The preponderance of Pittsburgh Steelers fans in Memphis has always amazed me, given the great distance between the two cities. Perhaps the Steelers had a gritty image that appealed to a rough, working-class town like Memphis. Whatever the reason, Steelers fans are everywhere. Southern Heritage Classic Parade, Orange Mound, Memphis TN, 9/8/12
Sports
Mitchell at Melrose, Orange Mound, Memphis, 2012
Mitchell High School vs. Melrose High School at Melrose Stadium, Orange Mound, Memphis, 9/7/12
Melrose’ Sound of the Mound Marching Band Performs Against Mitchell in Orange Mound, 2012
The Melrose High School Sound of the Mound band performs at the Golden Wildcats’ game against Mitchell in Orange Mound, Memphis, 9/7/12
Melrose vs. Mitchell at Melrose Stadium in Orange Mound, Memphis 2012
Orange Mound was one of the first subdivisions in America to be developed by African-Americans, and is a proud and stable neighborhood in Memphis. Many residents love sports in general and their Melrose High School Golden Wildcats in particular, so Friday night games at Melrose Stadium are as big a deal as a college game, not only with a large crowd inside the stadium but also with a large tailgating group across Park Avenue at the community center. Melrose vs. Mitchell at Melrose Stadium, Orange Mound, Memphis, 9/7/12
Westwood at BTW, Memphis, 2012
At the Booker T. Washington vs. Westwood game at BTW Stadium in South Memphis, 8/31/12
MIAA Football: Westwood at BTW, Memphis
Memphis’ Booker T. Washington Stadium is arguably the second-oldest in the city after Crump Stadium, behind Central High School, although the latter has had a complete renovation in recent years. Much has changed in the surrounding neighborhood, including the demolition of Cleaborn Homes and Foote Homes, but crowds still turn out to support the Booker T. Washington Warriors, the oldest Black high school in Memphis. This year, BTW seems to have a decent marching band, with a first-rate drumline. Westwood, on the other hand, is a pathetic shadow of its former life, when, in the 80’s and early 90’s, it used to march over a hundred band members. Open enrollment, and outmigration from the neighborhood have devastated it. Still, the Longhorns have a small marching band that seems well-trained and which might become the foundation of a rebuilding. Only time will tell.Â
Whitehaven vs. Fairley at JP Freeman, 2012
At the Whitehaven vs. Fairley game at J. P. Freeman Stadium, Memphis, 8/25/12
Whitehaven vs. Fairley at J.P. Freeman, Memphis, 2012
High school football (and the marching band battles that go with it) are a big part of the culture of Memphis, and there are few rivalries bigger than Whitehaven High School and Fairley High School. Their game this year, played at J. P. Freeman Stadium  because Whitehaven Stadium is being renovated, was a rare Saturday game and it drew a crowd as big as one might expect for a college game.The weather was perfect, the bands were great, and there were no fights.Â
UAPB Band Entrance in Pine Bluff, 2011
#28 UAPB Band Entrance.MOV (by jdoggtn7)
The UAPB Marching Musical Machine of the Mid-South marches into the stadium at Pine Bluff, October 15, 2011
(Source: http://www.youtube.com/)
Whitehaven Band Marching into Melrose Stadium, 2011
#12 Whitehaven Band.MOV (by jdoggtn7)
The Whitehaven Band marches into Melrose Stadium in Orange Mound, Memphis at Melrose Homecoming, October 14, 2011
(Source: http://www.youtube.com/)