I recently saw the football team at the high school I attended has a chance to make the playoffs for the first time in over two decades. This brought back memories…of lots of football losses.

Even though I like football, I would not have been at any of these games unless I had to be. And I saw many of the games in the 4-32 record over four seasons because I was in the pep band. Usually playing alto saxophone (and one season on the sidelines playing keyboards), I was at every home game and a few of the away games. I remember some of the halftime scores where the other team had thirty points or more, we had none, and we had a halftime show to do.

What happens to the pep band amid these results? We did not pay much attention to the football action. We played our parts loudly. The crowds at football games – and those who might hear us – were limited. We did our thing and did not think much about football.

Since I also had some pep band experience in college, I can compare and safely say that it was more enjoyable to play upbeat music when your team could regularly win. Someone has to lose the game and those teams have bands, cheerleaders, and fans as well. Trying to enjoy the music and band experience is harder when it occurs during loss after loss.

Put this together with my Cubs and Bears fandom and I am used to lost games and seasons. I wish teams who tend not to have success over time do at least occasionally have times of winning. Even just a year or a few games of success can help sustain enthusiasm and hope.