Trio of Sturgis grads having a hail of a time at Michigan

ANN ARBOR — A trio of Sturgis High School graduates are having a hail of a time in college.

Senior Rowan Klar and sophomores Katie Strawser and Eathan Klar are each enrolled at the University of Michigan. Aside from being SHS graduates and Michigan students, they also have something else in common, as all three are members of the Michigan Marching Band.

It has its perks, obviously, but it also requires a whole lot of time, effort and sacrifice. All three mentioned time management as being an important part of their daily lives. Juggling not only studies, but time with the band for rehearsals and games is a big part of their week.

All three were members of the football marching band. Strawser is also a member of the hockey band while Eathan is a member of the basketball band.

Rowan, now a senior, just finished up her final season as a member of the flag department in the band.

“It’s so much fun, it’s a whole little community and I love being a part of it,” Rowan, the 2020 graduate of SHS said. “I’ve met a lot of really nice people and some amazing friends. A bunch of us live together, it’s a great community of people.”

Eathan and Strawser were both graduates of the Class of 2022 at Sturgis. There, Eathan was the drum major for the Trojans his junior and senior year. His instrument of choice is the trumpet. He said had his older sister not gone to Michigan, he probably would have ended up at a different school.

“Oh, absolutely. If she didn’t come here, I would most certainly be somewhere else,” he said. “We try to see each other as much as we can, but it can be difficult obviously.”

Strawser plays the clarinet. She’s moved over to majoring in industrial operations engineering now. Her first semester in the program just started.

So while it’s going to be new to her as the semester just got underway, she’s also looking forward to those new challenges. Her classes will be different from her previous handful of semesters, but that’s ok with her.

It might be worth mentioning at this point in the story that each of the three traveled with the Michigan football team to the Rose Bowl and the national championship game. Pageantry is a big part of college football and Michigan’s marching band prides itself on being one of the best.

“I think the most rewarding part for me is having the privilege of experiencing games from a different perspective,” Strawser said. “Pre game, we run out of the tunnel to a stadium of over 100,000 people — it’s really insane. It’s honestly a privilege of be a part of something so cool.”

Time management is important for any college student. Being in the marching band just ramps that up, Eathan said.

It was one of those things where in high school, it can be a bit easier. The college life can certainly make it more difficult.

“Definitely prioritizing my time well,” Eathan said when asked of college’s biggest hurdle. “In high school, you always know where to go and things are laid out for you. In college, you have to figure it out and being in the band especially, you lose two hours a day at least for rehearsal and you know game days are already taken for your time. So you learn how to make sure you have your priorities straight.”

Being in the marching band requires rehearsal almost every day. Saturdays can be different because kickoff can vary depending on opponent and television station coverage, but the band basically knows Saturday is tied up for the most part.

The Rose Bowl was no exception. Michigan was rewarded as a participant in the annual Rose Bowl Parade, a huge part of pageantry and college football lore.

Both the Klars and Strawser said the experience was an amazing one, even though they had a super-early wake up call to adhere to.

“We had to be on the busses by like 4 a.m., the parade was crazy,” Strawser said. “It was definitely challenging. By the end, everyone was tired. It was a lot.”

The parade was roughly 5.5 miles and both Strawser and Eathan estimated they played the fight song — The Victors — at least 50 times during the route.

“Complete muscle memory at this point,” Strawser said with a laugh.

Eathan said it was great to see the amount of people who came out to view the parade. He mentioned the route being swarmed with people on both sides of the street, which made it a rewarding experience.

“But at this point, honestly it’s never too crazy to see a lot of people for our performances,” he said. “Playing in front of 110,000 people in the Big House all the time kind of prepares you for a lot of people.”

And much like his sister, Eathan said he still gets a charge every Saturday for a home game when they come out of the tunnel.

“I still love when we start a performance and run out of that tunnel,” he said. “Just so many people happy to see us, cheering for us and the team. It’s a great feeling.”

Following the victory in the Rose Bowl by the Wolverines, the marching band also made a quick turnaround and headed off to the national championship in Houston. There was a little more freedom when it came to requirements for the band here, Strawser said. Members of the band were able to do some shopping at the local mall, for instance, as well as some sight-seeing.

And while earning the right to be called national champions was great to see for the marching band, winning the Rose Bowl was certainly special.

“Houston was amazing, winning the natty was the most incredible experience,” Rowan said. “But I think, honestly, being at the Rose Bowl and what that game means in general. To see the team win, literally right in front of us there at the end, it was one of the most exciting moments of my life.”

Eathan said having that little bit of a break prior to the national championship was a rewarding one.

“It was much more relaxed. It felt deserved, honestly,” he said. “We put in so much work, so it was nice to have a little fun as well.”

Rowan also works for the hockey team. She plans to attend graduate school here in a few months and has aspirations of being a registered dietician.

“I love Ann Arbor. I love the culture here,” she said, but noted that this will be her final semester with the marching band. “I’ve had my fun with the band and I think for me, it’s time to move on.”

Eathan, like Strawser, is also in the school of engineering. He is going to be a civil engineer, which is certainly a tough field and comes with difficult classes.

Strawser said the challenge which comes from a tough field like engineering is pushing her.

“I’m probably most looking forward to getting to see what industrial operations is all about,” she said. “I want to meet more people in my major and I’m looking forward to finding out about things.”

So while Rowan prepares to have her marching band career come to a close, both Eathan and Strawser said they have plans to remain with the band. It’s not easy, as there are challenges for spots to make it on the field for game days, but it’s something neither want to relinquish at this point either.

Both are continuing their band playing in the forms of winter sports for the maize and blue, but August will once again be on the horizon and a new year of Michigan football, this time defending the national championship, will make for more memories and playing the fight song.

Eathan said in his two years at Michigan, he’s probably played The Victors a couple thousand times.

He and Strawser have no problems continuing to play it again in the future.

Contact Sports Editor Brandon Watson at bwatson@gannett.com. Follow him on X, formerly known as twitter, @BwatsonSJ.

This article originally appeared on Sturgis Journal: Sturgis High School graduates love playing in marching band