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Is the Big House That Noisy?
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The Big House is the largest stadium in the nation when it comes to capacity and the amount of fans it draws on those traditional football Saturdays. But, many critics say it lacks noise. I’d have to agree to an extent with that. Michigan Stadium can get very loud, but not as loud as I would like. Some say the design of the stadium is a reason since the noise doesn’t get trapped, and others say it’s because of the fans in the crowd. I’ll let you decide on the reason.
Vanderbilt will come to town in just two days to battle the Wolverines in the Big House, and apparently they’re not concerned about the crowd. In yesterday’s Tennessean, there was an article about how Michigan’s crowd noise level doesn’t compare to some of the other stadiums around the country, especially in the south. As I said earlier, the noise level may not be as loud as some of the other stadiums, but there’s no reason to come out and compare it to a symphony.
Still, there’s something different, as Nashville resident — and Michigan graduate — Jeff Zimmer grudgingly admits.“Michigan-Ohio State is huge every year. I’ve been to Columbus and at Michigan for that game. It is loud, it is boisterous, but it’s not as … It’s hard to explain, but they’re not as fervent fans. It’s kinda like a symphony crowd, if you can compare football to a symphony. There are so many things going on in the stands that have nothing to do with football at a Michigan game.
“When the ball is in play at an SEC game, all eyes are on the field; people are intently watching every single play. It’s very impressive to watch.”
According to Zimmer, the stands are almost as entertaining as the field at a Wolverine game.
“At Michigan, when they do the wave, they don’t just do the wave,” he said. “They’ll send the wave around and then immediately turn around and bring it back, and then they’ll go up and down the stands and then they’ll send it around in slow motion. You can’t do all that if you’re paying attention to the game.
“Another distraction — they’ll send around a little travel band, about a six-piece band, and they’ll go around and challenge the other team’s band to a duel in the corner. I’ve seen other teams distracted by that, not necessarily on the field, but on the sidelines. I watched Ben Roethlisberger looking up in the stands while he was there, watching what was going on.
Even though this Zimmer guy is said to be a Michigan graduate, I’m thinking that he wasn’t a very big football fan. First, let me talk about the wave. The wave usually happens during the third quarter or so, some time around then. If a close game is going on where the result could go either way, then the wave won’t be happening during the actual playing of the game because any play could be crucial. Most of the time, the wave happens during a commercial break or between quarters. And when the wave does happen during play, it’ll likely come when the Wolverines have already put away their opponent.
Regarding the “little travel band” that plays in different sections throughout the stadium, this isn’t meant to “challenge the other team’s band to a duel in the corner.” This isn’t why they do it at all. With the way things are setup at Michigan Stadium, many sections can’t hear the band playing throughout much of the game. I personally have experienced this every time I go to a Michigan game because of where my seats are located at. That may change this year with the relocation of the band; I hope at least.
I love having the travel band come around to the different sections. Excluding the pre and post game band shows, the only time I get to hear them play are when they go around the stadium and reach my section. It’s a great tradition. And if someone would like to fill me in on how they challenge the other team’s band to a duel in the corner, be my guest. I’ve never heard of that before, so I would love to hear if that’s the true reason why they travel around the stadium.
Regardless of all that, even if the noise may not be as loud, it still would be a tough place to play. Just the looks of the stadium itself would make it hard to concentrate on a game.
And that Zimmer guy, I wonder if he was apart of that “Save the Big House” thing, because it really seems like he doesn’t know all that much about a Michigan football Saturday.
I was in the band, sooo, two things:
1. The travel band is called the Fanfare Band, and it’s pretty much unanimously agreed that it’s awesome. They only play between plays or on timeouts. There is no duel with the other band, though that would be sweet.
2. Ben Roethlisberger was not the quarterback when we played Miami.
Actually, Ben Roethlisberger was the QB for Miami in 2001 when we played him. I remember that much at least. I’ll check the player participation on MGoBlue later to make sure.
And thank you very much for telling me the specifics of the traveling band. I didn’t think that they were dueling with the other team’s band as they went all over the stadium.
I have the nerve to write to whoever published that article and tell them he was way off.
I have to say that I completely disagree with just about every comment you made regarding the wave in this post. I am a recent graduate and a huge football fan and I can identify with everything this Zimmer guy is saying. I don’t know what games you’ve been going to, but I can’t remember a game where the wave didn’t take place during play and I feel like there were probably about 10 times I can remember the game being within 7 points either way when the supposed super fans in the front spent an entire quarter turned around trying to get everyones’ attention. The wave is for MAC pre-conference opponents, not Penn State. Pay closer attention this season, you’ll see the wave floating around distracting Henne on 3rd and 7 at some point, it’s a guarantee.
As for the band traveling, I won’t say much about that except that you may need to go to the doctor and get a hearing test because I’ve never been unable to hear the band, and I’ve say on the other side of the stadium at the top before.
I’ll make sure to watch the wave and note the times it happens as you said.
For the band, I sit in section 5 right behind the visitor’s band. It’s impossible to hear Michigan’s because any time they’re playing, the visitor’s band is playing. Plus, being that I sit on the same side, but on opposite ends, they’re playing almost directly away from my seats.
Luckily they moved in front of the student section this year, so that shouldn’t be a problem anymore as they’ll be facing more towards me.