By Mike Hutchens, UC Schools Communications Director
Union City, Tenn.–Mission accomplished.
Veteran Union City High School director Jason Deem said his goal coming into the marching band season was to finish in the Top 5 at the Division 2 State Championship.
Those aspirations became reality when the Purple People placed fifth overall among 22 bands in the year-ending competition in Smyrna last weekend.
That spectacular showing was not just any fifth-place finish, however.
By enrollment, UC was slotted to compete among Division I schools. Deem, though, elected to put his group into the Division 2 category, which included schools with up to 1,000 students.
He said he never considered otherwise.
“Our band program pushes our kids to be their very best, just like we do in academics and athletics,” Deem claimed. “We’re always striving for excellence.”
In the end, it was the right call.
Not only did the Marching Tornadoes – the smallest school in the Division 2 competition with around 400 students – place fifth overall, they finished second in color guard and fifth in percussion, to the delight of a large collection of Purple and Gold supporters.
Led by 19 seniors among a group of 82 members in all, Union City had 90 fewer students than the second-smallest band. The Purple People earned a spot in the evening finals of the Saturday competition with a Top 10 finish in the afternoon preliminaries, then returned with an equally impressive showing of their ‘Twisted’ program at night to rank in the final Top 5.
Deem, who’s been with the program since 2006, said he and his staff, which includes assistant director Joe Davis and color guard leader Laney Rogers, “were thrilled with the product we put out there. What we accomplished was an outstanding feat.
“We just consistently got better throughout the year. There were no peaks or valleys, and we kept adding new things to the show each week. Our group was totally bought in.”
Preparations for this year’s show began in earnest with preseason camp in July. UC then shined in competitions at South Gibson County, Huntingdon, and Paragould (Ark.) before saving their best for Smyrna.
Nine judges ranked the entries in the State Championship and Deem said they were evaluated on how well they played, how well they marched, and how well they stimulated the audience’s attention and kept them captivated.
“It’s really impossible to design a show based solely on what the judges are looking for. You have to find a good balance,” he insisted.
Deem was gracious in his appreciation of UC Schools Director Wes Kennedy, Assistant Director of Schools Michael Paul Miller, and UCHS Principal Jacob Cross.
“Our administration is simply the best,” he said. “They’re so supportive of our program and our kids. There’s nothing like knowing that the people in charge will do whatever they need to in order to put your program in the best position to succeed and excel.”
Deem, who said work would begin on next year’s show in a few weeks, took a moment to reflect when asked his final personal thoughts on the 2023 season.
“For me, this probably ranks in the Top 5 of achievements we’ve had since I’ve been here,” he smiled. “We have great kids. And it showed throughout the year. They persevered through every challenge and were flexible.
“Their attitude and their work ethic truly exemplified our motto here at UC Schools — ‘No excuses.’
“We are undoubtedly blessed.”