While UW-Madison will play in Nashville's Music City Bowl on New Year's Eve, the marching band is not allowed to perform in the halftime show.
To promote ticket sales, the Bowl Committee scheduled alternative halftime festivities including a celebration of youth sports and entertainment from Bowls Across America, a program of high school bands and cheerleaders from across the South.
\Halftime is 22 minutes long, ... and by the time all that is staged and done there is really no time for the bands,"" said Walt Baker, director of media relations for the Music City Bowl.
Band members said they are angered about not being able to perform at halftime, but began practice Monday as if the show
is on.
""We started practicing halftime because our director said that even if we can't negotiate playing time at the bowl game, that we're going to march somewhere,"" UW-Madison senior Nikki Culver said.
""[Band director Mike Leckrone] even threw out the idea of renting a stadium and just inviting all of our fans to come watch us.""
Despite no halftime show, Baker said the marching band will have other opportunities to perform including the Battle of the Bands on the eve of the game as well as pre and post-game playtime.
""They are creating an opportunity pre-game where they are going to take the teams off the field earlier than they normally go off the field. ... If the bands want to, we are going to allow them onto the field after the game. ... We'll let them do a post-game for the fans and whatnot,"" Baker said.
""So the only thing that's missing out of this mix is what's going on at halftime and it's because the Bowl Committee had predetermined that they were going to do something else,"" Baker said.
""The bowl people said they'll be giving us fifth quarter but, you know, that's fun. That's not what we work so hard for all the time,"" Culver said.
However, Baker said the bowl office, as well as the UW-Madison Athletic Department, received a barrage of e-mails and calls from angry fans. While the bowl is contractually obligated to Bowls of America, other plans may change performance opportunities.
""If we get a firestorm of complaints and whatnot, the bowl committee may sit down and re-look at it,"" Baker said.
""At this point, we're operating as if there is a performance. We just don't know when or where exactly,"" UW Marching Band Field Assistant Mark Messer said.
