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Meet The Couple Behind The Blue Band Engagement

If you were lucky enough to watch Penn State defeat the San Diego State Aztecs last weekend, you also got to witness a touching moment in Beaver Stadium. During the second half, a Blue Band member asked a very important question to his girlfriend. He got down on one knee and offered her a ring. She said yes, and the Blue Band erupted into applause. Soon, the entire student section caught on to the Blue Band’s cheers. When the stadium’s cameras turned on the happy couple, every Penn State fan in the stadium joined in celebration. Beaver Stadium was soon chanting “SHE SAID YES!” over and over.

But who said yes? Who was the man who asked her to marry him? How did the now famous “Blue Band couple” meet? To answer those questions, we caught up with the dynamic duo themselves: Maddy Cook and John Hudish.

Maddy and John’s story started long before last weekend’s game. In fact, the two first met at the beginning of the 2014 spring semester. They were both involved in Club Swim, and the two officially met at a swim meet on February 8, 2014.

“We met in the spring of our sophomore year through club sports,” Maddy said. “On February 8, 2014 we swam in a meet together. John told me ‘good job’ after one of my races and tapped me on the shoulder. I invited him to dinner in Pollock that night with some of our teammates, and I’ve been hooked ever since.”

The two officially began dating on March 1, 2014. Nearly one year and seven months later, John decided to pop the question. For John and Maddy, their proposal’s obvious venue was the Blue Band section in Beaver Stadium. John has played in the band since 2012, while Maddy works as one of the band’s uniform managers.

“I had no idea what was happening at first. John asked me to move from my normal space on the sidelines and sit next to him in the trumpet section. I was nervous because I knew I wasn’t supposed to be there,” Cook said. “During one of the breaks in the game the entire band sat down. John had me stand on a bench, and he asked me to marry him!”

Immediately after Maddy accepted John’s proposal, their mutual friend and fellow Blue Band member Drew held up the “She said yes!” sign that graced the big screens of Beaver Stadium. John was surprised when the entire stadium started chanting.”It all worked out much better than I expected,” John said.

Both John and Maddy are seniors this year. Though their engagement is exciting, the two are looking forward to finishing their four years at school together. “State College has been the center point for most things in our relationship, so I’m glad we have another year in Happy Valley,” John said.

But when it comes to the wedding, Maddy and John want their happy day to be as Penn State themed as their proposal was. “I really want to have a Penn State wedding to go with this Penn State proposal,” Maddy said. “Maybe I’ll even be able to bring in some Traveling Trumpets for John!”

Congrats to the happy couple!

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About the Author

Anna Foley

Anna is a senior majoring in Communication Arts & Sciences and Spanish with a minor in Theatre. Yes, she went to Spain. Follow her half-funny thoughts @exfoleyator and send her chain emails at [email protected].

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