On Dec. 26, In the middle of the holidays, 240 CSU Marching Band members and staff returned to Fort Collins for one last rehearsal before boarding a charter flight in the wee hours of the morning, flying to Tucson, Ariz. for the inaugural Arizona Bowl vs. the Nevada Wolfpack. Leading up to the game, held on Dec. 29 at Arizona Stadium on the University of Arizona campus, the band participated in several practice sessions, enjoyed their annual banquet and season video watch party, and played a pep rally for energized CSU Ram Fans.

After a full 2015-2016 season, with nearly twenty performances including the Rocky Mountain Showdown, halftime of the Denver Broncos home opener, six home games, an away game in Wyo., several exhibition performances, the CSU Homecoming and Family Weekend parade, and the 9News Parade of Lights, a bowl trip is the culminating moment where all the hard work pays off!

"It’s great to have that final chance to get the band together to rehearse, to perform, to sing the alma mater, and to simply spend time together representing the university that we all love," said CSU Marching Band Director Richard Frey.

The celebratory atmosphere at the CSU Alumni Association events and bowl related pep rallies was especially enjoyable, the band collectively feeding off of the energy from the crowds. "The students were rightfully proud of their performances throughout game day, even though the result of the game wasn’t quite what we hoped for," boasted Frey.

As the final group of students boarded the bus to the airport the morning following the game, Frey overheard the excited (and exhausted) chatter of his students and knew that it was a successful trip.

"We can’t wait to find out where we'll go in support of our team in 2016!"