SCSU's Marching 101 to play NFL halftime

Photo: S.C. State band members Shion Randolph, center, and Darryl Broome, right, perform Sunday during the 2007 Palmetto Invitational Band Classic in Charleston.

VIDEO: http://www.thestate.com/colleges/story/174132-a173840-t19.html

The South Carolina State Marching 101 band played Williams-Brice Stadium in Columbia a week ago. On Sunday, the band goes pro.

To the NFL that is.

The NFL Atlanta Falcons will host the Carolina Panthers for their 2007 home opener at the Georgia Dome. The Marching 101 will perform during halftime.

The game begins at 4:15 p.m. and will air on the FOX network.

The Marching 101 could return to perform in the Georgia Dome in January 2008 if selected to participate in the annual Honda Battle of the Bands Invitational Showcase. Vote for the SC State Marching 101's inclusion as one of the nation's Top 10 Historically Black College and University bands at www.hondabattleofthebands.com. Voting concludes on Friday, Nov. 2, at 12 a.m. EST.

S.C. STATE Marching 101 Band
Director: Eddie Ellis
Members: 320
Drum majors: Michael “The Rock” Williams, Quinton “The GQ Model” Turner, Shane “The Professor” Walcott, LaTrondrick “The Rookie” Hunter, Tariq “Pretty Boy” Miller, Jonathan “Oh My God” Whitfield, Fernandez “The Kid” Brown
Style: High step, also known as “chair step” or “ankle-knee”
Claim to fame: They memorize all their sheet music

S.C. State band director Eddie Ellis has directed high school and college bands since 1975.

He joined the Marching 101 three years ago after working as a band director at Morris Brown College. You might remember the Morris Brown band from the 2002 movie “Drumline,” a film Ellis believes brought attention to marching band culture.

“It’s an art form. That movie has had a tremendous impact on the entire band world — regardless of style.”

And style is what makes the Marching 101 unique, Ellis said. This season, the S.C. State band will play mostly hip-hop and rhythm and blues, “but we may go back and do some ’70’s stuff. We try to do something everyone would enjoy.”

“Up for the Dogs,” the S.C. State fight song, and selections from James Brown, Earth, Wind and Fire, and the hit “Bartender” by hip-hop and R&B artist T-Pain are on their list.

Shane “The Professor” Walcott, a senior criminal justice major at S.C. State, is one of seven drum majors. He says the Marching 101 will bring a distinctive, up tempo and aggressive style to every performance. "We’re gonna do what we do best. It’s going to be an exciting show.”