A big part of the gameday experience is the band.

The Mercedes High School band is celebrating a major milestone — 100 years of playing for the community. For 10th grader Emma Smith, percussion started with a passion she found years ago.

"It was more my passion for percussion since elementary school," Smith said.

Now, she's a member of Mercedes High School's Mighty Tiger Band as a vibraphone player. When she and the rest of the band hit the road, a lot has to go with them.

"The trailer means a lot since, in front ensemble and percussion in general, we're the ones mainly using it and it's a lot easier to transport our materials from here to wherever we go," Smith said.

Director of Bands and Fine Arts Guy McKinney said that after years of carrying all of their equipment, the trailer was starting to show its age.

"It had been about 13, 14 years since it had been painted and fixed up and it was starting to look a little, look a little odd, drab, and off," McKinney said.

So band boosters decided to do something about it.

They raised nearly $30,000 through fundraisers and sponsors and used the money to repair the trailer and give it a completely new look.

Instead of the vinyl lettering officials originally envisioned, they went local.

"We wanted to be a little different, something we wanted to come up with, something a little unique, something that I don't think is anywhere out there in the Valley. So, everybody's just doing the traditional wraps or vinyl logos. So, we decided to go with the mural look," Band Booster President Juan Lopez Jr. said.

Lopez said they went with a local artist to hand-paint the mural that would now travel with the band. The new look comes during the program's big year.

"We're celebrating part of the fact that we are celebrating our 100-year anniversary of the Tiger Band, and what a fitting way to do it, with this amazing trailer that our band boosters provided for our students," Mercedes ISD Interim Superintendent Dr. Alicia Noyola said.

Now, Smith is one of the students writing its next chapter.

"I feel that the details, the designs, every little thing goes really great into showing how much our community cares for us and how much they want to show off what the band has to show," Smith said.

With 100 years behind them, and a new generation ready to make some noise for the next one.

Watch the video above for the full story.