top of page
Football Games​

  • What to Bring

    • On football game days, the band has a short practice immediately after school. They do not have time to go home and will need to bring everything they need in the morning so their band bag should be packed with the following:

      • Black athletic shorts

      • Shirt designated by Ms. Maltagliati for that week’s game (Practice Shirt or Show Shirt)

      • Black crew (or taller socks)

      • Marching shoes

      • Rain poncho (most kids keep this in his bag all the time so they don’t have to remember it)

      • Empty garment bag (their marching uniform will go in the bag)

      • Flip folder with music and lyre (if they are using one)

      • Water jug (fill it about 3/4 full of ice and then add water and they will still have cold water and some ice after school)

      • Instrument

      • Anything else they might need (fanny pack, deodorant, sunscreen, sunglasses, etc).

 

Itinerary

  • Itineraries for football games will be published through BAND App at the beginning of the week. Itineraries will include schedule for the day, items required for inspection, estimated time of performance (always subject to change!), stadium information, how to buy tickets, etc. 

 

Inspection & Uniforms

  • After practice, students will load the equipment truck, and check out their marching uniforms. Uniforms are kept at the school.  They will check them in and out for each game/competition. They will have time to eat their dinner and change into their uniform before they load the buses. After eating and getting dressed they will gather in their sections for inspection.

  • ​Before each game/competition there is a process they go through called Inspection.  They gather in their sections and the section leaders make sure everyone has the needed items to travel with. If they do not pass inspection, they will call a parent to come get them and will not be able to travel with the band. This is why it is so important to make sure they have the proper things when they leave in the morning. Should they happen to forget or lose an item, the uniform room has new items available for purchase and a few loaner items.

  • The first few games of the season, before uniforms come in, the band traditionally wears the White Practice shirt with khaki shorts. Shorts must comply with the DCPS Dress code.  More information will be given in the itinerary. 

  • Please remind the students that their uniform should never be put on the ground or laid in the grass unless it is in the garment bag. They can enlist a friend to hold something if necessary. If they lose anything (shoes, mouthpiece, cell phone, etc.), they need to let their section leader, a drum major, or a chaperone know right away. Many a shoe or mouthpiece have been dropped in a dark parking lot or on the bus and it is hard to see them. Things have also been known to fall through the stands. If the kids tell their section leader, a drum major or an adult before the band leaves the stadium, we will have a chance to find the item. 

  • Likewise if the hem on their bibbers comes undone, or if they feel their uniform is just not fitting right, they need to notify one of the uniform parents. The kids will know who they are after getting fitted in the summer. Any chaperone can also help them. 

  • For the “OH NOOO, I FORGOT…!” Don’t worry! It happens.  We have a few loaner garment bags and shoes in the uniform room.. We do not have enough bags for everyone nor do we have all shoe sizes but we can cover most needs.  Also, we sell new black socks, extra shirts, water jugs and rain ponchos in the uniform room before every event all through marching season.  Prices are listed on the uniform room door.​

 

Dinner

  • Your band fee covers most meals at marching competitions, IT DOES NOT COVER MEALS BEFORE FOOTBALL GAMES. The majority of parents purchase and reserve ahead of time concessions for their student for our volunteers to pass out around third quarter (usually around 7:30 pm - 8 pm). Other bring fast food like Chick-Fil-A, Canes, Subway, McDonalds, etc... Some students bring lunch and dinner to school in the morning. Since the kids are not allowed to eat in the band hall, if parents bring dinner to their student, they wait in the school foyer and the kids come and find them after practice to get their dinner.

  • DoorDash, UberEats, and other delivery services are not recommended. 

  • Also, something that works for many families is a “Food Pool”. It is like a carpool, where you take turns bringing food for a group of kids. Ask your carpool members or other band parents you know if they might be interested in forming a group. It does take some coordination, but would mean that you don’t have to bring food for each game night.

 

Stadium Practices

  • From time to time we will practice at Sandalwood football stadium. If there is construction that doesn't allow us to use either our practice lot or football stadium,  we will need to go to Atlantic Coast or Fletcher High School and share their facilities they have graciously allowed us to use. To help with transportation issues, a bus will be provided from Sandalwood to their school, if bus availability allows. If there is a bus available, the schedule is dependent on when the buses finish their intermediate school routes. Sometime between 4:30 pm and 5:00 pm buses will arrive at Sandalwood to pick up band students. There will NOT be a bus to bring students back to Sandalwood at the end of practice. You are responsible for arranging transportation home for your student. There is no cost to ride the bus.  There is usually a run-through of the full show at approximately 6:45pm. This is a great time to see the show uninhibited. For the case where we do not have any bus availability, we will need students to carpool or find their own transportation to the new site (ACHS/FHS). This will mostly affect our Summer 2026 & 2027 and we hope to have our home field soon.

 

Fun for Families Too!

  • Families have just as much fun in the stands on game night as the kids! Show your band spirit by wearing any Sandalwood shirt (navy or gold). We sit on the other side of the Mighty Marching Saints. It is a little further from the band, but still close enough to see them having fun. Game nights are also another fun opportunity to get to know the other band parents. Also, make sure you bring a clear bag since the majority of stadiums have a clear bag policy.

  • Please do not go into the band area in the stands. While your student is having fun, they are under the guidance of the directors and have a schedule to follow. Also, do not buy them food, they are not allowed to have food in the stands until their third quarter break. 

 

Pink Out Game

  • The district has one game per year/per school in the month of October dedicated to showing support for Breast Cancer Awareness. For this game the students typically get a pink accessory to wear. They may also wear pink socks, pink temporary tattoos, basically anything pink! Any accessories (necklaces, bandanas, sunglasses, tiaras, bracelets, etc) must be taken off for the halftime performance.

 

​After an Event

  • After an event, when the kids are leaving they change out of their uniform, either on the bus or in the parking lot, hang all the pieces on the hanger (bibbers & uniform top) and then put the uniform in their garment bag. When they get on the bus, the chaperones collect the garment bags and stack them in the front of the bus. All students will take the buses back to school. When the bus arrives back at the school, each student takes one garment bag as they get off and lays it on the sidewalk. They then look for the bag with their name on it. EVERY student is responsible for checking-in ONLY their uniform. They do not have to carry in the uniform of any other student unless asked by a band director, chaperone, drum major or section leader.

  • The band unloads the truck & trailer of all props and instruments after most events. This is a team effort and it goes MUCH faster when the entire band helps carry things back into the school. AFTER the truck is unloaded, uniform check-in begins.

  • So, while you may see the buses return to the school, it usually takes another 30-40 minutes to unload instruments and check in uniforms before you see your student come out to the car.

 

​HOMECOMING WEEK

  • Homecoming week is a fun event at Sandalwood HS and the students are involved in several things.

    • Theme Days: All Week - Each day of the week is a different theme and the kids are encouraged to dress up (school appropriate attire and no masks). The school usually sends a schedule of the theme days via email to parents.

    • Pep Rally: Friday

      • The most important thing you need to know is that the band is one of the groups leading off the pep rally. We will host two pep-rallies at the end of the school day, that align with our activity schedule during school. While the school will be placed on either Team A, or Team B, the Band will stay in the gym for both pep rallies. We will stand on the court and play our stand tunes as the student body are walking in.

    • Mums: Friday

      • Even if they don’t have a date, most girls still make a mum for themselves and wear them to school on Friday. They can wear the mums at the football game after halftime. 99% of mums these days have a strap to be worn around the neck, but they can also be pinned to the strap on their bibbers.

      • Freshman, Sophomores and Juniors wear a single or double flower mum with ribbon in the school colors (red/white/black). Senior mums are works of art that have multiple flowers and are usually all white, with an accent color of their choice.

      • Guys wear mums too! The guys wear a smaller version of the Homecoming mum. They are worn with a garter around the upper arm.

    • Carnival: Friday

      • On Friday, the Homecoming Carnival is usually from 11:50 am - 1:20 pm with a Pep Rally to follow from 1:30 pm - 2:30 pm. During the carnival, the campus will be filled with game booths and have just about every kind of fast food and treats you can imagine so be sure to send your students with money to buy tickets (tickets are $1 each).

    • Football Game

      • The Homecoming Football Game is Friday night. Introduction of the Homecoming court can be either before the game or at halftime, depending on the schedule that is done by the athletic staff. If the homecoming presentation is at halftime then the band will perform after the game.  If you want to see the band, be in the stands around 8 pm. If this is the case, the schedule will also be different after school as the band will need to be on the field earlier than usual which means they will need dinner earlier. Details will be communicated the week of homecoming.

    • Dance: Saturday Night

      • For some years, depending on when homecoming lands, it could be on a band competition day.  The band directors will decide if they will stay for the finals of the competition or come home for the kids to go to the homecoming dance. The Sandalwood Mighty Marching Band is a very competitive band and all of our October Saturday’s are spent at various contests. If the decision is made to stay at the competition and not have the kids attend homecoming, while some of the band students are disappointed that they can’t go to the dance, the majority are much more excited about competing. For the 2026 Season, there is no interference as our homecoming is in September and there is no competition to conflict with. The homecoming dance is from 6-9 pm.

bottom of page