On November 1st, 2015, the undefeated Cincinnati Bengals came to Pittsburgh with the goal of keeping that undefeated record.

They did.

On that same day the Shippensburg University Marching Band was invited to play both pre-game and halftime with the hopes of promoting the name "Shippensburg University" as well as bringing the spirit of excitement that comes with a professional sports game.

They did.

Over 160 undergraduate students, staff and alumni came to showcase their talents as well as experience an NFL atmosphere. With over 64,000 in attendance, this was a show to remember.

It all started with the band director of Shippensburg University receiving this opportunity early 2015. It was placed in the band members schedule as "Special Performance", to make it a surprise for all members. The staff and cabinet working behind the scenes knew, but made sure things were kept quiet until the big reveal in August 2015. When the band met for the first day of band camp, the band director announced that the band would be playing at the Steelers game on November 1st. The announcement was met with a roar of excitement from both students and their parents.

Shippensburg University's Red Raider Marching Band performed the Pennsylvania Polka for pre-game during the 40th anniversary of the Terrible Towel. Then for the halftime show they played the second half of their marching band show Revolution Evolution, which included Enterprising Young Men from Star Trek and New Divide by Linkin Park.

I should come as no surprise that most students that attend Shippensburg tend to favor Pittsburgh sports teams. While one of the members in the drumline, Bryan Bottiger, is a major Cincinnati Bengals fan, he left the stadium with a smile on his face when the score was 16-10 in favor of his Bengals.

Regardless of the score, though, the fans were welcoming to the band performance and met it with thunderous applause. Drumline section leader and Steelers fan Michael McCullough stated that "The experience was exhilarating! You never realize the sheer magnitude of a stadium until there are people in the seats all starring at you. Definitely one of the best performances of my life."

Students were burst into uncontrollable excitement when the Steelers put points on the board. However, while the team did not make it a victorious day the students left with an experience that will live with them forever.