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Cultural Experience – The Drumline, before Clemson vs. SC State

As a member of the Clemson Drumline, my game day cultural experience is like no other. It starts earlier than most tailgaters, grabbing a quick breakfast (my only meal that I got until 11 PM) on the way to band at 7 in the morning. I scarf it down in Drew’s truck, and we pull up to the Brooks Center and grab our instruments to go warm up.

We are there about a half hour before any non-Drumline band members are there. This is normal. Game day rehearsals are probably the most focused of any wee have, and when the whole band plays its first note together at 8 o’ clock you can hear it reverberating off of every building on campus. Without fail, I receive word every week that this is why people wake up on Saturday mornings. Shaking the Southland indeed.

This time, we had a member miss rehearsal. This is almost unprecedented. But we deal with it by following through with the punishment ordained years and years ago – that member is not marching today. Everyone feels bad for him, but nobody gives him a hard time for it. We all know that he we feel the whole of the punishment as he sits in the stands alone for half-time.

After rehearsal is over, most of the line goes to Harcombe together to get something to eat. I, along with some of the other veteran members stay in Brooks to get the place a little cleaner and make sure every stick is in its place. When people start returning, the cymbal players start to clean their instruments of the grime that has built up over the past week. Then everyone starts to get their uniforms on, only to be interrupted by the “Tenor Cave,” one of the most exciting Drumline traditions. Essentially, everyone squeezes into a closet and dances around to the ever-present song “Zombie Nation,” before rushing out of the closet and tapping a hat in a manner parallel to the Hill and Howard’s Rock.

We put on our drums and jackets, helping each other get the buttons that can be reached on our own. We line up in front of Brooks and start our procession to Daniel Hall, where we warm up before the “90 Minutes Before Kick-Off Concert.” Warm ups are invariably attended by a contingent of drum loving children, high-schoolers, and our family and friends. After we finish, we visit with the audience for a few minutes before proceeding to the Amphitheater for the concert.

At this point, the whole line is pumped for the game and what that entails. The concert goes well, and we move onto the parade. We line up in our proper places and the “Parade Cheer” takes place. One of the Tenor players, Paul, starts it with a nonsense call-and-response, which proceeds to the chant that outlines the evolution of the name of the Clemson University Drumline:

“T. B. D. L.?”       “Bwuaaaah!”

“C. U. P. S.?”      “Chk-chk, BOOM!”

“P. I. M. P.?”      “What?”

“C. U. D.?”           “F___ed up what’s up!”