From Blue Hens to Marching Ravens

As Baltimore Ravens fans gear up for the first home game of the 2025 season, two musical alumni from the University of Delaware College of Agriculture and Natural Resources (CANR) prepare for the Ravens' pregame show.

"Being in the stadium surrounded by fans on all sides is a unique experience; it's overwhelming in the best possible way," said Matthew Bonett, a UD Class of 2019 alumnus.

Bonett and fellow CANR alumnus Peter Mann, UD Class of 2022 (B.S.) and 2024 (M.S.), play alto saxophone for Baltimore's Marching Ravens, one of only two marching bands in the NFL.

Ninety minutes before kickoff, the band performs a concert on the Eutaw Street walkway between Oriole Park and the Warehouse at Camden Yards. One hour before kickoff, the Marching Ravens parade down RavensWalk to M&T Bank Stadium, starting the game day festivities.

Mann and Bonett met at UD while playing in the 8-bit Orchestra, a student ensemble promoting video game music as an art form. They soon discovered they had much in common; both began playing clarinet in fifth grade and went on to perform in their high school marching bands. They were also studying in the Department of Animal and Food Sciences and performing with the University of Delaware Fightin' Blue Hen Marching Band. Although Mann and Bonett's time at UD only overlapped for one year, they formed a lasting friendship.