NEMCC welcomes one of Mississippi's most prominent marching band festivals to campus
Over 34 marching bands set to take over Tiger Stadium on Saturday, October 1
BOONEVILLE, Miss. -- (09/28/2022) — Northeast Mississippi Community College's Showband from Tigerland will host one of Mississippi's most prominent marching band festivals on Saturday, October 1.
Over 30 marching bands from three states will all converge on Northeast's Tiger Stadium for a full day of competition at the thirty-ninth annual Northeast Regional Marching Band Championships.
"I cannot believe the turnout and the support that we have had for the marching contest," said Northeast director of bands Bryan Mitchell. "With nearly 35 bands, we are looking forward to a great crowd."
Thirty-four bands are set to perform throughout the day with 11 bands competing in both the Ratings and Caption sections of the competition.
During the Ratings section, bands compete for ratings (on a scale from 1-5) against themselves based on different parts of their performance, from drum major to guard to percussion to dance and drill teams to majorettes and even an overall band rating.
During the Caption portion, marching bands compete against each other for not only individual top scores, sweepstakes trophies but one of the largest trophies on the marching band circuit - a giant six-foot tall trophy.
With so many bands performing, the day will see 45 overall performances during the 12-plus hour competition.
Nineteen bands will perform during the ratings portion that starts at 9 a.m. and go until 2 p.m. before the caption portion kicks off at 3 p.m. and performs well into the night.
Middleton, Tennessee and Hardin County, Tennessee, make up the members from the Volunteer state, while Cherokee, Alabama and Hoover, Alabama, makes the trek from the Yellowhammer State to join the other 29 bands from the Magnolia State.
"No matter what school you cheer for, come out and support these bands," Mitchell said. "They have put a lot of hard work into their shows. No
matter if it was raining, cold or over one hundred on their practice fields, these bands have put everything they have into their shows, and it would be amazing to see Tiger Stadium packed with friends, family and supporters of these marching band programs."
In 2021, Neshoba Central High School claimed the Grand Championship trophy along with the Classes 4A/5A/6A Sweepstakes Winner's Trophy, while the small school (Classes 1A/2A/3A) Sweepstakes Trophy went to the Wolverines of East Webster.
Competition starts at 9 a.m. as the Middleton (Tenn.) Tiger marching band takes the field for competition, and bands will be on the field for 12 straight hours culminating with the host Showband from Tigerland at approximately 9:20 p.m. Awards for the Caption portion are scheduled to take place during a band representative retreat at 9:35 p.m.
Admission is $10. Children kindergarten age and below will be admitted for free. For those attending, Northeast has set up booths to be able to take debit and credit cards for admission fees at the south (main) entrance as well as cash.
Handicap parking will be reserved near the south entrance to Tiger Stadium just off Coach Bill Ward Drive.
Concessions will be available, and those purchasing concessions can use a debit or credit card at the concession stand as well.
"This will be the largest competition we've had since I've been here," Mitchell said. "If you are anywhere in the tri-state area and love marching bands, then Tiger Stadium is the place to be. For only $10, you get over 12 hours of marching bands."
High school bands scheduled to participate in the thirty-ninth Northeast Regional Marching Band Championships include Aberdeen, Alcorn Central, Amory, Baldwyn, Bruce, Caledonia, Calhoun City, Cherokee, Ala., Columbus, Corinth, East Webster, Hamilton, Hardin County (Tenn.), Hatley, Hoover (Ala.), Kossuth, Lafayette, Mantachie, Middleton (Tenn.), Mooreville, Neshoba Central, Nettleton, New Albany, New Hope, North Pontotoc, Oxford, Ripley, Saltillo, Shannon, South Pontotoc, Tishomingo County and Water Valley.
Classification reflects that of the Mississippi High School Activities Association's State Marching Championship. Out-of-State bands will be placed in a class based on the total of winds and percussion.
Booneville High School will represent the City of Hospitality in an exhibition at 9 p.m., while Northeast will perform twice. Once before the Ratings awards at 2:20 p.m. and one time before the Caption Awards program at 9:20 p.m.
For more information, contact Mitchell at 662-720-07257 or by email at bpmithcell@nemcc.edu.
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Below is the tentative list of performance times for the Ratings and Caption sections at the Northeast Mississippi Community College Northeast Regional Marching Band Championships on Saturday, October 1, at Tiger Stadium in Booneville.
PERFORMANCE SCHEDULE
Ratings Portion
Class 1A
Hamilton, 9:30 a.m.
Class 2A
Baldwyn, 9:45 a.m.
Class 3A
Alcorn Central, 10 a.m.
Amory, 10:15 a.m.
Nettleton, 10:30 a.m.
Aberdeen, 10:45 a.m.
Mantachie, 11 a.m.
Hatley, 11:15 a.m.
Water Valley, 11:30 a.m.
Class 4A
Shannon, 12 p.m.
Tishomingo County, 12:15 p.m.
New Albany 12:30 p.m.
Mooreville, 12:45 p.m.
Caledonia, 1 p.m.
Class 5A
New Hope, 1:15 p.m.
Lafayette, 1:30 p.m.
Columbus, 1:45 p.m.
Neshoba Central, 2 p.m.
Exhibition
Northeast Mississippi CC, 2:20 p.m.
Caption Portion
Class 1A
Cherokee, Ala., 3 p.m.
Middleton, Tenn., 3:15 p.m.
Class 2A
Bruce, 3:30 p.m.
Calhoun City, 3:45 p.m.
East Webster, 4 p.m.
Class 3A
Nettleton, 4:15 p.m.
Kossuth, 4:30 p.m.
Mantachie, 4:45 p.m.
Class 4A
South Pontotoc, 5:15 p.m.
New Albany, 5:30 p.m.
Hardin County, Tenn., 5:45 p.m.
Corinth, 6 p.m.
Ripley, 6:15 p.m.
North Pontotoc, 6:30 p.m.
Caledonia, 6:45 p.m.
Class 5A
New Hope, 7 p.m.
Lafayette, 7:15 p.m.
Saltillo, 7:30 p.m.
Columbus, 7:45 p.m.
Neshoba Central, 8 p.m.
Class 6A
Hoover, Ala., 8:30 p.m.
Oxford, 8:45 p.m.
Exhibition
Booneville, 9 p.m.
Exhibition
Northeast Mississippi CC, 9:20 p.m.
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Information about Northeast Mississippi Community College
Northeast Mississippi Community College, located in Booneville, Mississippi, is continually moving forward.
In the spring of 2020, Northeast became just one of four community colleges in the world to reach the prestigious Apple Distinguished School designation. NEMCC was the recipient of the Ellucian Impact Award for 2020 that recognizes the college's advancements in technology and is the only school in the nation to receive the award with the second award going to the University of Greenwich in London and Kent, United Kingdom.
Northeast has been named one of the top colleges and universities in Mississippi and was recognized by the Mississippi Business Journal as the Healthiest Workplace in Mississippi as it pertains to colleges and universities.
In addition to being one of the top colleges and universities in the nation, OnlineColleges.com recognized Northeast as the top school in the state of Mississippi for online education out of all colleges and universities, including four-year colleges and universities.
ZIPPIA has honored Northeast as the top community college in Mississippi in preparing students for the workforce and Northeast became the first college or university to offer a Z-degree (zero textbook cost) degree in the state of Mississippi as well.
Northeast athletics can also boast that it is home to a new ultramodern baseball and softball facility and currently holds the record for largest video boards for both sports in the community college ranks in the state.
The Chronicle of Higher Education has designated the college as one of its 'Best Places to Work For,' and CollegeChoice.net has named Northeast a Top 25 Community and Junior College in the country while The Center for Digital Education has recognized Northeast as a Top 10 Digital Community College in the nation.
Campus Labs recently named Northeast as one of two educational institutions in the nation as a Campus Labs Trailblazer Award honoree. The Campus Labs Trailblazer Award is based on the college creating a culture of assessment on campus through Campus Labs Planning to increase institutional adoption, focus on continuous improvement, and closing the loop in the institutional assessment priorities.
For more information about Northeast Mississippi Community College, visit http://www.nemcc.edu.