INDIANAPOLIS — This year's Circle City Classic was a little different. There was no football game, but people said that didn't stop them from having a good time.
Thousands of people flocked to downtown Indianapolis to support some of their favorite HBCUs and see the marching bands from those schools compete for the top spot in a contest at Lucas Oil Stadium.
"HBCU bands or Historically Black Colleges and Universities, when they go forth as a band, it's not just music. It's not just the instruments themselves but their dancing and they incorporated the majorettes. They have the drum major and drum lines and it's all coming together to make all of these different sounds into one," said attendee Kevin J. Walker.
"This was pretty cool. I enjoyed it. Of course, it would have been better with the football teams, but even with just the bands, the excitement and the energy that was presented by everybody really made it worth it," said Walker.
"One of the best parts of the football game was the battle of the bands," according to another attendee, Marques Penner. "For that to still be here makes a lot of sense and still brings people out."
Visitors said the event was about more than football and music. It's about exposure to top-notch educational experiences.
"It makes them want to go to schools, go to HBCUs. A lot of good things always come out of HBCU," said Penner.
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"The Circle City Classic brings forth this great community and culture, bringing it to the forefront and to the limelight so that people can see, not just in Indiana, but throughout the country, that these positive African American young people are doing something positive to impact their community," said Walker.
That's why, game or no game, the Classic continues to be an important part of Indiana's legacy.