KU Marching Jayhawks Take Center Stage with Once-in-a-Lifetime Opportunities in 2026 Season

KU’s marching band, the Marching Jayhawks, have already faced once-in-a-lifetime opportunities during their 2026 season.

“We have a lot of activities going on this year,” said Director of Athletic Bands, Sharon Toulouse. “We are playing the Chiefs game on Monday Night Football, then taking a group to London.”

It will be the first time the band has played at a Chiefs game since 2012.

40 students were brought to London and will perform with the Arizona State band during the halftime show of the Union Jack Classic on Saturday.

“We are collaborating with Arizona State; they are bringing 40 students as well,” Toulouse said.  James Hudson, the director of the Sun Devil Marching Band, was the band director when Toulouse was getting her master’s degree from KU.

“We’ve been collaborating a lot, making sure we have the same instrumentation and all the fun stuff like that,” Toulouse said.

KU Senior trombone player, Hannah Platt, studied abroad in Wales before and is looking forward to returning to the UK.

“There were definitely some things in London that I wanted to do but wasn’t able to, so I’m excited,” Platt said.

Senior Kate Crisler, a drum major for the Marching Jayhawks, also went to London for the game. Drum majors conduct the band during halftime of KU games, but for London, Crisler is one of the students marching in the band on the field, a change from when the band is in Lawrence.

“I love getting to do something different and get to have different responsibilities, but it’s definitely really cool to be able to march in the band again,” Crisler said.

Back in Lawrence, the band has made changes to its pregame performance and gained a new seating section located at the front of the student section, which was moved behind the south endzone this season.

The band got to test out their new section in KU’s first two home games.

“We fed off the students’ energy, and I would like to think they fed off of ours too,” Toulouse said.

Change has been nothing new for band students, as they have performed in the new stadium,  the old stadium, and Arrowhead Stadium all in the span of 3 years.

“Change is the only normal thing,” Platt said.

The Marching Jayhawks will return home for their next performance on Oct. 3 when KU faces Middle Tennessee State.

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