Songs and memories from being a trainer at Tyler Lee. Our school, Robert E. Lee, was known around town as "REL." The title stems from spirit shirts made each year by our student body. They were simply red with white writing that read, "GIVE 'EM HELL, REL!" across the front. (This was also the "breakout" used by the girl's soccer team when I was their trainer freshman year.) Though this was a popular phrase at sporting events and around campus, I'm pretty sure we weren't actually allowed to wear the t-shirts at school. I don't know for sure, because I never bought one (now I wish I had), but I think I remember people complaining about how "stupid our school was" for not letting us wear shirts with the word "hell" on them, even though they clearly promoted school spirit.
1.. Let's Get It Started - The Black Eyed Peas
I remember this blaring over the speakers during warm ups for basically every sport. Football, basketball, baseball- this was a pregame staple.
2. Bring 'Em Out - TI
This was played as the basketball girls entered the gym for varsity games. They would then proceed to do their choreographed warm up routine which was actually pretty cool.
3. Skater Boi - Avril Lavigne
Straight from "The Ren CD," a mix I made for our Senior Sanity Nights back when I was known as PR. I would always play this when Sam, Robert, Herb and I were driving around on Saturday nights, on the way to games on Fridays or any time two or more of us were in the car together. (...we still play it when we're in the car together.) I think I started doing it to annoy/mess with Robert and Herb, but eventually it was just part of our car rides. Four high school seniors driving around singing Avril at the top of our lungs? Okay, yes.
4. U Can't Touch This - MC Hammer
During the summers, Coach T worked as a trainer/dj at cheer camps to earn some extra cash. On the way to away games during football season, we would cram three or four of us into his truck and raid his CD's all they way to wherever we were going. No joke, we'd probably go through anywhere between 7-10 each trip. We'd put in his cheer camp CD's and skip through the tracks until we found one we liked. This one always seemed to be a favorite.
5. The Devil Went Down to Georgia - Charlie Daniels Band
About half of Coach's CDs were pop-hip-hop-"bring-it-on" cheer camp mixes, the other half- country. I give him complete credit for my love of country music. I paid no attention to it until I got to high school where my boss was a West Texas Permian MOJO'er who drowned me in country music, poker and PBR from the time I was working spring football of my 8th grade year to the day the four of us helped him move to Mansfield the summer before we started college. I'm pretty sure this particular song is on Coach T's top 3 list of favorite songs ever (rightfully so, it's a great song). Any time I was in his truck for an extended period of time - running errands, going to a game - somehow I would find it coming through the speakers. It didn't matter if we were listening to CDs or the radio, it would always find us.
6. Eye of the Tiger - Survivor
Another one taken straight from the cheer CD's and later added to "the Ren CD." Definitely a Friday night favorite to get us pumped for the game or to sing obnoxiously at 6am on August 1 as we fill up coolers for the first day of 2-a-days.
7. Let's Go (Edit) - Trick Daddy
Our band would always play this during football games. I mainly remember it being played a lot in the 4th quarter when were were seriously dominating the other team, but I'm sure it was played at other times too. They would start it off with one person playing the melody, then the crowd and sidelines would go CRAZY and the rest of the band would join in. It was the song that was used to pump the crowd up and "get crunk" on the sidelines. I think me trying to explain it to you does not justice, but just go with it. Freshman year, we were at Texas Stadium playing The Woodlands in a third-round playoff game. It was a close game, and the band started jammin'. I was in my usual spot then, standing with my water bottles next to the O-Line, when Frater, a senior lineman probably more than twice my size decided he was going to "get crunk" and jam out with the band as well. He was holding his helmet in his hand and began swinging it around "dancing," as much as he could on the sidelines of a football game. Unlucky for me, he didn't bother to see me standing right next to him, and I didn't notice what he was doing until it was too late. Next thing I know, I'm whacked straight in the face with a big red football helmet and all I hear is "Oh my gosh I'm so sorry, oh my gosh..." It hurt, but I'm pretty sure I was okay, because I don't remember anything else happening with that. I don't think any of the coaches or anyone else in the stadium noticed or saw it happen, because no one ever said anything to me about it. I think we probably just laughed it off and I'm sure I told everyone who would listen about how I got clocked by an O-Lineman.
8. Whomp There It Is - Tag Team
Another one of our favorite cheer camp songs to jam to, and also later added to "The Ren CD." I would always freak the boys out by the fact that I knew all the words, and we would sing it back and forth with each other working the the TR. Also one of those "must listen to" songs whenever we were in the car together.
9. Ice Ice Baby - Vanilla Ice
Somehow, this ended up being Robert's theme song. I'm not sure how that happened, but it did. Every time I hear it I think of him and how we'd blast it through our speakers on our way to "renegade" the JT trainers each year on REL/JT week, or how I'd hear it coming out of his room during the few months he lived with me at the end of senior year, or how we'd jokingly sing it during morning treatments or riding around in the gator during practice filling up coolers. Or how sometimes someone would say, "Okay, stop." in the training room, and all I could say in response to this was, "...collaborate and listen," which would trigger everyone else in the room, athletes or trainers, to keep going until we forgot what came next. Okay, dumb song, yes, but seriously fun.
10. YMCA - The Village People
YMCA needs no explanation. Especially if you know the four of us and how obnoxious we are. I distinctly remember one trip to the Metroplex in Coach T's truck where this happened to be playing. He wouldn't let us skip to the next song until all of us in the car sang it and did the motions full out. Yeah, it was pretty fun.
11. Grillz - Nelly
First of all, I think this song is hilarious. It is utterly ridiculous. Somehow it became one of mine and Sam's songs. I think maybe it was played during warm ups for one of the sports we worked, but I don't remember for sure. This song gave us lots of laughs.
12. Welcome to the Jungle - Guns N Roses
I distinctly remember this song being used each year on the highlight video shown at the Football Banquet in February.
13. Wanna Be A Baller (Edit) - Lil' Troy
I'm not really sure how this one happened either, but it did. Somehow this was one of "our songs," but I don't specifically remember it being on any of Coach's CD's. I remember singing it in the car though on the way to games, which was probably Robert or Herb's doing. Anyway, I remember making up my own version of this song and singing around the training room, I wish I remembered it so I could share it with you, but unfortunately I don't.
14. We Are The Champions - Queen
I have this memory burned into my brain never to leave. I remember being a sophomore and being so excited that for once we (we being the sophomores- athletes, trainers, and managers- that traveled with the Varsity) actually got to ride a charter bus to a game instead of a "yellow dog." It was also really fun having our own bus, away from the upperclassmen. It was also REALLY fun, because we were on the way home from winning the first State Championship for football ever in our school's history. We had just pulled into town from San Antonio, and it must have been past midnight. I remember driving down the Loop and seeing both sides of the road lined with cars honking and fans cheering as we drove past on our way back to the school. We'd pass stop lights with lines of cars flashing lights and honking. I don't remember what I was feeling exactly, except overwhelmed and "how could something like this actually happen to me?!" We were all pressed up against the sides of the bus, staring out the windows at our town that had assembled to welcome us home. For some reason the lights on the bus were on, and I remember looking up and seeing Marcus, then 3rd string QB, who would 2 years later be our Varsity starter, walking up and down the isle getting us pumped up and singing "We are the champions of Texas..." over and over. I don't remember if we actually made up verses or any other lyrics than that, but honestly, what other lyrics do you need? That one said it all. Champions indeed.
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