Should Kansas State fans expect to hear more ‘Sandstorm’ at future basketball games?

The loudest moment of Kansas State’s most recent victory inside Bramlage Coliseum wasn’t when Markquis Nowell drained an important three-pointer or when Nae’Qwan Tomlin threw down an athletic dunk against Texas Tech. It happened during a timeout when nothing was happening on the basketball court.

Why?

K-State athletic officials decided to fire up the home crowd by blaring the most popular (and controversial) song on campus — “Sandstorm.”

Mission accomplished. The K-State student section burst with excitement, fans began jumping around on metal bleachers like they were at a rave and a loud “K-S-U” chant filled the arena as the song kept playing over the loud speakers. When the spectacle came to an end, K-State athletic director Gene Taylor could be seen pumping his fist with enthusiasm from his floor seat.

“I am glad they chanted K-S-U,” Taylor later told the Eagle.

The song choice was unexpected, given that “Sandstorm” has rarely been played at K-State sporting events since the school ran into problems with students using it as an opportunity to chant vulgar words about rival KU every time it was played inside Bramlage, particularly when the Jayhawks were in town.

But the 1999 instrumental dance track from Finnish DJ and record producer Darude has long been a hit in Manhattan. K-State began playing it as a pump-up anthem when former coaches Bob Huggins and Frank Martin breathed new life into the basketball team with thrilling home victories, and it became a staple until it was all but banned midway through the Bruce Weber era.

K-State has only played the song a few times in recent years.

The last time Taylor was asked about “Sandstorm” potentially returning to Bramlage, he said, “Fans love it as well as the students, but we need to come up with a new chant to hear it very often.”

New K-State basketball coach Jerome Tang has made it a personal mission to end what he calls “the dumb chant” about KU and add “Sandstorm” back to the Bramlage playlist. Before the current season began, he spoke at pep rallies across the area and urged fans to chant “K-S-U” the next time they heard the song.

Now that students have taken the hint, it’s possible the Wildcats will play the song more often.

“It will all depend on the game,” Taylor said. “If we are winning or losing big we won’t play it. But if it’s an intense game and we make a run to get ahead or get close then we will. It will not be on a regular basis, but I am more comfortable to play it now.”

The timing for “Sandstorm” was perfect during K-State’s 68-58 victory over Texas Tech last Saturday.

K-State trailed by eight points with 13:20 remaining in the game and it felt like the Red Raiders were on their way to pulling off an upset. But then the Wildcats responded with a 9-0 run to take the lead, which led to a timeout from Texas Tech coach Mark Adams.

With K-State suddenly in the lead of an important Big 12 game, Taylor gave the signal for “Sandstorm” and the arena erupted.

Perhaps that spike in crowd energy helped the Wildcats continue to pull away for a double-digit victory.

Everyone’s favorite hype song was back. It may be here to stay.