Stuck between two home games, a week of Homecoming festivities and midterms, the Sun Devil Marching Band held a smaller Band Day on Saturday than previous years, which made for a more intimate competition, an event coordinator said.

Zac Humphrey, the student event coordinator, said the Sun Devils decided to make their student-run event about half the size of previous competitions to avoid tearing up the field at Sun Devil Stadium as well as fatiguing members.

However, by fielding fewer bands than normal, Humphrey said each high school was given more attention.

“It was nice because everyone wasn’t rushed,” he said. “It wasn’t like we were herding them like cattle.”

ASU Band Day is an annual competition for Arizona high schools and an opportunity for ASU’s band to perform and attract future members.

English rock band Queen was the theme of the Sun Devils’ show.

Humphrey said the band played its third show from this season for the Band Day performance.

“It’s just fun to be able to see the finished product come together and perform it for everyone because this is an audience that truly gets what we do,” he said.

The performance also reenergizes the Sun Devils for the last couple of home games, he said.

Lindsay Bakalar, a senior Sun Devil clarinet player, said she has performed at Band Day the past four years as well as twice during high school.

The high schools arrived at Sun Devil Stadium a couple of hours before they perform in order to warm up and get a chance to size up their competition, she said.

“The second you get out there, you want to show everyone else what you’ve been working for and what you’re made of,” she said.

Bakalar said she remembers stepping onto the field of Sun Devil Stadium for the first time during her first year of high school.

“My heart and stomach just jumped into my throat, and I could not believe the amount of people that were watching me,” she said. “The adrenaline rush got me through the show.”

ASU’s Band Day also serves to attract band students to the Sun Devil marching band, Bakalar said.

“When they go to the band days, [the high school seniors] decide then and there, ‘I want to be part of that school. I want to be part of that program,’” she said.

Aidan Doherty, a senior snare drum player in the Agua Fria High School Band of Owls, said he has come to ASU’s Band Day each year of high school.

“It’s always been my favorite competition of the year,” he said. “I always look forward to it.”

The Band of Owls earned second place in their division this year.

“I had a good performance,” he said. “Our drum line had a pretty solid performance.”

Since he’s already been accepted by ASU, Doherty could be a part of the band he calls his favorite.

“They’re one of the best in the state,” he said. “They’re loud and powerful. If I come here, I’m auditioning for the drum line for sure.”

Reach the reporter at salvador.rodriguez@asu.edu.