The Utah Experience Utah Football Utah Traditions
Total Page：16
File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb
The Utah Experience Utah Football Utah Traditions Band Chris Shelton (MLB) • Charles K. Monfort, chairman and CEO of the The University of Utah Marching Band began in Alex Smith (No. 1 NFL Draft pick) Colorado Rockies, president of Monfort International the 1940s as a military band. In 1948, University Steve Smith (NFL) Sales Corporation President A. Ray Olpin recruited Ron Gregory from Keith Van Horn (NBA) • Thomas S. Monson, president of the LDS Church Ohio State University to form a marching band Larry Wilson (NFL) • John Naisbett, author of the bestseller Megatrends fashioned after the great collegiate bands of the • David Neeleman, founder and CEO of JetBlue Midwest. But in the turbulent ’60s, support for the Famous Alumni Airways band dwindled, and in 1969, the Associated Students • Rocky Anderson, former mayor of Salt Lake City • Raymond Noorda, founder of Novell Inc. for the University of Utah (ASUU) discontinued • Terrel Bell, former U.S. Secretary of Education • Jody Olsen: Deputy director of the Peace Corps. its funding. The band was revived in 1976 after a • Nolan Bushnell, co-founder of Atari and inventor • Simon Ramo, chief scientist in the development of fund-raising effort. Since then, the “Pride of Utah” of Pong America’s intercontinental ballistic missiles Marching Utes have performed at all home football • Ed Catmull, co-founder of Pixar Animation Studios • Wallace Stegner, Pulitzer Prize winning novelist games, as well as numerous NFL and college bowl shared an Oscar in 2001 for the development of the Terry Tempest Williams, author and games. • software used in Toy Story, A Bug’s Life, Jurassic Park, environmentalist Titanic and Gladiator Beehive Boot • John Warnock: co-founder of Adobe Systems Inc. • Jim Clark, founder of Netscape • Evelyn Wood, speed reading innovator. The Beehive Boot, • Stephen Covey, author of the bestseller The 7 Habits which signifies instate of Highly Effective People football supremacy, was Fight Song • Keene Curtis, Tony Award winning actor conceived in 1971. The After every game, the Utah football players—along Spence Eccles, chairman of Wells Fargo & authentic pioneer boot • with the band and cheerleaders—honor their fellow Company and former chairman and CEO of First is awarded annually to students by serenading the student section with Security Corp. the Utah school with the the school fight song, Utah Man (lyrics below). best record against its • Jake Garn, former U.S. Senator Although the origins of Utah Man are unclear, the instate foes. The schools • E. Gordon Gee, chancellor of Vanderbilt and general consensus is that the lyrics were written who compete for the former president at Colorado, Ohio State and Brown in 1904 by the football team and its coach, Harvey boot are Utah, Brigham • Bill Gore, inventor of Gore-Tex Holmes. While their words were original, the music THE UTAH EXPERIENCE THE UTAH Young and Utah State. • Robert Jarvik, inventor of the Jarvik-7 artificial was not. The tune is Solomon Levi, an old burlesque In its 37-year history, the Beehive Boot has been heart song, which supports the theory that Utah Man was awarded to Utah 10 times (1978, 1988, 1993, ‘94, ’95, • Alan C. Kay, credited with the concept of the originally a drinking song. In fact, the original third ’99, 2002, ’03, ’04 and ’05), BYU 21 times and Utah laptop computer line of the first verse read: We drink our stein of lager State six times. • Frederick Kempe, Assistant managing editor and and we smoke our big cigar. It was later changed to the columnist, Wall Street Journal current version, Our coeds are the fairest and each one’s Block U • Willard Marriott, founder of Marriott International a shining star. While Utah Man won the hearts of the students, the administration frowned on it and, in The Block U (elevation 5,300 feet above sea level) Inc. 1942, acknowledged Hail, Utah as the school’s official was built in the foothills bordering the Utah campus song. Nonetheless, Utah Man will always be the song 103 years ago. Lights on the 100-foot-tall landmark of the students and alumni. are illuminated primarily for athletic events and notify people in the Salt Lake valley that the Utes are playing at home (the lights flash after a Utah Fight Song Lyrics victory). The Block U, originally built of lime in 1905, I am a Utah Man, sir, and I live across the green, was replaced by cement in 1907. In 1969, the design Our gang it is the jolliest that you have ever seen. was modified and lights were installed. A fund- Our coeds are the fairest and each one’s a shining star, raising campaign in 2006 raised $400,000 to renovate Our yell, you’ll hear it ringing through the mountains the aging U. Slabs of concrete and steel rebar now near and far! reinforce the 5,000 feet of surface area. Another major improvement was the installation of light We’re up to snuff, we never bluff, we’re game for any fuss. emitting diode (LED) red and white lights, which are No other gang of college men dare meet us in a muss. controlled through a wireless system. So fill your lungs and sing it out and shout it to the sky, We’ll fight for dear old crimson for a Utah Man am I! Ki-yi! Famous Alumni Athletes Jamal Anderson (NFL) And when we prom the avenue, all lined up in a row, Mike Anderson (NFL) And arm in arm and step in time as down the street we go. Andrew Bogut (No. 1 NBA Draft pick) No matter if a freshman green, or in a senior’s gown, Michael Doleac (NBA) The people all admit we are the warmest gang in town. Andre Dyson (NFL) Kevin Dyson (NFL) We may not live forever on this jolly good old sphere, Luther Elliss (NFL) But while we do we’ll live a life of merriment and cheer, Arnie Ferrin (NBA) And when our college days are o’er and night is drawing Jordan Gross (NFL) nigh, Lee Grosscup (NFL) Former Ute Steve Smith is now one of the top With parting breath we’ll sing that song: Missy Marlowe (Olympic gymnast) receivers in the NFL, playing for Carolina. The “A Utah Man Am I”. Andre Miller (NBA) Pro Bowler led the NFC in receiving, receiving Ashley Postell (World balance beam champion) yards and touchdowns in 2005 and was named Chorus George Seifert (NFL) “Comeback Player of the Year.” Who am I, sir, 18 2008 MEDIA GUIDE Utah Football Utah Traditions A Utah Man am I! A Utah Man, sir, Will be ‘til I die. Ki-yi! Homecoming Utah’s all-time record in Homecoming games is 53-30-4. The first Homecoming game was held at the U. on November 12, 1921 against Colorado and ended in a scoreless tie. Internet The Utah athletics department made its first official appearance on the Internet in August of 1996 with a website that was managed and supported in-house. EXPERIENCE THE UTAH In 1997, the U. contracted the services of what is now CBS College Sports to manage its athletics website. Listed under the URL www.UtahUtes.com, the Utah website contains current information on all 18 of its varsity athletics teams. Leadership Committee The Utah Football Leadership Committee is elected Participants in the Muss, Utah’s student fan club, number in the thousands and stand the entire game. annually and was initiated in spring of 2003. The committee is comprised of sophomores, juniors and gang of college men dare meet us in a muss), the Utah of 3,157, of which more than half live on The Uintah seniors who are elected by their teammates. The student fan club has since used Muss as an acronym and Ouray reservation. The Utes operate their own members serve as team spokesmen, contribute to for “Mighty Utah Student Section.” The Muss pride tribal government, oversee approximately 1.3 million forming team policy and participate in the decision- themselves in standing for the entire football game acres of trust land and operate several businesses. making process. in support of the team. The Utah football team began sporting a Muss sticker on the center-back of its Television helmets in 2004. One of the earliest nationally televised games was between Utah and BYU on Thanksgiving Day, 1953. Nickname It was the first of 12 games selected by the NCAA In the earliest days of University of Utah recorded television committee for national broadcast in the history, the students and alumni referred to their 1953 season. An estimated 60 million people tuned athletic teams as both the Utes and the Redskins. into NBC and saw Utah edge BYU 33-32 in old Ute The dual nickname was officially dropped in favor Stadium. Mel Allen handled the play-by-play and of Utes in 1972, when college campuses became Lindsey Nelson did the color for the broadcast. Since sensitive to the concerns of tribal members. The then, Utah football teams have made regular local, University of Utah uses Utes as its nickname with regional and national television appearances. Utah permission from the Ute Tribal Council. was part of the Mountain West television package with ESPN from 1999-2005. In 2006, the MWC began Nobel Prize a long-term partnership with CBS College Sports In October of 2007, Mario R. Capecchi, Ph.D., (then known as CSTV). Since 2007, Utah’s local distinguished professor of human genetics and television partner has been KTVX-ABC 4. biology at the University of Utah, became the school’s first Nobel Prize winner. He received the 2007 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for Swoop, a caricature of a red-tailed hawk, is Utah’s developing a gene-targeting technique.