The University’s men’s basketball team has captured the attention of mainstream media, and now the squad has its own theme song written by Monmouth students. Andrew Boxman and Guy Battaglia, who both recently graduated from the music industry program at the University, were approached by Chair of the Music Department, Joseph Rapolla, to write a song for the team. The two took on the challenge and had the rap-rock anthem called “Heart in the Game” written and produced within two weeks. At the home game against the Marist Red Foxes on Jan. 24, Boxman and Battaglia, along with other Blue Hawk Records representatives, handed out free downloads of the song to every fan in the stadium.
As quoted in the Asbury Park Press, Ken Taylor, associate athletic director for marketing and development at the University, said, “It’s great that the students are getting behind the team and that they are putting their talents together to do this.” Taylor continued to explain that they will play the song during the team’s warm-ups right before the game for every home game. Boxman stated, “It’s great to hear the song at every home game playing for all the fans. That’s the most rewarding part of the whole experience.”
The song has a really strong feel once you hear it playing in the Multipurpose Activity Center (MAC). “Heart in the Game” is the last song that plays right before the tip off. It’s that point when the players and crowd have so much energy and they’re ready to play. The chorus really sums up the whole atmosphere and gets the whole crowd going: “We go hard in the paint, put my heart in the game. Got players on the court and they’re making it rain. We go hard in the paint, put my heart in the game. Got players on the bench and they’re going insane.” Some of the lyrics make reference to the crazy shenanigans of the Monmouth “bench mob,” as seen all over the internet.
The Asbury Park Press wrote, “The song grabs your attention with its driving instrumentation and catchy lyrics.” Boxman said about the song, “I was excited to be contacted by the music and athletic department to write the song. We wanted to make the song relevant enough that it related to the team but have a broader basketball appeal. I think we succeeded.” The song does just that by also making reference to former NBA stars like LeBron James, Michael Jordan, and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.
Boxman was on vocals with Battaglia on lead guitar. Others on the track include current music industry student Pat Napurano on bass guitar, and music industry graduates Kevin Houston on rhythm guitar and Joe Enright on drums. The song was recorded and produced by Blue Hawk Records in Lakehouse Studios in Asbury Park. The guys are rumored to be playing the song live during the last home game of the season on Sunday, Feb. 28 against Niagra at 5 p.m. in the MAC. You can now go to HeartInTheGame.weebly.com to stream and download the theme song written exclusively for the Monmouth Hawks.
IMAGE COURTESY of Monmouth Athletics
