Students cover their mouths as they “whoop” during the Miami hockey game Friday night at Goggin Ice Center. (SCOTT ALLISON | The Miami Student)
As Miami University continues with the standardization of the RedHawk mascot, the last reminders of Miami's Redskin heritage continue to disappear. One of the most notable is the attempt to replace the "Scalp Song" once chanted at hockey games.
Although the Miami hockey pep band, now named The Band of Brotherhood, was forbidden to play the "Scalp Song" during fall semester, there has not been a definitive replacement, said Stephen Lytle, director of the marching and pep bands at Miami.
"We've looked at a couple different things and we haven't settled on one for this semester," Lytle said. "We tried Ceilo Green's ‘Forget You,' but we had to abandon that because obviously it wasn't appropriate."
According to Lytle, "Bad Boys" was played instead of the "Scalp Song" as a generic placeholder.
According to Lytle, the "Scalp Song" had been a Miami tradition since its creation in the 1920s.
Originally written by President Alfred Upham as a school fight song, the "Scalp Song" was first sung by the glee club during halftime of the football games, Lytle said.
The song has evolved into the war cry of Miami hockey fans. It was played when a player from the opposing team was sent to the penalty box.
Currently, when an opposing player is sent to the penalty box, "Bad Boys" is played. Students still chant the "Scalp Song," said first-year Sarah Soltan.
Soltan said fans are widely opposed to cooperating with the ban.
"Students are definitely doing the exact opposite of what the administration wants," she said. "Students don't want to replace the song."
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Ultimately, the "Scalp Song's" replacement will be up to the students, Lytle said.
"We (will) allow for nominations and then voting to determine the new song," Lytle said. "Though the hockey season is over, there's the rest of this year and a few months of next fall's semester to come up with a replacement.
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