September 21, 2018 was the first home game of the Football season in 2018. This was also the first time the Pep Band, called the Lion Pride Band officially, performed, and did a great job.

Mr. Gomez and his assistants managed the band really well, and you could watch their effort during the game. Mr. Gomez did not have any time to talk to Lincoln Lion Tales during the game.

The band played a lot of different songs before the game, but they also played at every touchdown, the time outs, when something special happened, and of course during the halftime break. These songs included “The Final Countdown”, the “Jungle Boogie”, “Louie Louie”, and of course the Lincoln Fight Song. In addition to that the band played small cheers during the game, for example “Band Cheers,” and “Scare Tactics”.

It was super cool to watch not just their songs, but also their movements, and shouts. Also, after the game they traditionally walked from the field into the band room playing, with a lot of parents, families, and friends following them.

It was a very stressful day for the band members: they already met at 4:30pm, almost two and a half hours before the actual game started. The band had a final rehearsal where they went over all their songs, and then they all had dinner together. There was free pizza and chips given to every member of the band, as well as this reporter, and everybody spent time with their friends, and had some social time before the game.

At that time – right before the game –  all the students in the band were really excited. Ethan Herrera told Lion Tales: “The first home game is very important to me, and I am excited about it because I really missed playing in the band during the summer”. Also he told Lion Tales that one of the difficulties of playing at a football game in comparison to a normal concert is the big audience. There are even more visitors at the very first home game, so everything has to work perfectly.

Ethan believes the band is a really important part of football. First of all, the band can represent the school very well, which is especially true for Lincoln, because it is a Performing Arts School. And second, as Ethan said, “A Football Game would not be Football without the band!”

Also Lupe Vindiola told Lincoln Lion Tales that a lot of people only come to the football game to see the band, especially the parents and family members of the students performing.

In addition to that, Lion Tales talked to Simon Karge, a senior at Lincoln High. He told Lion Tales that he really likes to play at football games because it is a fun tradition to support the football players. Also, he likes that he can play the sousaphone instead of the tuba which he normally plays.

He explained that the very first football game is even more difficult than normal football games because one does not know what is going to happen, and also the band has to figure out all the organization.

But still, he was totally excited about the first home game because it will be his last first home game at Lincoln.  “It is the start of the end,” he said.