that she gets to help enhance the Husky experience, but wishes sometimes that she could be in the student sections, she said. If she was a fan, she would be the “one that yells the entire game, probably vulgarities at the refs because she can’t in uniform.”

And if there is one thing that she could tell the fans, she would tell them that the song where everyone spells out “H-U-S-K-I-E-S” is actually called “Everybody’s Everything,” and even though she wishes they could play it more often, they can’t because there is a very strict schedule the band has to follow.

Nikki Buchanan is a University of Washington cheerleader, and a good friend of Mendoza’s. Buchanan said the best thing was having a buddy to walk to practice with or to the games early when no one else was ready yet.

“Being down on the field is absolutely sensational,” she says.

She loves feeling like part of the team especially when they get to run out with the football team in the beginning, she said.

She is not a big fan of the weather, though, especially when it’s 40 degrees and pouring rain.

“I get envious of all the fans and their warm rain gear,” she said. “It’s hard to do flips with a Northface and rain boots.”

After a long game, Buchanan likes to come home and refuel with mac and cheese.

“It’s the food of champions,” she claims.

One thing both women agreed on was that they really appreciate the Dawg pack, and all they contribute to the overall atmosphere.

Good luck on finals, Huskies! We will see you at Husky stadium next fall. 

Buchanan (left) and Mendoza (right)