Three baritone saxophone players — Ava Arrowsmith, Owen Ashcraft, and Melissa Robinson — may share the same instrument, but each found their way into Montana State University’s Spirit of the West marching band in a unique way.
“How I first saw Spirit of the West was with my oldest sister. She was in the Spirit of the West in 2013,” Robinson said.
“My mom was in Spirit of the West, and she really told me all about marching band and what it has to offer,” Arrowsmith said.
Meet the talented musicians of Spirit of the West as they prepare for the biggest performance of their lives at the FCS Championship
“Born and raised in Bozeman, Montana. I’ve always seen the marching band around, so it’s kind of a surreal thing to be a part of it,” Ashcraft said.
Ashcraft is a freshman, Arrowsmith a junior. Robinson just wrapped up her senior year, graduating in December. And this was quite the season to go out on.
“It has felt honestly more exciting this season. I think because we’ve got the whole new lineup this year, it’s been kind of an anticipation of, ‘What are these people going to do?’” Robinson said.
She didn’t think she’d get the chance to play another “Brawl of the Wild” rivalry game, since this year’s Cat-Griz match-up was in Missoula. Then came the “Super Brawl.”
“The crowd was wild. It was an insane game, but the energy was just indescribable,” Robinson said.
When the Bobcats defeated the Grizzlies, the reality set in.
“What was going through your head when you’re like, ‘We’re going to Nashville?’” I asked. Ashcraft recalled. “That was about it. I was like, ‘We’re going!’”
“We were all super pumped that we were going to go to Nashville,” Arrowsmith said.
“To feel like I’ve got one more game? That I can do this one more time. It was an amazing feeling,” Robinson said.
But the trip doesn’t come cheap — and the NCAA doesn’t cover travel for bands.
“We will have 196 members on the field,” said Dr. Nathan Stark, Montana State’s director of bands.
With nearly 200 people traveling, the budget was set at $300,000.
“It’s all a fundraising campaign. It’s all about the community coming together, pitching in, to help get these students into this game,” Stark said.
Social media lit up after the Bobcats clinched their spot in the FCS National Championship game. In the two weeks since, 1,338 donors have nearly met the fundraising goal.
“It’s an important thing for us, not just because it’s the national championship,” Stark said. “We have students in our band who have never been on a plane before, never been out of Montana before. This is going to be a life experience they’ll never forget.”
For Arrowsmith, who is from Laurel, that rings true.
“I think I’m just most excited to be in Nashville. Being a homegrown Montana girl, I haven’t really had the chance to see so many different seasons or any other metropolitan area,” she said.
Band members say they’re grateful for the level of community support.
“In a lot of other colleges, the band isn’t quite as well known or funded. It’s amazing to be wanted,” Robinson said.
“In my opinion, we’re such a big part of the game. It’s nice to feel and know that we are recognized for what we do and all the work we put in,” Ashcraft said.
The band’s instruments are already on the road to Tennessee. The members fly out Saturday, and Stark says fans can expect an extra special national anthem performance when the Bobcats take the field for the championship game.
