STANFORD: University punishes Stanford Band

No performances at next three Notre Dame games; band issues apology

The Stanford Band is being banned once again.

Because of its performance at the Oct. 4 Stanford-Notre Dame game, the Stanford band will be prohibited from performing the next time the Fighting Irish visit The Farm in 1999. Ted Leland, Stanford's athletic director, handed down the punishment on Friday.

The group was already prohibited from going to the next two games in the series in South Bend, Ind., for dressing the drum major in a nun's habit and conducting with a crucifix.

So the next time the band is allowed to perform in front of the Fighting Irish won't be until 2001.

The punishment came down after Leland met with Stanford President Gerhard Casper about the band's performance, athletic department officials said.

The pregame and halftime shows made fun of Roman Catholic doctrine, the Irish people and the Potato Blight. Although the band's manager, Scott McKissen, said the writers of the scripts meant no offense, many Catholics and people of Irish decent were steaming after the performance.

The band released an apology on Friday which stated: "In our last performance at the Stanford-Notre Dame football game, the Stanford Band offended many people while performing our pregame and halftime shows. A misjudgment on our part has upset many people. These complaints are legitimate. We fully apologize for offending those people who we did not intend to offend."

The band will be performing at the remainder of the games this season, including this Saturday's contest against Arizona State. The script for the Notre Dame game had been reviewed by the officials at the athletic department, but still went on as written. As a result, the review procedures will be revamped.

"The review of the (Band's) scripts will involve more people," said Jon Denney, assistant athletic director at Stanford. "It will possibly involve people (from Stanford) outside the athletic department."

Members of the Band and representatives of the athletic department met Monday night to discuss the future relationship between the two groups.

--Charlie Breitrose

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