The University of Idaho marching band performs the Yale fight song while wearing Yale T-shirts during a time out in the first half of a second-round college basketball game between Yale and San Diego State in the NCAA Tournament in Spokane, Wash., Sunday, March 24, 2024. The Yale band could not make the trip, so the Idaho band learned the fight song and stepped in to support Yale.
When 13-seeded Yale pulled off the upset over #4 Auburn earlier this month in the first round of the NCAA Div. I Men's Basketball Tournament, they brought it all; double-digit scoring from three players, key three-pointers, and 21 points from the free throw line.
The only thing the team didn't have with them in Spokane, Washington, was its marching band. Yale's band was unable to make the trip across the county to support the team in its matchup.
Enter the nearby University of Idaho, whose band stepped in "off the bench" as a substitute.
According to praise from Connecticut Govenor Ned Lamont, The Sound of Idaho "donned the blue and white," learned Yale's fight song, and even adopted the temporary moniker "VanDogs" (a combination of the Idaho Vandals and Yale Bulldogs mascot names).
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In appreciation for the musical assist, Gov. Lamont declared March 28, 2024 as "University of Idaho Day" across the state of Connecticut.
Yale came up short in its second round matchup against San Diego State University, allowing the Aztecs to play against UConn in the "Sweet 16" of the March Madness bracket.
