A word about the Continental Tire Bowl:

We recognize that our show has sparked a great deal of controversy, culminating in a written gubernatorial response to our University's President. We can assure you that we read every message we received regarding this show, both in support and in complaint. We wouldlike to take this opportunity to address some of the issues that were raised. Apparently there has been some confusion over what exactly the Virginia Pep Band is and what we do. We are a scramble band (also known as a scatter band). We are not and do not try to be a marching band. Although most of our membership has marching experience, we choose not to employ that style of performance. Instead we perform shows based on humor and satire. We aren't just a football band - the same crew that attended the Tire Bowl also performs for UVA sports as well as community charity events year-round. We also aren't scholarship players - the Pep Band is entirely student run, and comprised of student volunteers. Pep Band members are not paid for their efforts, and most are not music majors. For that matter, we are in no way affiliated with the UVA Music Department. We are a small group, but not as small as we were in Charlotte. The number of our band (60) was an Athletic Department restriction, not the actual size of our band. For more information on scramble bands and shows, check out our website at http://www.vapepband.org. Other schools with scramble bands include the Ivy League (minus Cornell), Rice, and Stanford. As far as we know, UVA is the only public university with a scramble band at this time. Since many of the responses received were from those who had not been present for our show or had not seen it, what follows is a basic description of what we did. The full show script can be found online at http://www.student.virginia.edu/~pepband/tirebowl.html. For brief clarification, our show makes more sense when the two reality shows it references are considered. The first is the premise for the show - ABC's "The Bachelor." For more information, see http://abc.abcnews.go.com/primetime/specials/bachelor/index.html. The second is a new proposed show by CBS - "The Real Beverly Hillbillies." The show was in the news at the time our script was written. An article on the show is here: http://tv.yahoo.com/news/va/20020828/103058275300.html. If you are the type who likes to protest such things, a site dedicated to doing so can be found here: http://www.ruralstrategies.org. The original show as written contained a specific reference to the CBS show which was modified asa result of censorship. Now to address a few rumors: "The show mocks West Virginia." This is false. The words "West Virginia" do not appear in the text. A WVU student and a UVA student are featured - neither is necessarily from the state in which they attend school. "The WVU student was barefoot/bucktoothed/etc." Also false. The band member portraying a WVU student was wearing shoes and had all teeth intact with none blacked out. "The Pep Band played the Beverly Hillbillies theme." This is also false. We played three songs: "Gimme Some Lovin'" (From the Blues Brothers Soundtrack), "Centerfold" (a J. Geils Band Song), and "Hey Baby" (From the Dirty Dancing Soundtrack). "The tire symbolized a mock West Virginia engagement ring." As far as we know, there exists no such tradition in Virginia, West Virginia or elsewhere. I assume this is complete fabrication, but even if a tradition of giving tires for engagement exists, we certainly did not know anything about it. The tire was a stand-in for the rose, which the Bachelor uses to indicate his selection in the show. A tire was used as a tribute to the Continental Tire Bowl. No ulterior motive was intended. "The script wasn't approved, or was changed from the approved version." As stated above, this is false. The script was submitted and approved before Christmas, both by the UVA Athletic Department and officials at the Continental Tire Bowl. The script was then read without modification on the day of the show. "The Pep Band has something against West Virginia." This is false. Really. Our Managing Board of five this year contains a proud West Virginian. In the past decade we have had more than a half dozen West Virginians as Directors and Board Members, probably more than from any other state. The members of our band are not old enough to remember the last timethat UVA played WVU (I was 2 at the time, some of those at the game had not yet been born). Our shows reference all sorts of people. We don't single anyone out, and we perform nothing that is a serious attack on anyone. Hopefully that clears things up a little bit. The most important thing to remember however is that the show was not serious. Furthermore, the intended target of the jokes was a pair of reality shows, not West Virginia. Regardless, jokes should be taken as jokes. The Pep Band is dedicated to two major non-musical goals: supporting Virginia Athletics and taking life a little less seriously. We understand that many do not share our desire for the first goal, but perhaps everyone should join us in pursuing the second. Adam W. Lorentson, Director Anthony Jackson, Laura Reid, Jessica Moss, and Bert Neal, Managing Board