The men’s basketball team is not the only group of Hoyas traveling to Atlanta this weekend, as the Georgetown University Pep Band accompanies the team for its fourth road trip this month. ixing songs and spirit, the band has already visited New York, Winston-Salem, N.C., and East Rutherford, N.J., for the Big East tournament and the opening rounds of the NCAA tournament. In between practicing tunes on the trombone and clarinet, Pep Band President Dave Liu (COL ’07) talks about life on the road with the Hoyas.

How excited are you to go to the Final Four?

I’m really excited to go to the Final Four. I mean, freshman year we didn’t even make it to the NIT. It’s just such a departure from that, and I never would have thought three years ago that I would be going to Atlanta with the basketball team.

Are there any special songs you’re planning?

We’re going to play most of the same stuff. A lot of people have been saying how the song “Eastern Motors,” the tune to the commercial for the car dealership, is really popular, so we’re definitely going to play that. We’ll play some of our other ones, like “Going Down.” Basketball players love it; before every game we play, you can always see Patrick Ewing Jr. and Octavius Spann bobbing their heads and moving with the beat.

What else will you guys do down in Atlanta?

We have a really full schedule. We’re leaving [this morning], we’re getting down there, and we’re actually participating in the Battle of the Final Four Bands with the other three schools. We don’t really know what that is, but we’re going to have to do that. And then we have some media coverage later that afternoon. Then Saturday before the game, we have another ESPN event and then a pep rally. Hopefully there’ll be even more after the game.

Does the band have any rituals or superstitions?

We have a lot more fun than other pep bands around the country. We definitely take more liberties – we paint our faces, we wear wigs, we go crazy. A lot of members of the Pep Band have rituals. We always have blue and gray M&M’s that we eat, and a lot of people will only paint their face one way. I wear the same shoes and same jeans for every single game, and the same bandana. So everyone has their own superstitions or rituals.

How have the hotels been on your trips?

The hotels have been really nice. When we went to the Big East, we stayed at the Hotel [Pennsylvania] across from Madison Square Garden. That was pretty bad, but it’s kind of a tradition for us. But in the NCAAs, the higher seeds get the nicer hotels, so this year we’ve gotten some pretty nice hotels.

Do you have a favorite song to play?

I like playing “Pretty Fly [for a White Guy]” because I play the trombone in the Pep Band, but I get to play the cowbell for [it]. That seems pretty popular, you know, because everyone’s like, “More cowbell.” I love doing that. I just get really into it.

Has all your travel had an impact on your schoolwork?

No. I’m a part-time student and I’m a senior, and even if I was a full-time student and I had a full course load, which a lot of Pep Band members have, I . would give up anything for this. Every one of them would give up anything for this opportunity to go to the Final Four. This is just amazing. It’s worth a B rather than an A in a class.

Are we going to beat Ohio State?

Knock on wood, but I am very confident, and I think so. I feel good about this game, you know. This team is resilient, and with the Pep Band there, they can’t lose.